Do-It-Yourself Powder Coating

Do-It-Yourself Powder Coating FARM SHOP Painting 29-3-39 Gerald Bliss, who farms near Dutton, Montana, built his own "metal cooking" oven that lets him powder coat virtually any kind of metal, saving the cost of expensive commercially-coated steel. Bliss also does custom powder coating of metal for area farmers. He uses an air gun to apply the powder coatings which are available in almost any color. He can also coat with baked-on ceramics. The 4 by 4-ft. oven is 10 ft. long. It's built out of sq. steel tubing and lined with sheet metal both inside and out, with insulation wrapped around the outside. Heat is provided by three heating elements out of 1,800-watt household kitchen ovens. The stove cooks at a temperature of 450 degrees. "I built it because I didn't want to pay the money for a commercial powder coating oven. I paid $600 to build the stove and another $4,000 for air guns. All together I spent about $5,000 whereas an OSHA-approved oven alone sells for $30,000 or more," says Bliss. "Powder coating helps steel stand up to chemicals better," says Bliss. "I do a lot of engine parts, including ceramic headers, manifolds and exhaust pipes. I do some ceramic coating work for race car drivers who want their engines coated with ceramic. The ceramic coating will drop header temperatures 300 to 400 degrees. For the same reason, I also do some engine work for big self-propelled sprayers. And I've done some work on motorcycle frames and metal fences. I powder coat a lot of wrought iron stuff, including hand railings for decks. "The powder-coating material I buy consists of an epoxy mixed with other powders. When applied, it clings to the metal kind of like static electricity." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Gerald Bliss, 2317 N. Lane, Dutton, Montana 59433 (ph 406 463-2483).

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