Im doing a complete restoration of my GS and am going to powder coat my frame, swing arm, wheels, lower fork tubes, and many other parts.  My question is, I wasnt able to get my roller bearings out of my swing arm, will they be ok in there during the powder coat process?  We were going to try and tap them out but figured we would wreck them so decided it was worth the shot to just leave them in there.  Do any of you know any tricks for getting them out and if they do get wrecked will I be able to get replacements?  Any help welcome, Thanks in advance.

Well mask it so sand and powder dont get in there, then remove the seals clean it, and redline synthetic wheel bearing grease the living day lights out of it ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Anyone ever powder coat the painted parts?? Seems like it'd be extra durable... Can you powder coat plastic? I need to go read up on power coating... I wonder how much that would cost... :wheels turning:...

trey

Powdercoating... metal only ... steel is ideal, aluminum is a good second choice ... those bars you got ... powdercoated... that plastic like paint ... tough as nails but a bit on the dullish side for shine ...
Cool.
Srinath.

what should I expect to pay for someone to powdercoat my frame, I was quoted 150 by one guy.

derek

Yea 100-150 seems normal... the tricky part ... they should get in and sand blast the hard to reach spots and get it well cleaned out, and then spray the powder and get it coated well ... my guy said he does a 1/2 cure and then looks it over, and then sprays the parts that dont have full cover then cures it again ... OK so not a clue WTF that means ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Quote from: seshadri_srinathtough as nails but a bit on the dullish side for shine ...
Cool.
Srinath.

He was just saying that the bars you got were dull finish, but that was just a satin finish.  They come in all different finishes...really awesome finishes...wrinkle is by far the coolest IMHO because the paint separates into little geometric swirls, which isn't good for a bike because it would trap dirt.  There are also hammered finishes, no-slip grip finishes, you name it.  And all of the finishes are just an inherant part of the paint...it's in there before they cook it.  One step.  You only get into two steps when you start adding effects like metallic sparkles which need a basecoat or a clear topcoat.

They can have a mirror finish, but usually are applied over a nickel plated substrate...AKA spendy...

Ask your powdercoater about the Tiger Drylac Metallics and Special Effects catalouges...they will know what you are talking about and they will know why you are asking to see them...they are ridiculously cool...

Cool thanks for the info.  I have seen some really nice looking powder coat jobs on OCC, almost as nice with a nice paint with a good coat of clear.

OK ... yea I aint paying for a color change ... so its whatever he's spraying at the given time... sand blasting and powdercoating on them for under $5 ... I am not arguing with that ...
Cool.
Srinath.

Hey Srinath, you got any clip-on bars for the 89 triple?  Mine are bent.

i do
make an offer

Last winter I paid about 390 to have both wheels, my frame, grab bar, rear sets, done

That's a good deal...I only got one quote but it was $75 per wheel and $250 for the frame..$400 total...included stripping the wheels and blasting the frame...didn't include any accessories...

Im hoping to get my frame and all my accessories done for somewhere around $200.  Ive got some racing contacts that know of a coater that does and entire sprint car frame for $120, the surface area would be about the same as all I have now, its just a matter on what he'll charge for all the little nick nacks.  And if I need to I will do alot of the blasting myself since I have access to a decent sized sand blaster, the only thing I couldnt do would be the frame.

Harbor Freight has several cheap blaster setups...including a portable one for $30....not a bad way to knock a few bucks off the cost of powdercoating...New Harbor Freight opening up on Tuesday...only 15 minutes from my house!!!

I would love to have my own blaster!!!! $30 aint bad!

Yeah, that's just for the gun, the hose, and a small cannister...you have to have a compressor that'll put out 90psi...which basically means any compressor...because I don't think you can buy one that puts out less than 100psi.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=30979

I'm restoring a dirt bike that is getting coated this week. Did a trade with the guy...so I'm only paying for material, so I can't tell you cost. As far as coating plastic, you can't coat anything that can't be baked at 300+ degrees for a length of time! The coating is baked on.