On Sun, 5 Apr 1998 22:57:12 -0500 kengano@advant.com (Gano, Ken) writes:
>
> Would anyone care to comment on powder coating engine blocks?
>
I haven't done an engine block, but I have done other items. I think
there would be a number of problems with powder coating an engine block:
1. The surface would need to be clean of all rust and debris. Usually
sandblasting is the preferred method. I wouldn't want to sandblast an
engine block. Probably the only way to do it would be to use a
completely bare block that has been recently hot tanked.
2. Any grease or oil in any nook or cranny of the block will liquify and
leach out during the heating process. This will ruin the coating.
Again, the only way to avoid that would be to hot tank a bare block.
3. Even if you have a clean, disassembled block to start with, masking
it would be a nightmare. Even if you manage to mask it so the bearing
surfaces, etc., etc., are not affected, remember that you are dousing the
block with fine particles. I think it would be impossible to get all
those particles out of the block, where they could cause untold damage.
4. Others may dispute this, but I question whether powder coating is
suitable for an item that gets as hot as an engine block. Some people I
know have tried powder coating exhaust manifolds with little success.
The powder coat tends to deteriorate. Remember that it is bonded by heat
originally.
I think you are better off sticking to a good quality high-temp engine
paint made for the purpose.
David Littlefield
Houston, TX
'62 MGA MkII
'51 MGTD
'88 Jaguar XJ-S
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