Infrared curing question

[linnracing]

Hello,
I am very new to "do it yourself powder coating". I have done a few small things with some success in an oven. If I use an infrared lamp, are the heating guidelines the same as oven curing (i.e. 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes). Or are there some other guidelines for infrared curing?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
I've spent a lot time on your forum and it has been extremly helpful and I appreciate Caswell providing it for us hobbyists.

Steve

[Fireblade]

The guidlelines are different for IR lamps. The lamp itself will come with the guideline chart, I forget them off the top of my head. I haven't used a lamp in a long time, but I know they are generally quicker than the oven times.

[linnracing]

Hi,
Thanks for the reply.
The IR lamp I am looking at won't have any guidelines for powder coating because its used for heating. Enco Tool has a couple that look pretty large that are less expensive than the ones I normally see for powder coating.
One of them is a 5120 BTU rating, 1500 watts, 120 volt and is 46 inches long. The other one is 102390 BTU rating, 3000 watts, 240 volts and is 57 inches long. From reading the forum I can tell that an oven is real the way to go for the kinds of parts and sizes I generally will be doing but I thought I may be able to build a sheetmetal type box around 2 of these lights and I may be able to do the bracketry type parts that I need. I have read any information on the forum I could find about building an oven but to be honest I'm not much of an electrician. I did buy a small lab oven on ebay but something I think something is wrong with it. It only heats a part up to 200 degrees. At any rate I thought thes lamps may be adequate for my needs (especially 2 in one enclosed box).
Do the lamps I mentioned sound like a worth while alternative? If so is the smaller one powerful enough or do I need the big one. The price difference is not much but I wonder about the cost to operate them.
I would still need some curing guidelines.
Thanks again for any help, and sorry about the length of this post.
Steve

[non-stick]

I know I breezed over the posts really quick as I'm in the middle of something right now, but I just thought I'd chime in real quick. No matter the heat source, the powder is cured at PMT (part metal temperature) levels. 15 minutes at 410F no matter how it gets done (withing safety guidelines, people! lol) will cure the powder. I'll come back in a little bit and look this thread over carefully to give more accurate explanation of things in a bit.... hope that helps...Russ

[non-stick]

ummmm..... ok, I read the posts. One question. Why are you asking about product capabilities for a product we don't sell here? Why not just ask the place that you were looking at for product support instead of the place that is it's competitor? lol. Hate to sound rude about it all, but you read the notice on the top of the page where this wasn't a "public forum", right? Take a look around this site and if there's a question that can be answered about a product that's sold here, we'll be glad to help.

[linnracing]

Non-Stick,
My initial question was a technical inquiry about curing with IR lamps. Sorry if I offended you but there have been many questions on this forum from people building their own ovens, and asking about heat sources without being rebuffed by you. In fact, you have been extremley helpful to those people in most cases. You have also promoted oven curing over IR lamps for many of the applications people have asked about, which may detract from IR lamp sales from Caswell. I guess I'll go back to just reading this forum and refrain from posting. Like I said in my first post, this is a great forum and I appreciate Caswell for implementing it. I have learned quite a bit over the last year of reading it. You and the others that post here have an extrordinary amount of knowledge to pass on and I'm sure it is appreciated.
Thanks again,
Steve

[non-stick]

no.... you missed the point. Let's take it back a few steps and maybe we can clear some things up. First of all... we value your posts here. Don't stop. That's key.... you can agree or disagree with me and that's fine (as a matter of fact, I like getting my feathers ruffled now and again... the end result is that we all become better coaters and find new ways to solve problems). My point is (and I hope you don't see this as something that's offensive) that there are MANY ways to cure a part, IR and otherwise. If you have a question about a certain manufacturers system or it's values... then I have to chime in and say "no no no.... we don't talk about such things here". I always wind up the bad guy in these instances, but I have a "job" to do. If things slip then it becomes common place and we tend to forget why we're here. It's certainly not to alienate you from posting, and it's certainly not to constantly badmouth other manufacturers or suppliers that are in fact direct competition for Caswell (you've no doubt actually read posts where I've chastized people for badmouthing. That's not why we're here. WE have to elevate ourselves in this industry and break down the barriers should we choose to become innovators). You've also no doubt seen my posts where I chime in (as much as my feeble knowledge of the subject goes anyways) to help others build thier own ovens. I'm not in direct violation of "Caswell Law" because there are *some* things IR ovens are good for, and some chamber-type ovens are for. I always help to guide for the best possible outcome, no matter who makes the sale. Those who know me on this board can attest to that fact as my main business is a consultant in the field and large equipment supplier for such things. If anything... I've pushed sales away by doing that.

It's like this,bud. I didn't mean to offend. I just have a function here. Yes, of course there is more than one supplier for anything in this world. We all know this. The point is to keep this a "promote from within" type of place and I have no doubt in my mind that it's a fun place to be at the same time. I certainly apologize if I made it seem as though you don't have a place here. By all means... you have one on this forum more than I do, truth be known and it's appreciated (each and every one of you is looked at in the same manner). I don't get paid to be here, I gain nothing in this "forum" but sharing knowledge and of course, learning from all of you. Take another look at the posts and if there's a question that wasn't answered that you have.... we'll ALL do our best to assist. I KNOW you know that to be true. As for being "rebuffed" about my information.... you can all bring it on, for that fact,lol. If I'm wrong, you all know I'm the first to say so and insert my mint flavored shoes. I never said I was the pinnacle of information, just a guy that knows a few things and is willing to share Quite often I forget to "scale things down" for hobbyist uses, or for that fact.... build it up for industrial applications. It's a mistake much like any other I've made in the past and no doubt I'll make quite a few more. After all.... I'm only human.

[Fireblade]

Hey LinnRacing, like Non-stcik said, he was not trying to offend you, but just like you go to Mcdonald's you don't ask for information on Burger King products. He suggested you contact the company with those lamps they sell, and get info from them. If they are selling them as lamps for pc'ing, then they should be able to help you. If they don't have any info, then you may want to rethink purchasing from them. I learned alot of stuff the hard way, because I am stubborn, but I learned it. I also learned another thing, if you have a place to get good info from a good company about a product they stand behind, you already learned something far more valuable. As you said and have already seen, people here are talking about all sorts of things that help people out everyday. If I were you, I would look into buying the lamps from Caswell, I have no affiliation with them at all, my money knows them better than me, but I can say you will get your money's worth from them. Instructions will come with the lamp, letting you know how and what to do. Who knows about the other place, if you can't get info on curing times, what else are they not going to be able to tell you? All in all, don't stop posting, in fact yell at Non-stick, get your emotions out! lol Anyways. don't leave now, you met people who aren't afraid to say things, good or bad, you will learn more about PCing then you ever could anywhere else.

[non-stick]

All in all, don't stop posting, in fact yell at Non-stick, get your emotions out! lol .

lol, gee. thanks for the assist

As you can see.... it's all taken with a grain of salt here and we have that "brotherhood" feel about it. No harm, no foul. [/quote]