Pitching A Bitch - Powder Coating Failures On Products....

Those parts should be sanded with an 80 grit at the very least before or after performing the phosphatizing wash. The reason your parts are pealing is because of poor adhesion, sanding or sandblasting as well as utilizing a Zinc, anti gassing, or epoxy primer will provide the best adhesion and protection.

Most shops have underpaid illegal Mexicans who don’t give a damn about the quality of work they do, which is why a lot of people run into issues. I know because I’ve worked at three different shops with these types of employees... #Trump2020

Another problem is people will complain of the cost of a quality powder coating job. I’ve seen so many guys on this forum bash powder coating and say it’s not all that, but just like shitty quality powder coating jobs there are shitty quality paint jobs. I powder coating my front bumper 5 years ago with a zinc primer and I’ve had zero issues with adhesion.

currently in the process of opening my own shop because 1) I’ll never get paid what I deserve as far as the quality and care I put into my work because I’m competing with illegal Mexicans who will take $10-12 an hour and 2) I typically care more about the quality of the end result than the owner and it’s incredibly frustrating to be in an environment like that.

I strongly suggest people do their research about the proper process prior to bringing their parts to get coated, and also ask to be taken through the shop this way you can gauge how parts get treated throughout the process. Hate seeing negative things about powder coating, it’s superior to paint in every way

 

This is mostly the reason.

Not really this at all.

 

I respectfully disagree. While you can DA with 80 grit prior to phosphatizing, there's no way that you'd do it after phosphatizing. By doing so you're removing the crystaline surface structure from the phosphatizing process which not only provides tooth for the powder but it also provides the corrosion resistance that is so very important. Always before and never afterwards. Titration is another important factor in this equation. It's also not required to DA it as long as there aren't any scratches or gouges that the powder coating won't hide. The phosphatizing provides adequate tooth.

 

Yes. You probably don’t want to believe it but 3/3 shops consisted entirely of illegal Mexicans, most guys just come in to get their paycheck and leave.

 

Personally I’d recommend sanding with a DA before a phosphate wash for optimal adhesion but I understand everyone has their own way of doing it. The shop I’m currently at doesn’t do any type of pre-treatment wash and the owner chooses to sandblast everything with the exception of thin aluminum.

More often than Not in my experience parts rarely come in in pristine condition to where they don’t require some type of sanding to remove imperfections or even taking edges down on laser cut parts.

 

I’m sure that may be the case in your area. But I don’t believe that the powder coat sucks because “Mexicans” are doing it. It sucks because shops have a hard time charging prices that pay for the time it takes for quality.

Also, many places to architectural powder coating (fences,railing, etc). Apparently there is a lot of money in it and the customers only care about how fast it can be done not whether the finish lasts.

 

Illegal mexicans who are underpaid and eventually don’t care about the quality of the prep leads to a poor quality finish. Simply stating what I’ve seen time and time again for the last 6 years I’ve been doing this.

A lot of companies are money driven and place profit in front of quality... Quality is few and far between nowadays and everyone is looking for the cheapest option but also ready to cry when it doesn’t last

 

I personally prefer sanding with a DA prior to a phosphate wash or sandblasting with a zinc rich or anti gassing primer.

9/10 times parts will require some type of sanding to remove minor imperfections from being handled. 10/10 times if you will be stripping and re coating an old part.

 

Powder coating has many attributes but there are several negatives, some of which have been mentioned. I made mention of zinc phosphatizing wash process which aids in adhesion and corrosion resistance. The down side is the proper disposal of that chemical wash that contains an acid, zinc (heavy metal), salts and detergents. The actual powder coat process is environmentally friendly as compared to wet paint but the waste from the washing presents certain disposal issues and costs. It's just something to consider.

Powder coating certain types of both new and used cast aluminum pieces can be very problematic.Out gassing as well as impurities raising to the surface can cause you to have fits and be a real mess.....

 

I agree to both points that you mentioned.
Preheating cast parts and utilizing an anti gassing primer is typically enough to ensure the final product doesn’t out gas, however it’s not always a guarantee.

Also preheating parts can take up oven space and will affect the work volume throughout the day so it needs to be accounted for when quoting someone IMO.