PowderCoating a Maze

NeosPirahnis · 08-03-2002, 02:27 AM

I had the idea a while ago, and was thinking if you powdercoated a Maze 2, would the powdercoat cause any even minute performance differences? granted that the faces of the WB, such as the coldplate and the actual WB bottom were left clean of PC.

i'm not in anyway a thermaldynamic's buff, but just curious as to anyones insight.

My friends argument is that it would make signifigant performance drops. I beleive it might provide a small performance increase.

any ideas ?

bigben2k · 08-03-2002, 10:12 AM

Can you describe more accurately what "powdercoating" means?

In short, the waterblock is made of copper, one of the best material one can get for the price. Adding anything to this very good material would serve no purpose whatsoever, and can in no way improve the performance, because it would only add another junction through which heat would have to travel through.

I even advanced the idea of electroplating silver, but it turns out (theoretically) that it won't do any good, even though the electroplating process is about as close as one can get 2 metals together, without melting/fusing them. Besides, the waterblock would still perform as well as the least performing part of its composition: the copper.

airspirit · 08-03-2002, 11:38 AM

You can powdercoat all except the bottom. Powdercoating helps prevent exterior corrosion (the difference between the black edge and jagged edge on becooling). You CANNOT do this on the bottom because your thermal transfer will plummet. Further, it will slightly inhibit any air cooling (miniscule) from the outside of the block. The nice thing is that it won't leave finger tarnish all over the outside of the block. It's mostly an asthetic thing.

NeosPirahnis · 08-04-2002, 04:31 PM

thanks air. I had no plans whatsoever to powercoat the bottom of the block lol :-\ i dont think plastic coatings would conduct heat too well.

and bigben, powdercoating essentially is this:

they electrostatically apply a plastic powder ( has various other craps in it as well ) to the surface of whatever is being PC'ed, then its baked at 400 degrees for around 2 hours in order to complete the process. generally used in industrial applications, some people have their engines powdercoated, but generally its expensive as all hell.

bigben2k · 08-04-2002, 07:12 PM

It sounds similar to a fusing process we all use at the office: a laser printer!!! It must be great for the anti-corrosion effect, but quite useless for thermal conduction. Make sure that you only use it on the exterior (where appropriate).

Alternatively, you can always shallac the block, and keep the nice copper color handy.

JimS · 08-18-2002, 04:03 PM

The solder will start to liquify at around 400F.

NeosPirahnis · 08-18-2002, 10:41 PM

that'd make sense :-\

maybe I should take the block apart, and do it in pieces, though im not confident in my ability to solder let alone that it will look good afterwards :-\ or fit for that matter.

TheStapleGunKid · 11-01-2002, 08:39 AM

first post, howdy all

I thought about powder coating one of my blocks but the melting point of my silver solder and the melting point of the powder are too close for comfort, thus, I'm just going to polish the top and sides, then clearcoat it.

NeosPirahnis · 11-02-2002, 05:55 AM

ya gotta admit it would look awesome lol, assuming that it wouldnt turn into a horrible mess :x

Can O' Beans · 11-02-2002, 11:44 PM

BigBen, to get an idea, most steel PC cases I've seen are powder coated.

NeosPirahnis · 11-05-2002, 10:56 PM

my case is powdercoated. I've never seen anyone else who's powdercoated their machine :-\ oh well

TheStapleGunKid · 11-06-2002, 07:46 AM

Neo I powdercoated my case. I'll post a pic when I get home. I powder coat everything

NeosPirahnis · 11-07-2002, 05:03 PM

i meant commercially :-\

and baddass, i wish i could powder coat everything, only problem is I don't have the equipment, had to go to a shop to have mine done :x

TheStapleGunKid · 11-07-2002, 08:08 PM

here she is (incomplete) Mirror black powdercoat on the top and sides (wet sanded and buffed) and translucent blue inside.

TheStapleGunKid · 11-07-2002, 08:08 PM

Shot of the chassis.

