Paint vs Powder Coat

[userdude]

Given the number of skid plates in the wild I realize I've only ever seen a very tiny portion of them as a percentage but . . . I've never seen powder coated skid plates (and can't imagine why anyone that would use/need a skid would PC it). Who is offering PC skids - or are you seeing people getting their skids PC'd after the purchase? Either way I find that quite odd.

RCI

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[King_bronco]

I’ve found powder coat to be more durable, but paint much much easier to touch up.

Stuff that I know is going to get beat, powder coat isn’t indestructible. I think it’s fine for a bumper - you hope to not bang that around too much - but skid plates and sliders? The powder coat chips right off

Thanks for the input, yeah it’s not a trail rig more pavement princess but still looking for durable.

 

[lakesinai]

Not a painter, but from my research ....
(If a pro is reading along, please set me straight.)

PVC (powder coating) is all the rage, but I'm not sold on it.

Powder coating is generally considered to be more durable than a paint ... until it is damaged.
Once it gets chipped, the seal has been opened, moisture will get in there and start wreaking havoc. Once the rust starts, it will run-a-way under the powder coating and cause it to lift and peel off.
Generally considered impossible to repair/ touch up. There is essentially no touching it up and having it match worth a damn.

You can see the run-away rust happen on numerous aftermarket skids and bumpers pictured on this site.

About as close as you 'll get to the durability of pvc, and this will be very close,
is an epoxy primer over a coarsely sand blasted surface, which gives the epoxy something to bond with.
It is easily repairable and run-a-way rust issues won't be a problem.
Of course, after the primer you color coat with the color of your choice. A quality polyurethane will probably be the best bet, vary durable as far as paints go, but again, not a painter/ coatings pro, there may be newer or better stuff out there.

Nice write-up. Once you invade (scratch, gouge, bend) ANY coating, it must be repaired because rust WILL invade and degrade. At that point, the repairs will look imperfect, and practicality must trump visual perfection. And if its a bumper, or a steel rack, it will get scratched if you're using it. Personally, a little rust or corrosion here and there is a part of life and something to be touched up occasionally on any well-used machine!

 

[HoosierDaddy]

"You can see the run-away rust happen on numerous aftermarket skids and bumpers pictured on this site."

I misspoke, I meant rock sliders rather than skid plates.
SHIT TONS of posts about rusty slider/slider-steps here on this forum.
I'd imagine the same people are powder coating their skid plates as well .... because of the false belief of how "tough" or "durable" it is. That idea sells well to the uninformed.

Not that the item matters.
For the most part, steel is steel, it will rust.

If there is a flaw, damage or "edge" of some type, moisture will enter and you're off to the rust races under your PVC.

I have a pic of somebody's tire carrier I took at the Wis. Dells Super Cel this year.

Might get in trouble for this, LOL ....

Note the edges and threaded bolt holes. This thing is simply not a candidate for powder coating.
To be honest, it's not a candidate for any coating until it gets a fair amount prep work.

This is why... I ... Me .... I prefer a heavily prepped piece(sand blasted, sharp edges rounded off, etc) , sprayed with epoxy primer as the main line of defense against rust. The epoxy will bond much tighter to the steel and really slow the advance of what you see above.....and it will be TOUGH, but if/when it gets damaged, it's protective qualities around the damage will remain intact AND you can repair it afterwards.

Again , not an "expert".
This is what "I" prefer, and why.

I don't know the molecular structure of pvc or epoxy primer ... or how they bond to steel at the molecular level .... but I have made it a point to observe how they work out in the real environment, learn how they are applied and how/why they fail.

 

[604Bronco]

Could always LineX spray the bumper - you’re able to get it in a variety of colours too.

 

[GroovyGeek]

Given the number of skid plates in the wild I realize I've only ever seen a very tiny portion of them as a percentage but . . . I've never seen powder coated skid plates (and can't imagine why anyone that would use/need a skid would PC it). Who is offering PC skids - or are you seeing people getting their skids PC'd after the purchase? Either way I find that quite odd.

The real question is who DOESN'T powder coat their skid plates. RCI does, and so does Talon, and JCR and pretty much everyone.

 

[lakesinai]

I misspoke, I meant rock sliders rather than skid plates.
SHIT TONS of posts about rusty slider/slider-steps here on this forum.
I'd imagine the same people are powder coating their skid plates as well .... because of the false belief of how "tough" or "durable" it is. That idea sells well to the uninformed.

