Jump to content

litp.jpg

Lotus in the Peak
28th - 30th June 2024

Local Wishbone Clean + Passivation + Powder Coat


Tim111s

Recommended Posts

Hi,

 

About to refurb my wishbones (possibly some suspension brackets as well) and looking for local (ideally Notts, Derby, Leicester) places to undertake the cleaning, zinc passivation (and de-embrittlement), and powdercoating. Does anyone have any recommendations?

 

I'd also be interested in views as to the best way to clean them up. They have the usual covering of road dirt/salt residue and possibly a little surface rust but nothing major that I can see. Would an acid clean be the best option (do they clean them in acid prior to passivation anyway), or should I be looking at some form of shot/bead blasting?

 

Thanks,

 

Tim.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 10
  • Created
  • Last Reply

I've had some powder coating done at Millenium Services in Derby before. They do lots of big stuff like railway carriage chasses, bogey sets, etc. I did the prep myself, but I'm sure they can also do that as they'd need to know what they're coating it clean before they start.

 

The Metal Improvement Company (also Derby) do shot-blast work (not sure if they do small cash jobs, though - they're a major supplier to Rolls-Royce for surface improvement techniques and might not be keen on small "foreigners"). Years ago I'd have taken stuff there, but RR is more strict now and MIC might have had to change the way it works.

 

As far as cleaning is concerned, I'd take the advice of whoever you get to do the coating.

 

Be prepared for a shock, though - it's not unheard of to discover that your wishbones are beyond repair when you get them off and grit-blasted. Obviously, this means that they only had a short life left on the car if you'd left them alone, so it's better to find it out this way than the other way ! Before you start out, it might be worth checking that (eg) Eliseparts are in a position to supply replacements for any that are suspect (and that you have the credit card ready....).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can't really give any suggestions of where to go, but I did my front suspension last winter... blasted and then painted with POR 15. Not a mark on even the lower wishbones. I'm doing my rear (amongst other things) at the moment and plan on the same method.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the replies.

 

I did consider POR15 but having a limited space to work in, as well as the time required to do the job properly and get a good finish, is what has led me down the powder coating route. Having them re-passivated was with the intention of providing some protection should the powder coat chip and I figured I could always touch-up any chips with a little hammerite if required (I'm going for black so any touch-up should be less noticable). I accept it probably means the finish in a few years time won't be as good as with POR 15 though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You mentioned possibly doing the suspension brackets. I would suggest doing those at the same time. It won't add anything much to your costs, but you'll have done most of the work getting your wishbones out. Getting a bit more protection on those other steel pieces is worth it while you can access them easily. If you do, don't forget about applying Duralac between the steel and aluminium when you re-fit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Tim,

I had my diffuser powder coated at this place in Ripley:- http://www.millenniumcoatings.co.uk/index.htm

There were a few blemishes here and there but I was pleased with it overall, to be fair most of that was probably due to the remains of the old coating that I had rubbed down.

They didn't fancy shot blasting the old coating off as it would have deformed the diffuser, unless I'd perhaps made a plywood support for it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. Terms of Use