I guess I'm doing something wrong....

[black94t]

I'm starting to think that perhaps I do have an air/water separator issue. Reason being, that inlet was my VERY FIRST piece I had ever done, back in September. I had zero issues, well because I had zero water.

So, I emptied my tank and when I was getting down to 30psi left in the tank, I noticed the release pin was getting wet. I could see water spewing out with the air. after releasing the air from the pin, I opened the drain valve. This is what I got:




Not sure if this is "a lot" or hardly anything, but I would say there's a good cup full right there. I'm going to take a look at what caswell has and see if that is something comparable to what I can get locally. I NEED to powder coat today. I've got 3 customers waiting. Hopefully this will remedy my issues.

[Harleydad]

Ya, that could be an issue. I have a compressor just like that but don't use it for pc stuff.

[black94t]

Is there a different compressor you recommend? Seems to work pretty good with the powder gun. As for the blast cabinet, it's not as good as far as air supply, but it gets the job done.

[Harleydad]

Don't get me wrong, it will work. You just need to get yourself hooked up with proper filtration. As was mentioned on the other forum, check out TP Tools the have a good diagram of how to plumb air lines. My compressor is larger and has an air dryer.

[black94t]

I took a stab at the powder coating again tonight after draining the water out. Much better results, but I know they wont last until I get the proper air/water separator set up. I have some stuff on order

Here's what I come up with:



Dont ask me what these parts are, I have no clue. I picked up a small job for a guy who needed these powder coated. I am pleased to announce no pores or water spots in the powder. Now,......if I get the same results on this next valve cover, I will be one happy camper!

Thanks!

[black94t]

Well, I powder coated a used valve cover and I got similar results. I just dont understand this. I have the silica see through filter and a new inline filter so I know there's no moisture issues. Here are some pictures. Sorry they are a little blurry but you can get the idea of what I'm getting. This is reflective chrome from eastwood. Looks like ****.

Any suggestions? Please help soon. I've got to get this done this week. Thanks.

[JTW37]

Looks like to much powder (orange peel). Below is from Tiger Drylac Troubleshooting.

Powder coat layer shows uneven surface prior to curing, after curing shows orange peel, wavy flow, or pinholes.
Possible causes & Corrections

Parts are too hot coming from dry-off oven Allow longer cooling time (less than 40 [°C] / 104 [°F]) for parts

Preheat temperature too high - Lower preheat temperature or allow for cooling (less than 40 [°C] / 104 [°F])

Powder flow too high - Lower powder feed

Coating time too long Lower coating time

Unfavorable geometry of parts Change hanging or gun configuration
Gun-to-part distance too close Increase gun-to-part distance

[black94t]

Powder flow too high - Lower powder feed

That's a very good possibility here.

I guess what I dont know is how exactly do you know when you have just enough of a layer of powder on the valve cover? It seems so easy to over coat the part because it happens so fast. Problem for me would be that I'd get one area sufficiently covered, then notice spots here and there that are kind of shallow. I would concentrate on those areas but with the powder flying everywhere it tends to build up in areas where I shouldn't have more powder.

How far is everyone holding the gun from their part? Could the spreader tip on the gun be too close to the barrel of the gun?

Thanks for the insight there. I know it's something I'm doing wrong, I just need to find out what it is and do something differently.

Thanks.