Ducati Monster Forum

I love my Gloss Black M1100 but do not like the look of the silver wheels on the bike.  I miss having black wheels and was considering getting these powdercoated.  Is this a bad idea as I thought someone mentioned the can get dinged up when putting new tires on at the service dept.  I did a search but could not find info.

Also, would I need any replacement parts such as seals or bearings to reinstall the wheels?  Just trying to figure out what my costs may be if i were to go this route.  And as much as I would like new wheels, I can not afford them now anyways. 

From what I understand, powder coating is amongst the more durable finishes, therefore perfect for applications like wheels. The only drawback that I hear is that some wheels may take a LOT more powder to get them smooth than, say paint, and it could add up in both weight AND cost. That being said, I have ZERO experience with powder coated wheels.

he-man has powdercoated his wheels. maybe he'll show up.

You'd need to pull out anything that isn't the wheel - bearings, cush drive etc.

generally, whatever can be painted can be powdered.  they are just two different ways of applying a layer of color.  one is liquid-chemical and the other is electrostatic. 

powdercoating is often better because you can apply a more consistent finish and reach crevices better.  it also does not run like paint can.  however, it is more problematic to coat with and unless you have an experienced pc'er, it can be pretty bad.

there are PLENTY of people out there who do wheels.  i used to use a guy in ohio who was a very old school pc'er.  don't know how i found him, but he did stuff for reasonable and the finishes came out looking better than you'd ever imagine. 

you just have to ask if they do aluminum or alloy.  regular powdercoating requires heat treat and aluminum has a lower range or becomes brittle as the heat treat rehardens the metal.

We have customers bring us theirs wheels to be powdercoated all the time at AMS. Marty has the wheels on his 1098R powdercoated black and has zero nicks on the rim lips from lots and lots of supercorsa tire changes.

that's forged alu that we pc'd, done it on brembo 3-spokers a bunch as well, and of course, frames.  Mark at the shop has all the footpeg bracketry and subframe of his motard powdercoated (likewise, the Neimen Marcus motards had lots of powdercoating done too when they were 're'-assembled)

just don't be like the guy with the 1098 that bought it to impress chicks who pc'd his front wheel black and his back wheel red. it looked terrible. and he was mighty far into the squidzone.

"highway to the squidzone"
top gun?? it sounded really funny in my head.
looks lame when i read it.
i dont care, now you guys have to read it.

anyone see the KTM half orange half white wheels?

This?
(http://www.ktm-parts.com/mm5/graphics/00000002/58609001044.jpg)
I like it for KTM and motards.  I would think long and hard before I did that to my ducati

I have painted wheels.  Not powder.  Not that I have anything against powder.  Just saying that I'm very happy with the paint finish.  It's glossy (if thats what you want), its durable.... no signs of damage from tyre replacements. But dont ask me for the technical details... I took em to a place with a great reputation, they did a good job, I gave em money.

the new 125 has white and orange looks great!
im gonna do silver and red on my silver with red frame M1100.
no.....no im not.

(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs143.ash2/40480_106646422725498_100001404223543_59767_6288025_n.jpg)
thats hot

 Yes it is!

 I bet if you did the same trearment to the exhaust on a new 696/1100 it would look very good as well.

the right kind of paint with the right kind of painter can do very well. 

paint is problematic because it's a liquid and can run.  also, you can only get to places the spray can reach.  since powder is applied electrostatically, it can go around corners, so to speak.

You need somebody who knows what they are doing.  I know a guy who had his Kawasaki wheels powder coated and when he got them back the bearings were no longer a press fit but just slid in loosely.  The heat treatment must have changed some of the wheel's dimensions.

If you powdercoat you will need to replace the bearings..
they heat to about 200C (you do the conversion..) so all bearings and seals will need to be removed prior.
You dont want bearing grease to run out on the job..
And because to remove the bearings you need to tap the inner race its advisable to get new ones.

with painting you just need to mask up, so no new bearings needed.

Bearings were removed - replacement bearings fit differently because of the warped aluminum.  I assume someone who knows what they are doing won't overheat the wheels or leave the wheels in the oven too long.

that really sucks, I hope they got their wheels bought.

