The ever expanding project.. I think this started with me wanting a four barrel carb :laugh: So the driveline from engine to rear is out and getting rebuilt or replaced. I'm thinking the front suspension is just as old as the car and it should really get rebuilt. If I do that, and I should, then theres only one more thing to do. The frame. There's a place in Manassass VA called American Stripping that estimated the frame sandblast and powder coat would cost 650 dollars. Anybody had any dealing with them? What do you guys think of the price? Its close to the number I had in my head; 250 to blast 250 to coat, but heck, what do I know? o No:
If that is just for the frame that is a lil high. If it includes front A-arms, rear trailing arms then it is an ok price.
The rate for the frame seemed to go by the foot. The price was just the frame. I think I will mull this over some more.
Well you could probably get them to toss in the extra parts since they will be all set up anyway, just a matter of hanging a few more parts out... I blasted my own frame. Place charges 1.00/minute, and I took my time to get the frame inside and out as good as I could, and its a ragtop to boot so that makes it tougher. Cost was 130.00, plus dinner for 2 friends that helped spot and turn the frame as needed. Careful with ID numbers when you (or they) do this, does not take much to blast them away. I was charged 400.00 Canadian to coat frame inside and out (including a "prebake" to make sure any grease or oils still in frame were melted out) plus front upper and lower arms, front swaybar, rear swaybar, rear upper and lower control arms, pulleys, crossmember, frame braces, heaterbox, rear springs, plus bumper brackets and supports. The quality was excellent, I do not regret it one bit. Well worth the money, for the ragtop frame esp as it gets coated insdie and out, completely. Just some info. later Tim
That's more like it. Disregarding exchange rates, I would be happy get that much stuff powder coated for 400 bucks. Although I'm sure blasting the frame yourself made for a long gritty day.
yeah it was an ugly day for sure....it was something like 95 degrres f, you have to wear coveralls and a o2 pressure fed face mask, holding that blaster for two hours made my arms ache to the point I could hardly lift anything and I had sand in my teeth for a whole day..probably sweated off 2 or 3 pounds....very uncomfortable. But it was worth it. I have a pic of myself blasting the frame on my website. later Tim
Just did my '66 frame I just did my '66 frame this past weekend. The weather was perfect! A nice breeze, and temps in the 80's. I use a TIP pressure blaster, I think it's 90 lb capacity....took me 9 hours over two days. It's a small nozzle, and with about 60 lbs of pressure and fine sand, it is pretty easy on the metal. Used 5 or 6 5 gal buckets of sand for the job. A supplied-Air respirator (Hobby-Air) was used for safety and comfort....it's sooo nice having a supply of cool, clean air to breathe! After blasting, I spray it down with metal conditioner (Picklex). It'll keep it rust free until I get around to painting it. Before paint, I'll go over it with a DA sander to smooth the surface a bit more. Paint will be epoxy primer and the black epoxy JW recommended. Nice stuff! I priced powdercoating in the Philly area. ranged from $350-$750, including blasting. If your frame isn't pitted, it's the way to go. See our posts here for more info: http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=56464 Be careful when selecting a blaster, or powdercoater....My buddy had some steel wheels sandblasted, they used coarse sand....it made the surface much rougher than it was originally. And PC'ers prep methods vary. My top choice was a shop than pressure washed the frame with a phosphate solution, and oven baked it before powdercoating....another shop used a powdercoat primer before the top color... O yeah, here's a pic of my frame!
Thanks for the info guys. Walt, that frame looks ready to go man. Thats what I like about this group whatever I'm planning on, somebodys doing it right now or just got done doing it. Great pictures on your website Tim. :TU: The work you put in on the chassis looks good! Also we're in the same biz, I'm an A&P. Here's a pic. We had an new airplane delivered without the seats. It was one of those "the plane was ready but the seats were'nt". Real roomy without the furniture. :laugh:
Hi Tom, there sems to be a few of us on here...I am an AME for a major airline here in Canada, basically I am the equivilent of your AI I believe ( I do the work/inspections and am authorized to sign out/release the aircraft)?? Lots of car guys in aviation, I guess we love the mechanical aspect because it certainly isn't for the money!! Make sure to post pics as the progress happens... Later Tim
Walt, why do you not recommend powder coating on a pitted frame? I am down to a bare frame, the exposed areas are pretty much smooth but the top of the frame is pitted pretty bad although solid with no holes. I just got a price to blast and powder coat $650 and was considering it. Thanks Matt
I had my frame blasted and powdercoated, They used metal shavings to blast with, and the few areas that had pitts were just as clean as the rest. The powdercoating was great because it gets into spots paint may not get into. (the frame is charged with a opposite polarity of the powdered media and it "sucks" it into places paint can't get to) There is no cure time and is rock hard after it cools from the oven. My frame was about $600 total, but most of that was the $90 per hour to blast away rust deposits and tar. If the frame would have been blasted and ready, the powdercoat was only about $250.
