Refinishing vent window frames

[LeesTruk]

I'm restoring a couple of vent windows for my C10, and was thinking of using powder coating instead of paint. Has anyone done this and found the coating too thick for the gaskets/glass to fit properly?

[68Timber]

It'll be fine. There was a guy that used to post here regularly, he powder coated all his.

[LeesTruk]

Thank you, sir

[hatzie]

Wet paints are typically 0.5-1mil thick when cured.
Powder is 2-6mils for decorative or 6-10mils for more functional... This all depends on powder type and how skilled the person is at applying and curing the powder.
One mil is one one-thousandth of an inch... 0.001" so even a heavy powder will be right around 0.010" thick. The place you run into trouble is close tolerance bolt and rivet holes. You can clear them by hand with a light touch from a tapered ream if needed. The rubber gaskets shouldn't be seriously affected by a properly applied powder coat.

[Ric's/86]

Originally Posted by LeesTruk

I'm restoring a couple of vent windows for my C10, and was thinking of using powder coating instead of paint. Has anyone done this and found the coating too thick for the gaskets/glass to fit properly?

I did have a very hard time putting the glass back after (Powder Coating) ended up using windshield sealer instead of the gasket.

You can buy them new for $40.00 here is a link.

LEFT
http://www.usa1industries.com/produc...t=0&featured=Y

RIGHT
http://www.usa1industries.com/produc...t=0&featured=Y

You can buy them with glass from the same place.
Good luck with your project.

[LeesTruk]

Thanks for the info Ric, but my C10 is an '80, and as I have recently found out (thanks to this site) there are differences amongst the years, though subtle. Enough that parts can't be swapped. I do have several complete vent window assemblies, now, to play with ('77, '80, '81). My concern was powder coating the whole framework, not just the glass frame itself. Because the rubber gasketing fits into a channeled groove, my concern was the coating filling the channel so that the gaskets would have no place to seat. I've had suspension parts coated before, and the paint can be quite thick. I'm not a body guy, so my only other solution would be rattle cans, and I'm not quite sold on their longevity/durability

[vht]

They have hi temp tape, youcan tape off the channel where the glass fits. A friend does alot of powder coating and he has various widths of it. Good stuff.