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Powder Coating experts chime in

saleen367

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I bought a used set of Apex 18 x 11 EC-7's in satin black. The same satin black I'm not fond of on my 19" set. So, I brought them to a powder coating shop that's in the area of my work. Asked about a price for gloss black, was quoted $200 for the set and off I went.

Now from what I know about the process of powder coating, you are supposed to strip the wheel via chemical or sandblasting 1st before you start. Often times, they do what is referred to as out gassing and then they apply the powder.

So I got the call they were done, picked them up and opened one box (original wheel boxes) and was really disappointed with the result. Sure, from a distance they look fine. But up close, there is a ton of dirt in the powder and irregular surfaces throughout some of the wheel. It was pretty obvious to me they coated right over the satin paint that Apex puts on the wheel. Stickers still present on the outside of the barrel and while I expect the outside to not be perfect (they have to hang them somehow), the sticker revealed to me that they never removed the old material 1st.

Does anyone have experience with powder and what kind of finish should I be expecting? These look like a lazy person was trying to get home on a Friday.

Disregard the cat hair on the carpet ... the joys of longhairs. šŸ™ƒ

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XS

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It's tough to say where they went wrong. If they coated over a previous finish, that finish would most likely need to be a powder coat itself, as most paint won't stand up to the baking temperature the powder coat requires. But even if they removed the previous finish, they obviously didn't use a high build primer before powder coating. The orange peel you see is very common in powder coating where they cut corners in prep, application, and curing. All three have to be top notch to get a flat powder coated finish. Lastly, no matter what they did (or didn't) do, there's no excuse for debris in the coating. Especially on wheels. It's so easy just to tack them off before applying the powder....
 

1 old racer

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The last set of wheels that I had done they were Chem stripped and then the powder coat added. This was way back in 2010
 
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saleen367

saleen367

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The sad part is, the orange peel is the best of the worst. There are some surface irregularities and other places where it looks like the wheel had contaminants under the powder. Stands out like a sore thumb in person.

I'm still waiting to see if the shop owner plans to reshoot them or shrug it off. I don't think he knew I could tell they didn't prep, but the wheels looked better prior to powder coating then they do now.
 

WD Pro

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When I have had wheels done the faces have been equal to the OE finish and the backs have been just as good as the front i.e. the backs are better than a typical OE finish.

Having said that, to get a proper job over here (UK) is significantly more expensive than your price. I paid Ā£360 last time (circa $500) for a set of four in single colour dark anthracite (straight refurb / no repair work etc). That price is for a quality job, 18" wheels / remove tyres / chemical strip / blast / DuPont powder / refit tyres / new valves and balancing etc.

I don't know if that price I paid is indicative of the quality of the job, or more an indication of inflated UK v USA prices ... ?

Remember that powder coat can be more prone to mild orange peel due to its thickness and gloss finishes can show that effect more than a satin finish.

Bottom line, if your not happy with them now, that wont get better the longer you look at them :frown: Hope you get it all sorted out :like:

WD :like:
 

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kilobravo

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WD: I'm no PC expert and only have limited experience with it but, from what I know, five bones for all the work you got sounds like a mighty good deal to me, even in the USofA.
 

WD Pro

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WD: I'm no PC expert and only have limited experience with it but, from what I know, five bones for all the work you got sounds like a mighty good deal to me, even in the USofA.
If thatā€™s true, the OPā€™s price of $200 might be an indication of what quality / finish he can expect ?

WD :like:
 

NGOT8R

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Did the powder coater use ovens to cure the wheels, or did he/she use heat lamps? Whenever Iā€™ve had things powder coated, Iā€˜ve always have them blasted by a company that specializes in media blasting before taking them to the coater.

Can you ask the coater to strip them down again and allow you to inspect them before he coats them again?
 
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saleen367

saleen367

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Update;

I was finally able to get the wheels back to the coater so he could see the poor quality first hand. He wholeheartedly agreed that the wheels did not turn out as he was told by his worker.

So he agreed to media blast everything bare and re-coat them in the next week or so. He was very understanding in person, so perhaps he was being told one thing by an employee and not understanding why I was unhappy.

I will come back and post a picture once they are done and have tires mounted. I'm still unsure whether I'm mounting a used slick or NT-01's.
 

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shogun32

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I'm sure the price would be nuts, but how about anodize black and then clear-coat?
 

Louk

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I had my beadlocks pc for about 35 a piece granted a much smaller surface but up close there is very minor orange peel but from a foot away you canā€™t even tell.
 

Rapid Red

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200 was a cheap price, 50 bucks rim? Would have walked. Paid more for a set of sprint stye headers.

Hope it turns out better, skeptical myself. There are no short cuts refinishing anything.

We like cats
 
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Inthehighdesert

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Here itā€™s about $600 to strip and recoat. $200 is really inexpensive. It doesnā€™t necessarily mean you will get poor quality. There are times when shops are slow and just want to keep guys working. shxt happens even in the best shops. At least he stepped up and is attempting to make it right.
 

WD Pro

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Here is a close up of the finish I got with my Ā£360 / $500 job :

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The car needed new tyres / disks / pads so I took the opportunity to do the wheels, paint the disks and callipers etc all at the same time. It was done just before the mustang arrived because I knew I would have other priorities once it did ... :cwl:

WD :like:
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