Matt, a pitted frame can be powdercoated, but the pits will be visible after coating. If a frame is to be painted, additional preparation can be done to fill and smooth any surface defects.....So it depends on the condition of the part, and the finish you desire. I LIKE powdercoating! I do alot of my smaller parts with that process. Here's a close up of the '66 4 speed frame I painted today. I used the epoxy paint Jim Weiss recommended. Nice product! :TU:
Walt- How much primer, base paint, and catalyst did you end up using for the frame? Mine is at a blaster and I want to make sure I have enough paint materials to get the job done. Looks great! :TU:
thanks Walt, think ill powder coat, most of the pitting isnt visible when the body is on and i want to make sure the frame is coated inside and out. Its not a show car i started out just wanting to change the paint color next thing you know im down to a bare frame. Matt
Could be worse Matt, I started out wanting to put a four-barrel carb on the car and things went downhill from there. I feel better knowing the price only varies a little from region to region. The main difference coming from doing more up front work yourself. But alas, family is coming to visit so the project goes to the back burner again. A couple of weeks from now I'll be diving back into it.
Ken, I applied one medium coat of PPG's Omni epoxy primer, which was about 28 ounces including reducer.... I then applied about 3 coats of the black. That took 20 oz of paint, and 20 oz of flat catalyst. To that mix I added lacquer thinner to get the spray consistency right....which was somewhere around a 3:2 Paint/thinner ratio.... That will vary depending on conditions!! I shot it outside, in the sun, so it took alot of thinner to get the paint to flow out. It dried fast! I'd recommend shooting it out of the sun....BTW, I'm sure a pro could do it with less paint than I used! There is ALOT of detail left in the painted surface....number stampings are clear, and so is every nick, pit, and surface scratch! I had even gone over the bare metal with a DA sander and 80 grit to smooth it out. If you want a smooth surface, you'll have to use some primer-surfacer, and sand it smooth before appling the finish coats....I'll do that for my '65 vert! Powdercoating is a great way to do a frame...To paint mine, I spent about $50 for materials, and about, um, let's see...at least 18 hours of my own labor to blast and paint. Hey! now I can start putting the car back together!!! :beer
Just dropped off the frame core support x member bumper brackets sway bars and a-arms . He said for some extra $$ he can smooth the frame with a sander. He did a small section and it looked great. You see how that works, start off at $650 ends up to be $900. SHould be ready Friday I will post some pics. Matt
Thats how it always goes...and yeah usually it gets out of control. I just beadblasted and buffed up the seat belt attach bolts for my ragtop so they can be re-plated cause once installed you can see the tips of the bolts from the bottom of the car ya know!!!! I think I've lost my mind for a car I plan to drive!!!LOL Spend the money then I won't feel so bad!! :Brow: later Tim
UUUhhhhh, waiting............. :beer Been following your posts and myself have been torn between the powdercoating or the POR15 process. Leaning towards the powdercoating, but curious as to how your frame process went. :beer (Waiting for pics p )
Sorry for the delay but as you can tell by the pictures i have been quite busy. Over all I am very happy with the powder coating. The frame was badly pitted and even with all the sanding the pits are very visible. I powder coated more for the protection than cosmetic reasons. I used a flashlight and an inspection mirror to look inside the boxed frame, every inch is coated, I would never have gotten that kind of coverage with paint. Matt PS This is my first frame off restoration (in fact first restoration) so no making fun of me im very sensative :ball: Constructive criticism is of course welcome.
