Well, i'm starting into finding a place to do it, but i do have a few general questions: Bondo/Filler etc - is it safe to send in pieces with properly sanded and filed sections of this, as so to have perfectly smooth parts at the end? Costs - what have you guys seen price wise to do the exterior of a case heat - well, as it says. Plastic bezels don't sound like they'd fare well, especially considering that they finish up by baking. finally - steel cases - any chance of oxidation during coating? Thanks for the time - i'll likely call it in too, but with this info, things should be faster, and easier.
AFAIK powdercoating is not possible with bondoed(is that a word?) parts. It uses a polaization system to get the powder sticking to the metal. As bondo isnt metal polarization is not possible. As for the steel: The whole idea behing PD is to prevent oxidation and harden the metal. Hope that helps!
I heard some places use a metallic spray coat to conduct electricity and allow the ionized paint particles to be pulled in. It's more expensive of course. The same coating makes it possible to chrome non-metallic surfaces.
I know for regular powdercoating you will not be able to have any bondo on the target part. Powder coating works by sanding/sandblasting/burning all paint and impurities from the surface of the metal, then attaching a ground* to the metal. Then you blow positively* charged paint powder over the metal. The paint powder is attracted to the metal and sticks to it. Then you carefully put said metal in an oven and heat the powder to its melting point, then turn down the heat to set the paint up. * note, ground and voltage might be reversed I cant remember.
So in other words, nonmetallic areas won't have paint properly adhere to them, and the bezel would likely melt in the ovens as a paltry, shapeless mass of flaking paint. Shame. Rattlecans and sandpaper for me, then.
Its too bad there isn't something as durable and relatively easy as powdercoating for non-metal, because its amazing stuff. My bike takes a mad beating and I can't find a single scratch on it, let alone a actual chip out of the powdercoat.
The only other thing that would be as tough as powercoating would be Rhino Lining. That stuff it really tough, my dad has it in his 03 dodge ram and it has not chipped in the 4 years he has owned it. I think it cost my dad around 300 for the bed of his truck and two nerf bars so it shouldn't be too expensive BUT I don't know how they finish it, in his bed it is kind rough but on the nerf bar they are pretty smooth. it will be kinda bumpy and it comes in different colors I'm pretty sure it bonds with non-metal material http://www.rhinolinings.com/
My first mod project was to coat a computer case in Line-x (same stuff as Rhino Lining) Took it to them and they coated the entire thing except the front bezel. The coating is very hard (did mine about 4 years ago, not a scratch on it) and comes in quite a few colors. Only cost me $40 to have them do all the work. Unfortunately I was told they wouldn't be able to do the front due to plastic not having the grit to allow the coating to adhere and its sprayed on hot enough to possibly cause melting. I just used the Krylon Fusion for the front.
I have seen somewhere on the interwebs that someone managed to properly chrome a guitar body which is made of wood and i always wondered how, so yeah a metallic spray sounds quite plausible.
I do not know what all is needed for chroming, but I do know that when you do a powder coating it needs to bake at 450 F for 5-10 minutes, or until all the powder is melted, then you reduce heat to 400 for 20 minutes to set it up. I doubt a plastic bezel would survive that, as for a chunk of wood, I dont know.
For gold, silver & bronze plating, check out this site: http://www.thememoriescompany.co.uk/index.html
Problem to the Line-X stuff, is does it have a textured "plastic" feel to it? The case already has a "dirt/snow" finish to it - which is rough, and hides dirt/prints well, but i honestly hate it. I planned to shave it down, and paint a nice smooth layer overtop.
The box of my dads 03 ram is rough but his nerf bars are pretty smooth check out a local shop to see what they can do for you
to answer the question about powder coating non-metalic parts...it is possible and has been accomplished with great results numerous times. As the owner of a powder coating shop there are very few parts which can not be coated and the only true requirement is that the part must be able to withstand 500deg F for a duration of 30 minutes. When coating parts which are non-metalic the process is to actually heat the part to cure temperature then immediately upon pulling it from the oven coat the part. This causes the powder to flow on the part upon contact. Or the other alternative is to use a metal impregnated body filler, such as "lab metal", or conductive spray coating to allow the part to hold a charge to be coated. Of note, the reason that powder coating uses electricity is to hold the powder to the part before curing.
