Need better finishes!

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Hi all,Up until now, all my welding has always been for me, or for friends, and for free.  I am now getting people who want me to build things for them, arbors, gates, benches etc.  Here is my dilemma.  Up to this point, I have always just painted my own stuff, either with my compressor and a can of Rustoleum from Home Cheapo, or just with Rustoleum or Krylon rattle cans.  The paint looks good, and I am happy with the initial look... BUT IT JUST DOESN'T HOLD UP!Stuff I did even just 4-5 yrs ago that sits outside has rust spots all over, even areas where the paint is pealing.  I would LOVE to powder coat my stuff, and I would even invest in a mid-range system, but I don't have an oven anywhere big enough to work, (the project I am finishing now is an arbor which is 8' high, 6' wide and will be 8' long.... more of a tunnel than an arbor). What other finishing options are there?  I really like using "hammered" paints, but am open to anything that will look nice and keep these things from rusting.  I also use a lot of clear coat over bare metal, like on my nature benches.  Are there better paints?  Better finishing processes?  A way to powder coat without an oven the size of a 1 car garage?
Reply:Get it galvanized
Reply:thanks for the answers so far.  Believe it or not, I hadn't really thought about automotive paints.... duh!
Reply:Minwax wood floor clear. Brush it on and its self leveling, and uv resistent. Then you will be able to use whatever finish you want under it. Very durable! I hate being bi-polar it's awsomeMy Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
Reply:Originally Posted by weldermikeMinwax wood floor clear. Brush it on and its self leveling, and uv resistent. Then you will be able to use whatever finish you want under it. Very durable!
Reply:I've always used Sherwin williams industrial paint for years. I use sher-kem or kem 400 both are cheap per gallon and can be reduced up to 20%. This is what I do when I paint all my stuff: Clean the metal with acetone, xylene, reducer...whatever I have available. Scuff the metal with green or red scotch pad. Prime with red or gray primer at least 2 coats. Once the primer is dry, I scuff it again with a green scotch to remove any overspray,dry spray and so the paint can grip on the primer. Finally 2-3 medium wet coats of enamel. It should last for years.
Reply:http://www.bapspaint.com/docs/psheet...lic_Enamel.pdf35.00$ a gallon of gloss black.I forgot how to change this.
Reply:Are you prepping your metal correctly?Are you using primer? I use rustoleum with pretty good results.No peeling,no rusting after years of being outside in the elements.Even on my own stuff.
Reply:Galvanizing is really the best... good for 100 years.  The price between galvanizing and doing a proper blast and paint is minimal.   After that epoxy paints and ureathanes.  The problem with paints is that people blame the paint when it really is the preparation.  Even the best automotive finishes will just peal off if the preparation is not done.    Before a choosing powder coat I would suggest sand blasting and painting within the hour. The better the paint the better the life.  Keep in mind some paints like epoxies will react in sunlight leaving a powdery white finish.  It wipes off with an acetone soaked rag.   A lot of ureathanes will not tolerate complete submersion in water.  I don't like powder coat because once the skin is broken the moisture will run underneath and have a gay old time.  Talk to people who have had to repair powder coat finishes... Usually you peel the stuff off or gum up countless sanding discs.
Reply:What Lotechman said about the prep is so true, anyway the "preparation" part in metal working is the key of the success in every part of the job.To me the galvanizing option is the best, but there is another option that need your own personal and good judgement, depend of the size, the design and in what kind of environment where the project will be instaled, you can sandblast first the steel then you have to air clean the steel, then put s good and thick coat of rich zinc paint (wrongly called cold galvanized) Galvicon is a good brand for that, you can use it in air paint gun it make a better finnished, then put the car paint (on rich paint it will adhere the as directly on fresh sandblasted)Correctly it will last years, when my boss start his company he made a back yard fence for himself 16 years ago and he tried it as a test for the company and his still really proud to says that it work and still no rust!Calculator > Bevel Square
Reply:Metal prep is important.  What is you process?   I like to paint some stuff.  However a good finish requires much surface prep.    Galv works however, might require some work to smooth.  Minwax. I will have to try that.
Reply:Hot dip galvanizing is expenive.   Have you looked at elctroplating?     One of my two professions in life is owning an electroplating company.    Based on my experience in metal finishing, I recommend you get your projects electroplated from your local plater, with a zinc finish.    After it's zinc plated, you can paint it or powder coat it if you really want to spend that much.  Zinc electroplating applies a much thinner layer of zinc upon the steel, unlike galvanized metals.  Electroplated finishes are much more conducive to a better looking  piece of finished steel, when compared to the more expensive galvanizing process.    The electroplated finish + paint on top of that, will last a long time.  You have to remember however that NOTHING lasts forever.  If it did, they wouldn't have to constantly repaint the Eifel Tower or the Golden Gate bridge time after time after time."Minimums" for electroplating is not too terribly expensive, provided you meet a "minimum" weight criteria.  For instance, we plate many custom parts for companies that custom fabricate suspension hardware.  If they have a "small" amount of parts, the customer will wait until he has enough parts to meet the "minimum" requirement.  Most platers' mimimum charge is in the $40-50 range or a 50lb weight minimum.   I recommend you google  a plater near you to find out their prices.  The more parts you have, the less expensive the cost is generally.  You could make up several projects, then have them plated at once rather then plating "minimums" routinely. Plating tanks range from tiny jewelry box sized, to large enough to dunk a Grey Hound bus in it.  My gates on the side of my house that I made are 8' wide by 7' high.   I electroplated them, then simply primered and painted them both with Rustoleum enamel spray paint.  That was 9 years ago and there is NO rust yet with one exception.  That being the bolt latch that gets all the wear and tear on it.  Only the paint keeps coming off, but the underlying zinc coating is still there with no sign of rust on the latch.  Paint usually starts to break down around joints in the steel, direct sunlight spots or wear areas.  On my gates, the joints have no signs of rust.  On top, the paint has faded, but the undercoat of zinc plating has protected the steel from rust.  A simple touch up of spray paint is all that's needed and I haven't even done that to them.  Of course you could always spend more money on different types of elctroplating besides zinc.  There's chrome, nickel, cadmium, tin-zinc, zinc-nickel etc....   Lots of different and SIMPLE coatings that are far superior to any paint alone.  The most economical however is simple zinc (Type I, II or III).Lincoln Power Mig 216Lincoln AC/DC-225/125Miller  625 X-Treme PlasmaMiller 211 Forney 95FI-A 301HF 91110Victor Journeyman O/PMilwaukee DaytonMakita  Baileigh NRA Life Member
Reply:PPG came out with a lower quality cheaper urethane recently.  Perfect for your needs.  I bought a pint along with reducer and hardener for under $50.If you prep the metal right and use the correct PPG primer under the paint, it will last virtually forever.As for regular paint, POR-15 and the bare metal coating they make for underneath it is also pretty tough stuff.TA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum
Reply:I'll look for the name and post backTA Arcmaster 300CM3XMT 304S22P12 suitcase feederX-Treme 12VSOptima pulserTA161SMaxstar 150STLHypertherm PM45OP setupStihl 020AVP, 039, 066 Magnum