In defense of powder coat
03-18-19, 10:41 PM
#1
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In defense of powder coat
"It blurrs lug edges"
"Powder coat gets in the threads and makes it difficult to install components"
"Etc., etc., etc."
Yes, there's nothing like a fantastic wet paint job, especially when you have thinned lugs from a master craftsman.
But look at man a vintage Schwinn Paramount, the Nervex lugs rise proud and high. Production frames rarely have thinned out lugs.
At 4-5x the cost of a decent powder coat, how many frames can one afford to wet paint?
Show me your:
a) crappy powder coated frames, or
b) your wonderfully powder coated frames.
I'll start with some wonderful ones:
Not so bad, eh?
"Powder coat gets in the threads and makes it difficult to install components"
"Etc., etc., etc."
Yes, there's nothing like a fantastic wet paint job, especially when you have thinned lugs from a master craftsman.
But look at man a vintage Schwinn Paramount, the Nervex lugs rise proud and high. Production frames rarely have thinned out lugs.
At 4-5x the cost of a decent powder coat, how many frames can one afford to wet paint?
Show me your:
a) crappy powder coated frames, or
b) your wonderfully powder coated frames.
I'll start with some wonderful ones:
Not so bad, eh?
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03-18-19, 11:17 PM
#3
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Well, @gugie, it's hard to make a judgement from those 8-10 foot shots, its all in the details. I've seen most of the bikes you pictured above a lot closer, and they all looked good to me . 
I've only got one frame PCed; it turned out OK. 8 out 10, two thumbs up, would do business again.
I've only got one frame PCed; it turned out OK. 8 out 10, two thumbs up, would do business again.
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● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
Last edited by Lascauxcaveman; 03-20-19 at 12:08 AM.
03-19-19, 01:20 AM
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My problem with powdercoat is that it's extremely difficult to get off, so when it eventually gets beat up and someone realizes how difficult and/or expensive it'll be refinish the frame again it'll end up being thrown away instead. One less piece of history for the world, and all because a previous owner took the lazy, cheap way out. With just a little bit of learning and a little bit of effort anyone can put on a better-looking paint job which will last nearly as long as powdercoat, and will also be practically removable in the future. It's really easy, guys, it just takes some time.
As for the examples so far, that red thing with the fenders looks like it's been Plasti-Dipped. The others... well, anything looks good if you're far enough away. The orange Trek, on the other hand, looks about right because Trek put way too much paint on them when they were new.
As for the examples so far, that red thing with the fenders looks like it's been Plasti-Dipped. The others... well, anything looks good if you're far enough away. The orange Trek, on the other hand, looks about right because Trek put way too much paint on them when they were new.
03-19-19, 01:44 AM
#5
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It's your bike. Do what you want. Some people take hobbies way too seriously.
03-19-19, 06:02 AM
#6
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I think all the bikes posted look fine. Very good actually. Sure some bikes deserve wet paint, but not everyone can wear a fine Italian suit either. My understanding is PC is way better environmentally, so that gives it a large bias in my book.
03-19-19, 06:06 AM
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I think the problem with powdercoating is it can rust underneath. Which can also happen with paint, but the process is much slower and much more obvious to the naked eye.
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03-19-19, 06:19 AM
#9
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Like wet paint, the final quality has much to do with the skill of the operator. I had many bikes powder coated by a local guy who was also a bicyclist, and every one was a work of art. He stopped taking outside/non contracted jobs and the only other local person who does PC does terrible, terrible work on bike frames (although he does fine on patio furniture).
I have a frame he did that's so bad I'll have to have it stripped and redone at some point by someone else...and it's in storage because I can't bear to look at it.
I have a frame he did that's so bad I'll have to have it stripped and redone at some point by someone else...and it's in storage because I can't bear to look at it.
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03-19-19, 06:28 AM
#10
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Comment wasn't rude. Pretty much direct and to the point. If you're offended by it, maybe it's you..............
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03-19-19, 06:34 AM
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Anyway back to the topic...
I think aesthetically it's a toss-up. I've seen powder that looks thin and wet like paint. I'm unconvinced there's a meaningful difference in rust prevention between the two (just about how much prep you put into it), but the point about removing the powder being very difficult is a good one.
03-19-19, 07:50 AM
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My problem with powdercoat is that it's extremely difficult to get off, so when it eventually gets beat up and someone realizes how difficult and/or expensive it'll be refinish the frame again it'll end up being thrown away instead. One less piece of history for the world, and all because a previous owner took the lazy, cheap way out. With just a little bit of learning and a little bit of effort anyone can put on a better-looking paint job which will last nearly as long as powdercoat, and will also be practically removable in the future. It's really easy, guys, it just takes some time.
As for the examples so far, that red thing with the fenders looks like it's been Plasti-Dipped. The others... well, anything looks good if you're far enough away. The orange Trek, on the other hand, looks about right because Trek put way too much paint on them when they were new.
