clear on polished mild steel

[chromeitout]

I have a couple of question on corrosion/adhesion of clear powder on polished mild steel (ex. valve covers, engine brackets, suspension parts, etc.). Has anyone tried it? If so do you have a problem with flash rust after polishing between cleaning and powdering? Any problems "down the road" with adhesion/corrosion?

The reason for my asking is that I am after a truer chrome look than what the chrome powders offer. Yes the powders do look very good but after clearing they dull some. I have cleared some polished stainless and it looked great. Any info would be appreciated before I begin polishing.

[rodman13]

Hey man, I know what your talkin about. I have been polishing peoples suspension parts for them then clearing them. The big reason is they don't want to wait for chrome, and its a little cheaper. I still get a little orange peel look, but it looks way better than chrome powder. I did a bracket in october 05 and left it in my back yard and it still is in good shape. I just worry about some parts that could get hit by a rock and then start to rust in that spot.

[chromeitout]

I hear you on the flying debris. Ouch! Is orange peel your only complaint with the look? Do your customers feel that it is a good alternative to chrome (basically the looks) other than damage issue? Glad that you did the "part in the back yard test". It is usually a dependable one.

[rodman13]

The real alternative I think is if they buy that cheap overseas chrome parts they not only look bad, they dont last. A real good triple chrome place would be about 20% higher, but they might have a wait. Also I think only you will see the haze. Most cust. thinks it looks great.

[machone]

Clear looks great over polished. If you're getting orange peel, I suggest lowering your cure temp and cure for longer. It gives the powder more time to flow.
mach

[BLOWNTRC5]

Originally Posted by machone

Clear looks great over polished. If you're getting orange peel, I suggest lowering your cure temp and cure for longer. It gives the powder more time to flow.
mach

That's what I do! Along with a slow ramp up to temp. I do this with all of my gloss parts, and it works great!

Doug