NeosPirahnis · 11-08-2002, 04:25 PM

you sanded the powdercoat ? and it didnt leave scratches and shit ? i always thought that the relativley soft plastic would be pretty screwed if i did that :-\

also, did you encounter any problems with powdercoat being inside the screw threads ? and how did you remove the crap from the inside if you did ?

did you powdercoat the plastic ? or is that just a paint finish

:-\ just curious, i've heard of low temp baking to do plastic parts, but the place i consulted said that there was no such thing.

and shibby

we're like the sole powdercoaters lol

TheStapleGunKid · 11-08-2002, 08:49 PM

The Plastic is painted (as correct you cannot powder coat plastic, as it will not stand the 450F temps, plus the powder won't cling, since the plastic can't be grounded).

Yes I wet sanded the powder coat just like you'd wet sand a car, only since the powder coat is 10X tougher than paint, it takes ALOT longer... and is quite tiring, but you end up with a mirror finish. I started with 400 grit , and worked my way up to 2000 grit, then buffed it with my makita polisher, and some special compound I use to buff out cars.

As far as powder coating getting in the threads of holes, and on bolts etc, yes it's a problem, and I either plug the holes with special plugs that'll take the heat, or I just run a tap through them when i'm finished.

NeosPirahnis · 11-08-2002, 10:40 PM

did you buy your own powdercoating shit dude ?

dude IM me pleaseee lol

AIM NeosPirahnis
ICQ 51265235
MSN NeosPirahnis@hotmail.com

ciscokid454 · 11-09-2002, 01:40 AM

this is sweet...
My brother is in the process of doing a case for me right now..
We did do some testing on some chrome fan guards to see how they would come out..
Electric blue they are..and I gotta say..bad ass looking..
Hopefully my black case comes out just as nice
actually it's the case cover..
I am trying to talk him into doing the case itself the electric blue or candy red/red red..
stupid question..if the paint place did it right you shouldn't have had to sand it at all.
my brother has been doing his own stuff and as long as what you are painting is stripped and sanded at the base metal...it should come out perfect.
He has had to sandblast some stuff, but again, as long as the metal is clean and is base metal..it comes out smooth as hell.
Just my .02.
I love the blue/black combo though..
Hopefully I will have some pics soon.

TheStapleGunKid · 11-09-2002, 08:26 AM

Yes I do the powder coating myself, I've been doing it for 7 years.

Cisco: Are you sure everything your brother does, comes out perfect? I've been powder coating for a while, and powder coat always comes out looking nice and shiny (but if you're into cars like I am), however to get a completely flat finish, wet sanding is necessary. That and some powders flow better than other powders, Translucents flow quite nicely. Plus doing things like pulleys for an engine or the likes, come out perfectly, but on a completely flat side of a case, you can see the orange peel.

All peices that are being powder coated must either be
A: powder coated already, in which case you just need to bare up a small area to hook your ground clip.
B: chromed, as chrome will take the heat
C: stripped to the bare metal.

Plus all peices must be cleaned just like you clean a car before you paint it.

TheStapleGunKid · 11-09-2002, 08:33 AM

here's a good example of before and after wet sanding.

ciscokid454 · 11-09-2002, 11:19 AM

wo, well that is a difference.

Yup, he gets this translucent stuff from some specialty company.
Comes out smooth everytime so far that I have seen.
I don't think he has done any flat surfaces yet though.
He has been doing his motorbike parts and mustang...(that is, parts that can be pc'd)
Sweet none the less..I will let you know how it goes with the case.
What kind of oven are you using for your's?

TheStapleGunKid · 11-09-2002, 11:47 AM

Did you say Mustang?

I've done QUITE a bit of powder coating on my mustang as well. I'm putting a turbocharged 2.3 in it (hence my one valve cover, and funky lookin lower intake.) It's an 87 coupe. (still in the restoration process.)

