Powdercoating question re: 2-stroke pipe

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Camstyn

LIFETIME SPONSOR

Oct 3, 1999

2,246

2

• Jan 24, 2005

• #1

Does anyone know what temperature powder coating is good for, and if higher-temp powder coating is available?
I'd like to strip the paint off of my stock pipe and clear coat it for the bare metal finish. Last time I used regular hi-temp clearcoat paint and it only lasted one race until it was blasted off.

 

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cujet

Member

Aug 13, 2000

826

5

• Jan 24, 2005

• #2

The headpipe and to a lesser extent, the stinger area of an expansion chamber are the hot areas. The headpipe is very hot, and requires standard high heat paint.

The belly section is fairly cool due to expansion and most paints will hold up well here. However powder coating is not really an option as it melts at a low temperature.

Jet Hot coatings (available in all sorts of colors) are a nice way to go, as they look cool and hold up very well. But they can change the tuning of the chamber slightly as they hold in a little more heat. I generally do not see this as a problem, as the effect is minimal, certainly less than say a hot day vs. a cold day.

Chris

 

Jaybird

Apprentice Goon

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Mar 16, 2001

6,449

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Charlestown, IN

• Jan 24, 2005

• #3

Cam,
Try www.columbiacoatings.com
They have high-temp powder coatings that should do the trick.

 

bclapham

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Nov 5, 2001

4,340

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• Jan 24, 2005

• #4

LOL- i use WalMArt $3 hight temp black spray paint for making BBQs look nice!

 

T

TeamLeykis

Member

Aug 8, 2004

6

0

• Jan 26, 2005

• #5

Camstyn,

I am assuming that this effort is to keep the pipe looking good. Have you ever noticed how shiny Team Kawasaki's pipes are? This is their trick. If you like the bare metal look, but want it to shine, go to your local auto parts store and get some etching mag wheel cleaner (I use Eagle One) and some medium or fine Scotch-brite pads. Take the pipe off the bike and soak it good with the wheel cleaner (clean the dirt and oil off first). Put on some rubber gloves and rub the pipe down with the Scotch-brite. Lastly, wash the pipe off with water. Make sure you wash it good, and when you think you're done, wash it some more. Trust me, I learned the hard way that if you leave any cleaner at all on the pipe it will rust by the next day. Lastly, soak the pipe good with WD-40. You'll be surprised how shiny and bright the pipe will be.

 

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Lonewolf

Member

May 30, 2002

494

0

• Jan 27, 2005

• #6

Those commercial high temp coatings are not cheap, why waste the money on somesthing that is just going to get scrathed and dented up over and over again? I like bclapham's idea.

 

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Camstyn

LIFETIME SPONSOR

Oct 3, 1999

2,246

2

• Jan 27, 2005

• Thread starter
• #7

Yeah, I'm thinking I'll leave the stock coating on it. It probably holds up just as well as anything else..

Thanks for the help!

 

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nuttyman

Member

Jul 31, 2003

3

0

• Mar 7, 2005

• #8

I haven't seen any clear high temp powders. most powders are safe to ~ 350deg. & the high temp powders are safe to ~ 1000 deg.

 

Lorin

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Jun 25, 1999

948

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• Mar 7, 2005

• #9

I actually had my two stroke pipe and silencer ceramic coated for about $70. The pros that I found: It actually seemed to reduce the noise a little, it cleans up very nicely (especially the carbon on the silencer), and has kind of a trick look to it. Any performance gain was marginal, but I did like the way it ended up. The flip side is that with the coating applied, if you do dent the pipe, you wont be able to use a torch, etc., to remove the dents.

 

F

Formula

Member

Sep 21, 2000

59

0

• Mar 8, 2005

• #10

VHT's website

These guys have a high heat (1500F) clear coat that works well. I sanded my last bikes pipe and it came out quite nice and shiny and this keeps it looking that way.