The HF powder coat gun test

[Aquaticbob]

I'm no powder coat expert, this is the first time I've ever done it so I'm basing this off of how I felt it performed, and also to hopefully get a little feed back. Lots of writing, some pictures. Needs more pictures for sure

I've been talking about picking up a powder coat gun for awhile to try it out. Only issue is I don't have space for a big oven currently, and I haven't had much needing powder coating. I do want to add powder coating to my professional shop however, so I needed to give it a shot. Since I'm rebuilding my brake calipers I figured this will be perfect for testing it on. I thought about the Eastwood unit, but figured for about $50 (with coupon) can't go wrong with the harbor freight.

Matte black HF powder and gun acquired, I also ordered a black and decker toaster oven off amazon for $20.

I know these things can be inaccurate with indicated temps to I fired it up and checked it

It ended up being 475 at an indicated 450 however 400 was about 395 so that was pretty impressively close. It held temperature very well, being able to maintain temp within about a degree over 20 minutes. So with that I figured it was time to get to testing.

The gun has a pretty short lead from the power box, the foot pedal that it comes with might have like twice the lead of the gun... Anyway, the ground is a small gater clip with a plastic cover that clips well to the piece. So I poured some powder into one of the 2 cups it comes with and went to town. The adjustable tip is a pain to deal with. It doesn't screw down easily, so be prepared for massive powder clouds. The powder was attracted right to the aluminum sheet I was testing it with. Took like 5 seconds to get it coated. Turned it off and put the piece in the oven

About 3-5 minutes (wasn't timing) warming up time, 15 minutes of curing, and about 20 of cooling I had the piece done. Overall impressed with how it turned out. Did very minimal prep (brake cleaner that's it) and only had a little bubble and some orange peel. I'll have to get better to eliminate that.

Overall so far impressed with the gun. It would be nice if the lead could be disconnected for cleaning. Cleaning the gun isn't fun at all. Takes a lot of compressed air. The gun comes with a pressure regulator and filter. Strongly recommend using Teflon tape on the regulator for extra air tight. The filter doesn't need one unless you wanna tape every time you use the gun. The lead also could be twice as long from the box for the gun and ground clamp. It does get the job done for cheap though. I will be doing more work with the gun for testing. I'll be adding to my review. Already thinking of building my own gun. This is an extremely simple tool in my opinion. I will be improving my skills on a few more test pieces before moving up to my calipers. Also expect some toaster oven modding.

My total invested in this so far is $85 as WA has sales tax. Without tax it would be like $75ish

 

[Fastbird]

Good review. Been considering this kit myself.

 

[Hot Chop shop]

Nice review!

I did the same thing this week I haven't had a chance to test it out yet.
I'll be staying tuned to see how you modify your oven...

I have some scrap sheet metal that I am going to try to build a box out of and use the guts of the toaster. Might be easier to just cut out the back and add to it.

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[Chris67]

I've also had this on my to do list for a while. Waiting for a few more things to power coat before I go for it. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Antique Engine]

Remember, your cure time does not start until the part is up to temperature.

A brake caliper for instance is probably gonna take ten or more minutes to get up to 400 degrees. Then you start the timer. That's the most common mistake folks make with powdercoating. Get yourself a laser thermometer gun and a timer.

 

[Aquaticbob]

Remember, your cure time does not start until the part is up to temperature.

Yeah, forgot to mention I did let it get up to temp, I didn't have a laser thermometer i just waited until the powder was basically liquid and then kicked on the 15 minute timer. I'll pick up a HF laser thermometer for the next pieces

 

[Antique Engine]

Most powder go liquid around 250-275. Better add in another 10 minutes in there for safety.

 

[phill u7c]

I have pretty much the same gun that i got from a company here in the UK. It works fine, however i have found it very difficult to get rid of the orange peel effect, some colours are worse then others for this.
I always shot blast the parts to be coated, then clean them with acetone, then let them come back to room temp. Acetone evaporates so fast it will cool the surface and attract moisture to it, so i leave it for 10 mins or so. It does seem that you can leave for 20 mins in the curing temp with no problems.

As far as the length of the lead yes, I found this to be a huge disadvantage so I just cut it near the control box and put in 1 of the small Anderson plugs. Just making dam sue the inner wire and the outer are well insulated. Seems to work fine. On small parts I spray the powder with a large clean sheet of masking paper below it and use that to collect the overspray powder and when I’m done, pour that back into the pot to be re-sprayed.
Hope that helps and good luck to you

 

[f575gtc]

i have a full sized kitchen oven I never threw out when I bought my new one, so I bought one of these two test out, but my garage has been under going renovations so I haven't been able to test this out.

I was able to get 4lbs of high gloss black powder from fleabay for $20.

 

[BellyUpFish]

I built a redneck gun oven to cure firearms, which will work excellent with a Powdercoating gun for objects thinner than 8".

A simple single eye burner and some Home Depot duct work..

 

[diggerrick]

I always shot blast the parts to be coated, then clean them with acetone, then let them come back to room temp. Acetone evaporates so fast it will cool the surface and attract moisture to it, so i leave it for 10 mins or so. It does seem that you can leave for 20 mins in the curing temp with no problems.

A friend told me to stick the piece in the oven and get it to about 125-150 degrees before coating. It helps dry the surface and and also helps dry any moisture from blowing the powder.

I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds plausible.

 

[Aquaticbob]

Most powder go liquid around 250-275. Better add in another 10 minutes in there for safety.

I will pick up a laser thermometer to make sure the parts are getting up to temp before turning on the curing timer. Thanks for the info!

I built a redneck gun oven to cure firearms, which will work excellent with a Powdercoating gun for objects thinner than 8".

A simple single eye burner and some Home Depot duct work..