TheStapleGunKid · 11-09-2002, 11:48 AM

valve cover (still have to polish the ridges)

TheStapleGunKid · 11-09-2002, 11:49 AM

and....here's the car, paint hasn't been wet sanded and buffed yet.

08-03-2002, 02:27 AM	#1
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	PowderCoating a Maze I had the idea a while ago, and was thinking if you powdercoated a Maze 2, would the powdercoat cause any even minute performance differences? granted that the faces of the WB, such as the coldplate and the actual WB bottom were left clean of PC. i'm not in anyway a thermaldynamic's buff, but just curious as to anyones insight. My friends argument is that it would make signifigant performance drops. I beleive it might provide a small performance increase. any ideas ?

08-03-2002, 10:12 AM	#2
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	Can you describe more accurately what "powdercoating" means? In short, the waterblock is made of copper, one of the best material one can get for the price. Adding anything to this very good material would serve no purpose whatsoever, and can in no way improve the performance, because it would only add another junction through which heat would have to travel through. I even advanced the idea of electroplating silver, but it turns out (theoretically) that it won't do any good, even though the electroplating process is about as close as one can get 2 metals together, without melting/fusing them. Besides, the waterblock would still perform as well as the least performing part of its composition: the copper. __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

08-04-2002, 07:12 PM	#5
bigben2k Responsible for 2% of all the posts here. Join Date: May 2002 Location: Texas, U.S.A. Posts: 8,302	It sounds similar to a fusing process we all use at the office: a laser printer!!! It must be great for the anti-corrosion effect, but quite useless for thermal conduction. Make sure that you only use it on the exterior (where appropriate). Alternatively, you can always shallac the block, and keep the nice copper color handy. __________________ WBTA (Water Block Testing Alliance) Nordic Hardware WC 101

11-09-2002, 01:40 AM	#19
ciscokid454 Cooling Savant Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX Posts: 102	this is sweet... My brother is in the process of doing a case for me right now.. We did do some testing on some chrome fan guards to see how they would come out.. Electric blue they are..and I gotta say..bad ass looking.. Hopefully my black case comes out just as nice actually it's the case cover.. I am trying to talk him into doing the case itself the electric blue or candy red/red red.. stupid question..if the paint place did it right you shouldn't have had to sand it at all. my brother has been doing his own stuff and as long as what you are painting is stripped and sanded at the base metal...it should come out perfect. He has had to sandblast some stuff, but again, as long as the metal is clean and is base metal..it comes out smooth as hell. Just my .02. I love the blue/black combo though.. Hopefully I will have some pics soon. __________________ yeah, hi, I umm... oh crap this isn't a personal

11-09-2002, 11:19 AM	#22
ciscokid454 Cooling Savant Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX Posts: 102	wo, well that is a difference. Yup, he gets this translucent stuff from some specialty company. Comes out smooth everytime so far that I have seen. I don't think he has done any flat surfaces yet though. He has been doing his motorbike parts and mustang...(that is, parts that can be pc'd) Sweet none the less..I will let you know how it goes with the case. What kind of oven are you using for your's? __________________ yeah, hi, I umm... oh crap this isn't a personal

08-03-2002, 11:38 AM	#3
airspirit Been /.'d... have you? Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Moscow, ID Posts: 1,986	You can powdercoat all except the bottom. Powdercoating helps prevent exterior corrosion (the difference between the black edge and jagged edge on becooling). You CANNOT do this on the bottom because your thermal transfer will plummet. Further, it will slightly inhibit any air cooling (miniscule) from the outside of the block. The nice thing is that it won't leave finger tarnish all over the outside of the block. It's mostly an asthetic thing.

08-04-2002, 04:31 PM	#4
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	thanks air. I had no plans whatsoever to powercoat the bottom of the block lol :-\ i dont think plastic coatings would conduct heat too well. and bigben, powdercoating essentially is this: they electrostatically apply a plastic powder ( has various other craps in it as well ) to the surface of whatever is being PC'ed, then its baked at 400 degrees for around 2 hours in order to complete the process. generally used in industrial applications, some people have their engines powdercoated, but generally its expensive as all hell.