As for the examples so far, that red thing with the fenders looks like it's been Plasti-Dipped. The others... well, anything looks good if you're far enough away. The orange Trek, on the other hand, looks about right because Trek put way too much paint on them when they were new.
03-19-19, 07:51 AM
#13
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I saw it as a reply to the post above it.
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03-19-19, 08:10 AM
#15
Senior Member
I believe that telling Gugie that his posting a perfectly reasonable thread on a bicycle enthusiast site is "taking his hobby way too seriously" is a bit rude. It just struck me as needlessly negative. Maybe I'm off
Anyway back to the topic...
I think aesthetically it's a toss-up. I've seen powder that looks thin and wet like paint. I'm unconvinced there's a meaningful difference in rust prevention between the two (just about how much prep you put into it), but the point about removing the powder being very difficult is a good one.
Anyway back to the topic...
I think aesthetically it's a toss-up. I've seen powder that looks thin and wet like paint. I'm unconvinced there's a meaningful difference in rust prevention between the two (just about how much prep you put into it), but the point about removing the powder being very difficult is a good one.
Last edited by sdn40; 03-19-19 at 08:43 AM.
03-19-19, 08:11 AM
#16
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I've heard powder is hard to remove. Maybe manually, that may be true. If so, that's only because of the durability of the coat to begin with. I've had many bikes pc'd. The local "good" powder shop screwed up one. They just soaked the frame in a chemical tank & didn't seem to make a deal of it.
I've also heard that the frame can rust under the coating. That is also true of paint. That issue is 100% prep work & why some guys are cheap & some are good. In properly prepared powder jobs, the powder actually gets into the pores of the metal. Chips and scratches are better localized and can not travel as they do under paint. Local market's vary, but $200 for a job done right is cheaper than a $100 job done wrong.
I've seen the salt water spray test results. There is a reason we pc'd all the deck railings on the ship I served on.
Below is a before & after pictures of my most amazing transformation. This 40 year old frame was cured & will easily go on to live another 40 or 50 more with out issue.
20181022_150454 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
20181108_191930 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
20181108_191908 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
I've also heard that the frame can rust under the coating. That is also true of paint. That issue is 100% prep work & why some guys are cheap & some are good. In properly prepared powder jobs, the powder actually gets into the pores of the metal. Chips and scratches are better localized and can not travel as they do under paint. Local market's vary, but $200 for a job done right is cheaper than a $100 job done wrong.
I've seen the salt water spray test results. There is a reason we pc'd all the deck railings on the ship I served on.
Below is a before & after pictures of my most amazing transformation. This 40 year old frame was cured & will easily go on to live another 40 or 50 more with out issue.
20181022_150454 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
20181108_191930 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
20181108_191908 by Richard Mozzarella, on Flickr
03-19-19, 08:20 AM
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This reminds me: my custom Gugificazione(tm) fork is still suffering the indignity of rattle-can primer and paint, with touch-ups here and there. It deserves a proper powdercoat job.
03-19-19, 08:59 AM
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03-19-19, 09:31 AM
#21
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MI have a 1990 touring frame made by Fuji which was powdercoated before I bought the frame off this site. Its pretty good overall- its a touring bike so as long as its square and overall good condition, Im happy. Low standards, given the purpose.
The powedercoat chipped off one of the top cable guides, i would guess due to sweat/rain. I covered it with testors paint and its held fine. It convinced me to powdercoat an MTB frame for one of my kids, so its clearly good enough for my standards to try it out on another bike.
And I have a Schwinn Premis that will be powdercoated at some point this year, once I strip the paint and emory off the surface rust.
Powdercoat on thinned lugs could be an issue- but production bikes?...meh, the detail is still there to me.
Here is my touring bike, shortly after being built. It was once so shiny!
The powedercoat chipped off one of the top cable guides, i would guess due to sweat/rain. I covered it with testors paint and its held fine. It convinced me to powdercoat an MTB frame for one of my kids, so its clearly good enough for my standards to try it out on another bike.
And I have a Schwinn Premis that will be powdercoated at some point this year, once I strip the paint and emory off the surface rust.
Powdercoat on thinned lugs could be an issue- but production bikes?...meh, the detail is still there to me.
Here is my touring bike, shortly after being built. It was once so shiny!
Last edited by mstateglfr; 03-19-19 at 09:34 AM.
03-19-19, 09:57 AM
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03-19-19, 10:03 AM
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I’ve been powder coating a lot of things lately, we have a very good powder-coating business nearby, Hy-Tec in Waukesha. Only a matter of time before I take a bike frame over there.
Tim
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03-19-19, 10:03 AM
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Do you spray the decals with a clear or leave them proud? If you can get thin water slides I can see them being left to the elements but the thicker decals would not look good on a fine machine w/o a clear to blend into the finish.
03-19-19, 10:43 AM
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My painted bikes do. Very little difference in appearance, and a huge difference in price.
A lot of bikes in the 80's did not clear over the decals, and some had stickers, not decals.