I am Hoping to powder coat my Rockshox Zebs, (or paint them a custom colour for that matter). But I have one hang up.
These are Teflon (PTFE) bushings. Teflon’s temperature resistance range is -200°C to 260°C ( -328 to 500 °F for the Americans). A powdercoating oven operates at 200°C for 15 Minutes (according to the company I’m using). What should I look out for in terms of warping? I imagine the adhesion to the metal outer of the bushing could weaken.
Also anecdotal, but I’ve been speaking to someone online who did this and they said their fork is fine, without removing bushings.
The reason I’m opting for Powder-coating is that I think it’d be the best option for the finish I’m trying to achieve. (a candy red sparkly finish), similar to the last photo. If anyone out here who knows about autobody paint etc recommends how else I could achieve that finish, let me know.
I’m also aware that the forks are a magnesium alloy, but given the fact they are in almost brand new condition, this shouldn’t be a problem, as the heat it is being subjected to wouldn’t be enough for them to combust spontaneously.
Anyone who’s done something similar, what did you do? How did you get on?
by DankJuiceYT
3 Comments
Pretty sure most folks pull the bushings before powder coat, but email rockshox. I’m sure they’ll give you some kind of rundown on how it goes.
Email Rockshox, then tell us because now I’m curious
You’re biggest issue will be whatever the adhesive was used to bond the PTFE to the metal and whether or not it will withstand the heat, which is unlikely. Even if the PTFE doesn’t fall off, the adhesive will be weakened for sure. Most adhesives and epoxies are going to be good to about ~100°C. Even highly specialty stuff will only be good to about 200°C.
The PTFE itself will be fine at 200°C indefinitely.