# Which powder coat paint?



## lago (Aug 3, 2011)

Looks like I will get a powder coat gun for finishing cartridge pens.  Tried contacting some companies that do it but they have a minimum of $75.  Might as well buy my own gun.

So, I have been looking at Eastman for clear paint.  What looks best and is most common:  gloss, semi-gloss, or satin-gloss?

TIA

Lago


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## Fibonacci (Aug 3, 2011)

My preference is for high gloss from Eastwood.  I get a few people telling me they like semi-gloss though.

Given how cheap the material is, I would get some of each and see what people buy.


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## PenMan1 (Aug 3, 2011)

Eastwood is a good gun and their high gloss powder looks great!


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## pfde4 (Aug 3, 2011)

A little off topic but has anyone powder coated wood?


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## PenMan1 (Aug 3, 2011)

pfde4 said:


> A little off topic but has anyone powder coated wood?



I doubt seriously that it would stick. Part of the powder coating process is to electrically charge the item to make the paint stick.

Wood doesn't carry the current very well.


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## pfde4 (Aug 3, 2011)

From what I am told if the wood is pre-heated to 250 it will work. Just curious if any one tried it. Going to experiment next week.


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## PenMan1 (Aug 3, 2011)

pfde4 said:


> From what I am told if the wood is pre-heated to 250 it will work. Just curious if any one tried it. Going to experiment next week.



Please post the results of your experiments! This could be very valuable information, if you can make the powder bond with wood on a consistent basis.

I'm not so much interested in using it for pen finishes, but this could add some interest to pen displays!


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## pfde4 (Aug 3, 2011)

Roger that, I make Trophy bases and it would be a good option. Quick process heat to 250, spray, cook at 350, moisture will be released sand and repeat.  Has been used in the cabinet industry for years. ( I'm sure not that process). But will work for smaller applications.


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## pfde4 (Aug 3, 2011)

Lago,

Sorry for hijacking your thread... my answer try all diffrent strokes for diffrent folks.  depending what look you or your customer is looking for.


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## rherrell (Aug 3, 2011)

I buy all my supplies from Columbia Coatings. Here's a link... http://www.columbiacoatings.com/

They have the best customer service of anybody I've dealt with, and their powders are fantastic. I use their Super High Gloss Clear TGIC for all my casings and am really happy with it.


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## trapper (Aug 3, 2011)

I've been told by Creswell industries that it can be done but apparently you need to warm the wood and coat it with conductive paint , same as used to enable plastics to be coated. problem i foresee is that wood has amoisture content and the fibres expand with moisture. The wood might even suffer dry rot with no air circulation. I have powder coated MDF board when i made doors for my kitchen they seem ok two years on........... all in all not acheap proces unless you have the equipment


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## Sylvanite (Aug 3, 2011)

I use Eastwood #10329 95% gloss "Ultra Clear Lo-Temp Topcoat".  It flows out and cures at a lower temperature, so the bullets don't discolor as much while baking.  It costs twice as much as #10093, but gives me better results.

If, for some reason, you don't like a shiny surface, you can degloss it by rubbing with 0000 steel wool.

Powder paint is designed to adhere by static cling, but if you want to coat an interior or nonconductive surface, you can "hot-flock" it, which has been described previously.

Regards,
Eric


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## rherrell (Aug 4, 2011)

They also make a powder coat "water". You mix it 50/50 by weight and you can brush it on anything you want.


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