Is it safe to powdercoat alloys?

[therealpigdog]

Read a few horror stories on t'interweb about cracked wheels. What is the general consensus on getting alloys powdercoated?

[OperationAlfa]

Silly question?

[Biker's Nemesis]

Yes its safe to powdercoat alloys, I've had bike and car wheels done in the past and I've not had a failure.

[Stoatman]

Ive had mine done after loads of research and they are fine. I read about one set off DC2 alloys alledgedly failing after being powder coated but I think it tuned out that no spigot ring was used and therefore put massive stress through the wheel nuts.

[DanDC5]

I had the wheels on my ep3 done, no issue at all. Just check your wheelsnuts a couple of times, powdercoat can get in the threads and stop them from tightening properly 1st time.

[HorneyMX5]

Utter tosh, spigots make no difference to the load on the alloys.

Some alloys can be damaged by powder coating due to the alloy mix they are made from and the temperature bake of powder coating. An example is MKII MX5 OE alloys, many many cases of these suffering cracks after ebing powder coated.

nick

[therealpigdog]

OperationAlfa said:

Silly question?

Sorry - wasn't meant to be a silly question. My mechanic had some done a few months ago and showed me where they had subsequently cracked - presumably as a result of the heating process. He is no longer sure about whether it is a good idea.

I've read a few similar stories on forums, and wasn't sure whether it was the classic case of only people who are dissatisfied voicing their opinions - happy customers tend not to shout about it.

I'll get it done ... now what colour?

[griff7]

Done 2 sets of m3 wheels and a set on my diesel without any problems at all but do find someone with experience of doing alloys.

[OperationAlfa]

therealpigdog said:

Sorry - wasn't meant to be a silly question. My mechanic had some done a few months ago and showed me where they had subsequently cracked - presumably as a result of the heating process. He is no longer sure about whether it is a good idea.

I've read a few similar stories on forums, and wasn't sure whether it was the classic case of only people who are dissatisfied voicing their opinions - happy customers tend not to shout about it.

I'll get it done ... now what colour?

No probs, It wasn't a dig. I haven't ever heard of any horror stories.. Also had several sets done.

If you have good condition wheels in the first place (not cracked then should all be good.

What car are they going on? Colour & style?

[Stoatman]

DOnt shoot the messenger regarding the spigot rings , my main point was that it was not deemed to be down to the powder coating process and therefore I decided to have mine done.

[sixspeed]

Yes of course you can! If you're concerned about someone with experience, these guys did mine recently and the finish was oustanding for a powder coat..

http://www.premierwheelrepairs.com/

Very reasonable pricing too.

[therealpigdog]

OperationAlfa said:

No probs, It wasn't a dig. I haven't ever heard of any horror stories.. Also had several sets done.

If you have good condition wheels in the first place (not cracked then should all be good.

What car are they going on? Colour & style?

Thanks for putting my mind at ease. As I said, I'd seen first hand experience of them cracking, and my mechanic (who I trust) could only put it down to the powdercoating - and we both searched on various forums and heard a few similar stories.

The wheels are in good nick, and not particularly intricate so shouldn't be much of a problem. Will probably go for black seeing as I lack imagination (hence the E36 as a trackday car) - and it won't draw attention to the fact that the wheels are so small (car is lowered now and all clear indicators).

[redgriff500]

It seems to be an issue with lightweight / forged alloys but is still rare.

I've just had an expensive forged set done but went to a specialist rather than my usual (cheap) place.

[sim16v]

HorneyMX5 said:

Utter tosh, spigots make no difference to the load on the alloys.

Some alloys can be damaged by powder coating due to the alloy mix they are made from and the temperature bake of powder coating. An example is MKII MX5 OE alloys, many many cases of these suffering cracks after ebing powder coated.

nick

Utter tosh there as well.

Just how hot do you think the powder coating actually happens at, when compared to say.... car brakes used on car on a trackday?


Wheels crack due to being old and worn out after bumping up thousands of kerbs, nothing to do with the powder coating.

Main problems arise where the whole wheel is powder coated, including the mounting face for the wheel bolts and the centre face of the wheel where it meets the hub.

You think the wheels are properly torqued up, but the heat from the brakes melts this coating causing the wheels to work loose.

[therealpigdog]

To be fair, the example my mechanic saw was a MkII MX5.

[OdramaSwimLaden]

I went for yes.

.....you need an "I haven't got a fking clue" option.

[EvilChap]

It can be safe to powdercoat alloys - but also if excessive heat it used it can alter the structure of a wheel for the worse. Heat treating is a part of the manufacturing process for most lightweight wheels, so sticking them in an oven at high temps for hours does them no good at all.

Somewhere that knows what they're doing should be safe enough