KR-1S.co.uk Forum

Right before we start, I'm not a pro, I just like to have a go at stuff.

Good, glad we got that out of the way.

Before you start powder coating (pc) you will need the following:

A compressor, set to about 55psi(it doesn't have to be an all singing all dancing model)
An oven set to about 180c(not the one you cook in, a good second hand one will do)
Basic safety equiptment (a good mask, heat proof glove etc)
And the most important thing, the powder coating (pc) gun itself.

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Here you will see the very basic pc gun. In the pic you will see:

The gun itself.
The electric unit thingy.
A foot pedal (you guitarists will be familiar with this)
And an earthing clip.

Before you connect the pc gun to the compressor you will need one of these
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This little bugger takes all the moisture out of the air supplied by the compressor, this is very very vital because we are using a powder!!!

Ok, the part I have prepared for this is the rear shock reservoir.
This has been shot blasted (yes I know, but I don't have an aqua blasting set up to hand but I do have a shot blasting cabinet!)
Once cleaned (remember to degrease etc), remove all dust residue by what ever means you have available, I used a power washer

Now because this is a cast item you need to pre-heat it to remove all the crap, I won't show you any pics, because it's boring. Just stick it in the oven at 200c for about ooh 30 mins or so.
Once it has cooled, rub any stains, crud etc off with a clean rag.

Here we are

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The bungs are used purely to stop the powder going where I don't want it to. Note the earthing clip.

Once you are ready, press the foot pedal down & slowly coat the part with powder, it will go everywhere.

You should have something that looks like this once finished

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Make sure it has been fully coated, just like spray painting, try not to get too much in one place.

It doesn't run like sprayed paint, it just makes it uneven.

Now if you're a bit of a penny pincher like me, you want to coat as much as possible before switching the oven on, so make sure you have a rack to pop the lot onto


Now using that glove I mentioned, carefully pop the thing into the oven (just remember we are using a dust paint, so if you touch it, its back to square one)

Try to get as much as you can into the oven at one time



But unlike me, try to keep all the parts about the same size
Bigger parts take longer to cure........ Oh well, I'm not a pro at this after all

Give it 10 to 15 mins, keep checking inbetween too.

And this is what you should end up with
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It will do,
And a few other bits too


Remember to clean up all threads etc.
Remember to wear a mask to protect your lungs from nasty dust stuff
Remember to remove the mask when you go for a cig.

Please feel free to add to this thread.

Undoubtably I will learn new techniques etc the more I do, so I will post updates. But most importantly, give it a go.

I always put screws in the threads when sending parts to the pc'er. that way you don't have to clean up the threads

That's a really useful thread Howie!

Your oven looks nice though, far better than the one in my kitchen - want to swap? (oh erm maybe I should try some pc'in in the old oven and buy myself a new un for the kitchen )

thats bloody brilliant, cheers for putting this on here, ill give that a go on the next project.
Where abouts can you get the powder from?

Thanks fella's, i'm blushing now

I wrote all that lot last night, while under the influence of a bottle of shiraz or something, so I'll go over it all again to see if I've missed anything out.

I get my powder off ebay bandit, look for the fishing supplies sellers.

Or you can get it from places like Caswell Europe & possibly Frost auto's

The ebay sellers tend to sell it in smaller quantities, which is ideal for my purposes.

The results do look quite inpressive, being that i build a lot stud i have most of that equip on the van.

Just in the process of getting a beat up old norton, so this could be a real money saver. Nice work. and cheers for the info.

The only problem is, does anyone no where i can get an oven big enough for a commando frame. haha

Well bandit,

funny you should say that because there are companies that make ovens for specific tasks, they are very expensive

But how hard can it be to make your own oven Its something I will look into soon.

But in the meantime, here is 250g of coating powder, it cost £3.50 + £1.80 P&P (although I bought a few items & the P&P was a lot less)

[img][img]http://i800.photobucket.com/albums/yy28 ... /011-1.jpg[/img]

Baby wipes are purely to give you an idea of what 250g of powder looks like.

Now this little bag will coat tonnes of parts, compare the cost to a can of Halfords spray paint & how much painting you can do with one can.
And how durable spray paint is & if you're going to be doing a lot of bikes, it makes sense to invest in a powder coating set up.

yea your right, definately makes sense with thise prices, look forward to giving it a go over the autum.

By th way, dont try and bring any powder like that through customs.

By th way, dont try and bring any powder like that through customs.

I thought that when I posted the pic, maybe I should have used the black bag of powder I bought

Good effort Howie.
I suppose you can do 90% of your bits and pieces in a wee oven like that one.
It's just frames and wheels you'd need to go big for.

Howie let me know when you have a bigger oven to take a frame

That's brilliant Howie =D> =D>

Looks like it'll pay for itself pretty quickly !!

Agree, Great info Howie. Really useful.
So much so that Ive offered to buy the missus a new oven.
However when she found out why ... She said only when I get her a new Kitchen !

Unfortunately, that makes my attempt at powder coating an expensive option...



Inconsiderate cow