I really like this actually. Might have to come up with something similar in the future for a larger oven to fit bumpers and such in.

A friend told me to stick the piece in the oven and get it to about 125-150 degrees before coating. It helps dry the surface and and also helps dry any moisture from blowing the powder.

I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds plausible.

I will give this a test next time around and get back to you on it. Might get some time tomorrow to do more powder coating

I'm currently planing on tacking in a couple hangers to the top of the toaster roof to hang my parts from. I'm also thinking about gutting it and making a larger box for it, but we will see what happens. I might just buy another to gut since they are so damn cheap

I'm also working on a powder coating gun design, which I will for sure post up here if it turns out well. Trying to make one that will work great and be a good price as well.

 

[f575gtc]

aren't you supposed to bring up the part to temperature before spraying anyways?

 

[Antique Engine]

aren't you supposed to bring up the part to temperature before spraying anyways?

Absolutely not. That's the surest way of getting too much powder onto the part. Shoot it cold.

 

[kawtoy]

I have used the HF system for about 10 years and countless parts and here are a few things I have learned.
1) HF powder is ****. Get powder from eBay. Much better quality and 1000's of color and texture options.
2) You need to heat the part before spraying but it has nothing to do with helping the powder stick. You need to get the part to outgas, especially if the part was oily or greasy before cleaning. Metal is porous and even a good cleaning will leave behind residue. Get the part nice and hot then let it cool before coating. The first time in the over the part will likely smoke. That smoke would have been stopped by the melting powder and can cause bubbles.
3) Wear a disposable painters suit. Not only to keep the very fine power off of you but mostly to keep lint off the part. The part will be charged and will attract EVERYTHING in the air including lint from your shirt.
4) make a "paint booth" out of a big cardboard box. Stick a wooden dowel through the top which you can hang parts from. Line the inside with cheap furnace air filters. It will capture the extra powder and help keep the mess down.
5) Use a air gun to clean out the powder gun when you are finished. If you leave it in then humidity will cause it to cake up and clog. Also if you are changing colors you need to get ALL the old powder out or the new parts will have specks of different colors.

It really is a great setup for the money. Enjoy!

 

[Aquaticbob]

I have used the HF system for about 10 years and countless parts and here are a few things I have learned.
1) HF powder is ****. Get powder from eBay. Much better quality and 1000's of color and texture options.
2) You need to heat the part before spraying but it has nothing to do with helping the powder stick. You need to get the part to outgas, especially if the part was oily or greasy before cleaning. Metal is porous and even a good cleaning will leave behind residue. Get the part nice and hot then let it cool before coating. The first time in the over the part will likely smoke. That smoke would have been stopped by the melting powder and can cause bubbles.
3) Wear a disposable painters suit. Not only to keep the very fine power off of you but mostly to keep lint off the part. The part will be charged and will attract EVERYTHING in the air including lint from your shirt.
4) make a "paint booth" out of a big cardboard box. Stick a wooden dowel through the top which you can hang parts from. Line the inside with cheap furnace air filters. It will capture the extra powder and help keep the mess down.
5) Use a air gun to clean out the powder gun when you are finished. If you leave it in then humidity will cause it to cake up and clog. Also if you are changing colors you need to get ALL the old powder out or the new parts will have specks of different colors.

It really is a great setup for the money. Enjoy!

Thanks for all the tips! I guess that's why my part smoked a lot and had bubbles then, should have heated up to let it cool off. I only got the powder at HF cause it was what was on hand so I could test it out. I've already ordered up some different stuff for my calipers.

Working on a little powder coating cabinet as well. I have an old wood decently large double door cabinet that I plan to test out.

 

[f575gtc]

Sorta off topic

How do you clear over powder coat? Do they make clear powder? and does it stick to the base powder without and scuffing?

Or are you better off shooting a layer of Automotive Epoxy over it?

 

[cousin eddie]

i believe they do make clear powder. oh,cudachick, where are you?
she can answer all the questions.

 

[Aquaticbob]

Sorta off topic

How do you clear over powder coat? Do they make clear powder? and does it stick to the base powder without and scuffing?

Or are you better off shooting a layer of Automotive Epoxy over it?

Sounds like you just spray another coating on with something like this: http://www.eastwood.com/hotcoat-powder-super-gloss-clear.html

I watched a video where they did multiple layers of powder on wheels for "extra durability" then sprayed a layer of clear over

 

[kawtoy]

Clear is not really needed for powder coating because it is already for durable than paint. The sell uv resistant powder for outdoor use if you are worried about sun damage.

 

[kac0825]

I like to heat the part to temp before I shoot. I'd prefer it to flow as soon as I hit it. My only complaint of the hf gun is how much powder it wastes. Get pricey when ordering the custom stuff online,


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[Aquaticbob]

I like to heat the part to temp before I shoot. I'd prefer it to flow as soon as I hit it. My only complaint of the hf gun is how much powder it wastes. Get pricey when ordering the custom stuff online,


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It really does shoot out a large powder cloud and it doesn't have such a good system for trying to keep the cloud down. It says to turn the pressure down to try and reduce the cloud, which helps some from what I can tell, however a better nozzle would be preferred.

 

[kac0825]

Agreed. I ran a regulator to it which helped a bit. But it takes a lot longer because your using a lot less air


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[CudaChick1968]

i believe they do make clear powder. oh,cudachick, where are you?
she can answer all the questions.

Thanks for the vote of confidence there cousin eddie, but it's been a 90+ hour week already and I'm hungry. Meaning no disrespect whatsoever, I just don't have the time or energy to teach the world. But in reading through the responses for real info, please keep in mind that some of the post authors know just enough to be dangerous ... Love you guys! Keep practicing.