Does anyone have any ideas on the best way to refinish leaf springs. Is sandblasting and powdercoating the way to go or would it be better to sandblast and use Por-15???

 

Por15 is made for this because it is very flexable, but I'd bet that epoxy frame paint would do as well. You can get the Por15 in small cans which might be a better deal as it tends to have a short shelf life.

 

Thanks Karljay, I think thats the way I'll end up going. Would Por-15 be better for the frame as well or is powdercoating it going to be ok. I've only recently been told that powdercoating may not be that good because of frame flex. Is there any truth to this?
Don

 

I'd go with the Por15 on the frame. I just finished my frame and undercab/bed with Por15 and it took about 1 gallon. Por15 is flexable, paint some on some thin metal and you can flex it and bend it without it comming off.

I've heard that powder coating is rigid and can chip easy but I've never actually tried it.

 

[FONT COLOR="#0000ff" SIZE="3" FACE="Veranda"]
As to the powdercoating: The powder coating is only going to be as good as the prep work done by the person applying it. My neighbor has a business he started last summer specifically geared to the restorer. He showed me a set of plain steel brake lines he coated for his Mach. The powder was applied to the straight tubes and he then custom bent them as he installed them. I was quite amazed. From what I saw and the first hand experience I have with powder coating, there is no way that it should flake off or chip due to frame flex.

This may get long. You may have guessed that I am a proponent of powder coating. I have it on several components installed on my '67. I have been conducting some unscientific testing as to durability and looks for the past ten years. I had a set of old plow lights and the lower frame for the plow. These parts were very rusty. To date, almost ten salty winters later everything is holding up very respectably. I do note that the light buckets have faded some from the UV exposure. The plow frame has chipped here and there where I have hooked chains or bumped stumps, but the powder surrounding the exposed areas was not undermined. If it had been paint, it might have let me down.

The final point I would add is that powder finish is only going to look as good as the finish of the underlying metal. You can't easily fill and hide pitted areas like you can with paint. It is possible to put a special base coat of powder coat that can then be worked up with traditional paint finishes. I have done that on a set of hubcaps.

I am torn on my own project whether to have the frame powder coated or use POR-15. I make a point to ask at car shows whether anyone has used the POR-15. Everyone that has used it speaks highly of it. What I have not been able to find or "see" is how well a POR-15 paint job holds up 5-10 years after the fact. There is nothing like the "test of time".
[/FONT]
https://www.ford-trucks.com/dcforum/User_files/StockMan/flag.gif
[FONT COLOR="#ff0000" SIZE="+2" FACE="Signature"]Stock Man[/FONT]
[FONT COLOR="#0000ff" SIZE="3" FACE="arial"]
[LINK:www.ford-trucks.net/users/stockman|Stockman's Club FTE Site]
[LINK:www.67fordtruck.com|1967 F-Series Registry ( www.67fordtruck.com )]