Thermal Stripping vs Sandblasting

[cowboyup3371]

Although a search here didn't turn up anything, has anyone ever heard of thermal stripping for preparing a frame to be powdercoated? This company here in Dayton (http://www.afipowder.com/thermal-stripping-2/) does it when preparing frames for painting. I was checking them out but personally the price seems prohibitive especially when other companies use sandblasting (about a 300 dollar difference at least).

Does anyone know of it well enough to offer their own opinions as to whether it would be worth it to try their technique?



Warning - their site has two of the same videos that start up pretty close to simultaneously

[Sci85]

Beats me cowboyup but for a frame made of steel, I don't see any reason to use anything other than sand blasting. It works well and is reasonable cost. Is there something about sand blasting that raises a concern or just curiosity?

[Billy Ricks]

Old time painters use to burn paint off of houses using white gas torches. We still have a couple of them that belonged to my dad. We use heat guns now but at times when we don't want to use stripper we burn the paint off of doors and such. A good heat gun might just burn the paint off.

[cowboyup3371]

Beats me cowboyup but for a frame made of steel, I don't see any reason to use anything other than sand blasting. It works well and is reasonable cost. Is there something about sand blasting that raises a concern or just curiosity?

No this is just curiosity as I'm thinking about really trying to fix up the bike and make it look nicer next year when I replace the base gasket.

[Sci85]

Well, if the frame is completely rust free, then this would be an option if it were close in price. But most frames have some rust and I don't see how something non abrasive like this would remove it.

[gsgeezer]

most frames have some rust and I don't see how something non abrasive like this would remove it.

That would be my concern. I imagine heat would be fine for something brand new, but I don't know anyone who restores anything made out of steel that doesn't use abrasives first.

[Agemax]

if you are thinking of powder coating you NEED to have the frame sand blasted or even better, grit blasted. the powder coating needs a really rough key to adhere to for a good strong durable finish.
the place i use always grit blasts steel components

[hampshirehog]

I didn't understand the purpose of the heat treatment followed by glass bead blast treatment. Maybe for delicate alloy parts but not for steel.

Glass bead is expensive to contaminate with old paint / rust etc but why not just use grit in the first place?

[SqDancerLynn1]

Heat boils out the grease and oils

[Nessism]

if you are thinking of powder coating you NEED to have the frame sand blasted or even better, grit blasted. the powder coating needs a really rough key to adhere to for a good strong durable finish.
the place i use always grit blasts steel components

Okay, I give up. What's the difference between "grit" and "sand"?

BTW, you don't need to sand/grit blast before powder coating per say, the surface just needs to be prepped. Most good powder coaters have a phosphate dip tank which etches the metal and makes it receptive to bonding with the powder. That's now newly manufactured parts are coated. No grit blasting at all.

[Agemax]

grit is a lot harsher than sand. sand leaves a much smoother finish, ideal for painting, but grit leaves more of a rough sandpaper type finish, which gives a better key for the powder coating to adhere.sand is ideal for aluminium parts but not aggressive enough for steel

[Nessism]

grit is a lot harsher than sand. sand leaves a much smoother finish, ideal for painting, but grit leaves more of a rough sandpaper type finish, which gives a better key for the powder coating to adhere.sand is ideal for aluminium parts but not aggressive enough for steel

So what is "grit"? Coal slag?

[Agemax]

its a coarser form of sand, much "sharper"

[cowboyup3371]

Ed, I found this discussion about different media used in sandblasting so maybe this is what he means.

http://www.kramerindustriesonline.com/blasting-media.htm

[Nessism]

Ed, I found this discussion about different media used in sandblasting so maybe this is what he means.

http://www.kramerindustriesonline.co...ting-media.htm

Scott,

I'm aware that there are all kinds of different blast media. What I don't understand is what the Brit's mean by "grit". I take this to be some local reference which is different than used in the US. Basically, ALL blast media can be grouped into the term "grit", using our definition of the word, but their usage points to a specific product commonly used by industry there.

Getting back to the question at hand, thermal stripping is not appropriate for a GS frame for the reasons already mentioned. That process is often used to clean up powder coating hanging brackets and racks as the coating builds up over time and must be removed. Basically, the heavily caked equipment is cooked at high temperature until the material degrades and falls off. Totally different application than cleaning up rust off an old GS frame.