08-18-2002, 04:03 PM	#6
JimS Cooling Savant Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Connecticut Posts: 140	The solder will start to liquify at around 400F.

08-18-2002, 10:41 PM	#7
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	that'd make sense :-\ maybe I should take the block apart, and do it in pieces, though im not confident in my ability to solder let alone that it will look good afterwards :-\ or fit for that matter.

11-01-2002, 08:39 AM	#8
TheStapleGunKid Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: fredericton, NB, Canada Posts: 42	first post, howdy all I thought about powder coating one of my blocks but the melting point of my silver solder and the melting point of the powder are too close for comfort, thus, I'm just going to polish the top and sides, then clearcoat it.

11-02-2002, 05:55 AM	#9
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	ya gotta admit it would look awesome lol, assuming that it wouldnt turn into a horrible mess :x

11-02-2002, 11:44 PM	#10
Can O' Beans Cooling Savant Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Pa - USA Posts: 264	BigBen, to get an idea, most steel PC cases I've seen are powder coated.

11-05-2002, 10:56 PM	#11
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	my case is powdercoated. I've never seen anyone else who's powdercoated their machine :-\ oh well

11-06-2002, 07:46 AM	#12
TheStapleGunKid Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: fredericton, NB, Canada Posts: 42	Neo I powdercoated my case. I'll post a pic when I get home. I powder coat everything

11-07-2002, 05:03 PM	#13
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	i meant commercially :-\ and baddass, i wish i could powder coat everything, only problem is I don't have the equipment, had to go to a shop to have mine done :x

11-08-2002, 04:25 PM	#16
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	you sanded the powdercoat ? and it didnt leave scratches and shit ? i always thought that the relativley soft plastic would be pretty screwed if i did that :-\ also, did you encounter any problems with powdercoat being inside the screw threads ? and how did you remove the crap from the inside if you did ? did you powdercoat the plastic ? or is that just a paint finish :-\ just curious, i've heard of low temp baking to do plastic parts, but the place i consulted said that there was no such thing. and shibby we're like the sole powdercoaters lol

11-08-2002, 08:49 PM	#17
TheStapleGunKid Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: fredericton, NB, Canada Posts: 42	The Plastic is painted (as correct you cannot powder coat plastic, as it will not stand the 450F temps, plus the powder won't cling, since the plastic can't be grounded). Yes I wet sanded the powder coat just like you'd wet sand a car, only since the powder coat is 10X tougher than paint, it takes ALOT longer... and is quite tiring, but you end up with a mirror finish. I started with 400 grit , and worked my way up to 2000 grit, then buffed it with my makita polisher, and some special compound I use to buff out cars. As far as powder coating getting in the threads of holes, and on bolts etc, yes it's a problem, and I either plug the holes with special plugs that'll take the heat, or I just run a tap through them when i'm finished.

11-08-2002, 10:40 PM	#18
NeosPirahnis Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 78	did you buy your own powdercoating shit dude ? dude IM me pleaseee lol AIM NeosPirahnis ICQ 51265235 MSN NeosPirahnis@hotmail.com

11-09-2002, 08:26 AM	#20
TheStapleGunKid Cooling Neophyte Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: fredericton, NB, Canada Posts: 42	Yes I do the powder coating myself, I've been doing it for 7 years. Cisco: Are you sure everything your brother does, comes out perfect? I've been powder coating for a while, and powder coat always comes out looking nice and shiny (but if you're into cars like I am), however to get a completely flat finish, wet sanding is necessary. That and some powders flow better than other powders, Translucents flow quite nicely. Plus doing things like pulleys for an engine or the likes, come out perfectly, but on a completely flat side of a case, you can see the orange peel. All peices that are being powder coated must either be A: powder coated already, in which case you just need to bare up a small area to hook your ground clip. B: chromed, as chrome will take the heat C: stripped to the bare metal. Plus all peices must be cleaned just like you clean a car before you paint it.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)