Painting Fork Brace: Powder Coat or POR 15?

[srsupertrap]

I am painting my Racer Supply fork brace and I was wondering whether I should use POR 15 or send it out to be powder coated gloss black? Looks like it has a real thin coat of paint. Anyone have experience painting one of these or any suggestions?

[salty_monk]

Either will work fine...

Powder will be harder to chip but once you do you can't repair it like you can with paint....

[Mysuzyq]

I went with powder coating for mine (it had a natural aluminum finish, when I bought it on the bay) for durability. For the $20 they charged to coat it, and a couple other small bits black, it was hard to justify the time/effort for painting.



Tony.

[srsupertrap]

I went with powder coating for mine (it had a natural aluminum finish, when I bought it on the bay) for durability. For the $20 they charged to coat it, and a couple other small bits black, it was hard to justify the time/effort for painting.



Tony.

Tony,
Your fork brace finish appears to be real smooth like the fork legs, I thought powder coating always added a textured finish?

steve

[Mysuzyq]

Tony,
Your fork brace finish appears to be real smooth like the fork legs, I thought powder coating always added a textured finish?

steve

No Steve, to my knowledge, it does not. It will look like a painted part, if you go with the gloss black....think of it as paint (but tougher), applied through a different process. The coating usually is thin enough that it will retain most of the texture of the part....tiny depressions/scratches will get filled in, but deeper gouges/nicks will not. I don't know if they offer different texture finishes upon request, but I doubt it.

Tony.

[oshanac]

Is that an aftermarket fork brace MYSUZYQ?

[Mysuzyq]

Yes, I scored it on ebay a couple years ago, for $30. It was NOS, appears to be similar to these Daytona braces you might find on ebay, once in a while....works well!


Tony.

[almarconi]

Powder coat is more durable than paint.

[midnightcafe]

Do you have the POR paint already? You'd need the POR topcoat since it isn't UV resistant, which would drive the price higher.

[srsupertrap]

Do you have the POR paint already? You'd need the POR topcoat since it isn't UV resistant, which would drive the price higher.

Nope, I have not purchased any paint etc . . . just gathering information at this point. So the POR topcoat isn't UV resistant or is?

[midnightcafe]

The POR rust preventative paint is not UV resistant. You'll need a topcoat. I made the mistake of painting with just the chassis coat black topcoat, which I assumed was a hard enamel similar to the standard POR15 product. Not quite- dropping parts and hitting the frame have lefts scrapes and scuffs I'll have to touch up. You'll need a spray gun ($12 from harborfreight), inline filter, compressor, etc. I agree with Mysuzyq, for the price you'd be better off sending it to a powdercoater.