In my experience it's the way some coaters remove old paint that does the damage and not the process itself. Aluminum should not be damaged at the temps required to cure powder.

I'm a painter and like liquid finishes. I think they have better gloss, and the choice of color is unlimited.

Powder is actually no more durable...any coating can be damaged... but when you get the part back it is completely cured whereas paint takes a period of time to cure.

FWIW, when I rebuilt my GF's 2000 900ie last winter, I bought an old silver rear wheel. I decided to try and spray can paint it myself with the idea that if it looked crappy I'd go and get it professionally done.  A little sanding and a few careful coats of paint along with a clearcoat and it looks a perfect match to the front.

You could also leave the wheel lips silver and just coat the inner portion and then not worry so much about tire changes messing the lips up.
How about spokes in black and rim done red matched to your frame.
Lots of options and no worries if ya photo shop it first.
GB

is a two-tone possible with powder?  I was thinking about his with my wheels, black with a red or orange stripe. 

Can you do one color (the base black) then mask and do another on top (the accent stripe)? 

Yes, but I think they mask the bare metal first do one color/cure and then rinse repeat for the second.

That settles it.
I'm gonna paint my wheels myself when I think the current paint is no longer 'servicable'.
Or at least get the frame and wheels done by a pro during the next big bore rebuild in five or so years time. It will have 80,000 kms on the motor then.

What kind of spray paint did you use & clear coat?  I'm tempted to do a little DIY myself here on the cheap.

As DP said, some coaters will bake the paint off.
some people will use an extremely abrasive material like sand to blast it off.

The good ones will have a big tank and just do a chemical dip.

Theres not enough heat for enough time to do much damage to aluminum.

if you left it at 400 degrees for maybe more than an hour, you might start seeing some effects. Generally speaking if you pay for a good PCer to strip and recoat it, your not that far from the cost of a good painter to just paint it without stripping.

between spray painting and powdercoating and using professional paints, the only real difference is durability and chemical resistance.

they can all look good if done properly. And they can all look like crap if done improperly. but if its wheels, especially the rear wheel, which in my opinion gets way more chemical attacks than the front, it will look like crap unless you use professional stuff.

think about it, you get chain cleaner on it, chain lube on it. Brake dust, brake fluid, dirt and grim (the front rotors tend to protect the front, and the front wheel also cuts the road grime then it gets thrown into the rear wheel).

the PC on my rear wheel has been chewed up from all these chemical attacks, even the OEM paint was bubbling at some point and that stuff is REALLY tough.

i PCed my own wheels btw.

that is serious!  what is it and who wants to trade me it for an 1100evo??

100% agree with all those comments.  [thumbsup]

Too many PC'ers go nuts with really aggressive blasting media or chemical dips to make the strip job go faster (and cheaper).  Look for loss of definition on detail edges of examples of work.

Oh, (and I appreciate so far everyone has been talking abut aluminum) if you have magnesium wheels that a PC'er says are "no problem to prep and coat" .... run, don't walk, to the nearest exit.

It was 3 or 4 years ago now, I can't even remember the name of it, but it was a very common brand of auto touch-up paint I picked up at parts source or Canadian tire (here in Canada)

It's held up really well over that time, with no noticeable chips or scratches.

Honestly, if anybody could screw up a spray paint job, it would be me and it went really easy. The only thing I made sure of was to paint it on a sunny day, about 70 degrees with very low humidity. I think ducpainter may have suggested that to me. We had a few days in a row of hot and sunny with low humidity, so I let it sit out in the sun for a few days in the hopes it would cure fast and hard.

I'm not sure it made it any more durable or not, but it's held up well.

Where abouts in Canada are you?  Are you in Toronto?  If so we should hook up for a ride.  I organize DUCATI DAY RIDES about twice a month.

Was the paint VHT brand by chance?  Did you use a clear coat?

I'm out in Hamilton. Let me know when you're doing a ride and I'll swing by.

I will check the paint in the morning, but I think it may have been VHT.