Not that the item matters.
For the most part, steel is steel, it will rust.

If there is a flaw, damage or "edge" of some type, moisture will enter and you're off to the rust races under your PVC.

I have a pic of somebody's tire carrier I took at the Wis. Dells Super Cel this year.

Might get in trouble for this, LOL ....

Note the edges and threaded bolt holes. This thing is simply not a candidate for powder coating.
To be honest, it's not a candidate for any coating until it gets a fair amount prep work.

This is why... I ... Me .... I prefer a heavily prepped piece(sand blasted, sharp edges rounded off, etc) , sprayed with epoxy primer as the main line of defense against rust. The epoxy will bond much tighter to the steel and really slow the advance of what you see above.....and it will be TOUGH, but if/when it gets damaged, it's protective qualities around the damage will remain intact AND you can repair it afterwards.

Again , not an "expert".
This is what "I" prefer, and why.

I don't know the molecular structure of pvc or epoxy primer ... or how they bond to steel at the molecular level .... but I have made it a point to observe how they work out in the real environment, learn how they are applied and how/why they fail.

Yes! The advantage of Epoxy is that it will conform to metals irregularities and adhere well, making epoxy a great primer. However, some epoxy will off-gas until cured, or can develop an amine "blush" under cure, so the transition coat to a topcoat is the tricky part. It can be difficult to get a topcoat to adhere. Done well, it is durable, until scratched. With boat hulls, the gold standard used to be epoxy primer and 2 part polyurethane topcoat.

Also, epoxy without a topcoat will degrade in UV light, meaning you cant use Epoxy as an unprotected topcoat . . . Although carbon (graphite) powder will help.

 

[IwannaGOfast]

The real question is who DOESN'T powder coat their skid plates. RCI does, and so does Talon, and JCR and pretty much everyone.

Agreed. I'm sure there are some places that might give you the option to purchase bare metal, but it's much more common for them to come powdercoated. Unless of course they are aluminum.

 

[heavyD]

I've got powdercoated winter wheels that have no rock chips despite the city laying down a lot of gravel in the winter. My expensive Yokahoma Advan summer wheels never see gravel yet have rock chips. Powder Coating is considerably more durable than paint.

 

[GroovyGeek]

Agreed. I'm sure there are some places that might give you the option to purchase bare metal, but it's much more common for them to come powdercoated. Unless of course they are aluminum.

Actually all of the above give you the choice of purchasing bare metal, but I think that this is done for people who would powder coat themselves, either with increased robustness or specific colors.

 

[Tricky Mike]

I’ve found powder coat to be more durable, but paint much much easier to touch up.

Stuff that I know is going to get beat, powder coat isn’t indestructible. I think it’s fine for a bumper - you hope to not bang that around too much - but skid plates and sliders? The powder coat chips right off

Agreed. My rule of thumb: Mall crawler, powdercoat. Trail rig, paint. Rustoleum has a spray called Rugged Black that I like, the finish is a half decent match to MIC flares.

I managed to get a dent and gouge on top of my front bumper the last time I went out. A long rock flipped up on end. Scuffed my lower grill fascia too.

Hammerbuilt had a bad run of these and acknowledged it. I believe they changed the process after that. I have no issues with the finish on mine.

 

[King_bronco]

Could always LineX spray the bumper - you’re able to get it in a variety of colours too.

Called they won’t do white said it will never match.

 

[Brian_B]

Rustoleum has a spray called Rugged Black

That's exactly what I use as well. Touches up very well

 

[King_bronco]

Actually all of the above give you the choice of purchasing bare metal, but I think that this is done for people who would powder coat themselves, either with increased robustness or specific colors.

Yeah had that thought too unfortunately the bumpers I found and like they said they can’t do bare metal unfortunately.

 

[Tilzbow]

28 years of experience in manufacturing and we used millions of powder coated parts during my career. Powder coat is more durable and can easily be touched up with paint that matches closely with a little knowledge or trial and error. Scratch a painted or powder coated surface and the underlying steel will rust, makes no difference, assuming the powder or paint was applied properly with no surface contamination, etc. Aluminum skids and bumpers will prevent rust If that’s a concern.

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