stripping down a norton for powdercoating

dear All,
I decided I want to powdercoat the frame of my roadster and I was wondering if anyone had some kind of tutorial on the overall process of disassembly and assembly step by step and furthermore what are the points and how to cover before sandblasting the frame and everything..
thanks for helping!

http://www.oldbritts.com/ob_start.html,
scroll down to

Build or restore Your Own Commando,
and click away!

And as far as reassembly, remember that the horn gets installed first after that you just build the bike around it.

Vince

Unclviny said:

And as far as reassembly, remember that the horn gets installed first after that you just build the bike around it.

Vince

Click to expand...

Isn't that the truth!

Commados are pretty easy to disassemble by parts group. When you look at the Andover Norton site or Old Britts, the parts groups are listed. Most of those assemblies come off as a unit. Wheels, forks, primary, engine, transmission, cradle/swingarm. After that there isn't much left but the kick stand.

Each assembly can be addressed independently. I wouldn't take anything apart farther than necessary until you are ready to deal with each in turn.

Russ

I agree that Fred and Old Britts are a great reference for lots of things. I always use his checklists for engine/gearbox assembly work.
Powder coating needs to be left off of certain areas of the gear box cradle or you will have to scrap it off.
I like the comment about the horn. I get a childish smile when I can locate the horn or a brace of them anywhere but where those darn engineers placed the original :twisted:
Mike

mikie3117 said:

Powder coating needs to be left off of certain areas of the gear box cradle or you will have to scrap it off.
:twisted:
Mike

Click to expand...

thank you Mike: I am wondering if there's a checklist of the parts and the areas to cover (and how) before sandblasting..

Before you make the decision to powder coat, have a look at the thread I started on the Spray Max Clear coat:

spray-max-aerosol-clear-coat-t11450-15.html

If you go with powder coat, there's no turning back and repairs aren't as easy as with traditional paint and clear coat that the spray max system provides. I did the job myself and was very pleased with the results. Further, any masking issues can be resolved after the fact with sandpaper.

BC
'71 Commando
'68 TR6P

Old Britts has a check list of (nearly) all the areas to be un-coated. For sure all the motor/isolastic mounting points, swing arm mount. I also did the trans mounting points which included the battery tray. Simply brush on enamel of the same color when finished.

Forget the nuts/bolts/washers as masks. Your powder coater should have plastic masking in all sizes of circles, plugs and sheets you can cover the parts you don't want coated. You will have to arrange with them to be there after blasting the parts to place the masking. Make sure you mask back 1/4" for the iso mounts.

Make sure you have everything you want done at once, it usually costs extra to bring in small items later. I did the tree parts in 'chrome' which is pretty close to original.





I have a spread sheet of the items masked if you would like it, send me a pm.

Dave
69S

Here's a dumb question...do you then paint the areas that were masked during powdercoating? Bare steel under fasteners isn't something I would be keen on. I may regret it later but I did my frame with POR-15 and their Hardnosed two-part over it. It was easy to put on, it brushes easily and flows out to a nice gloss finish. Only time will tell but the stuff is tough enough to hit with a hammer.

Russ

I used black Rustoleum enamel with a brush out of a can after I installed parts, so yes, there is a chance moisture will get under the parts that are not painted, but what are you going to do? Even if you paint it and then put the nuts/bolts/washers on it chips off the paint. Rust under some areas are always going to be a problem we need to keep after. I guess POR would be better.

Dave
69S

rvich said:

Here's a dumb question...do you then paint the areas that were masked during powdercoating? Bare steel under fasteners isn't something I would be keen on.
Russ

Click to expand...

It's probably going to be bare metal before too long whether it's PC or paint. If it's soft then the PC it's going to be shredded from shuffling, if it's paint it'll be crushed and powdered. It might stay put under the fastener but it's still essentially bare metal. POR-15 would be great in spots like the axle slots on a swingarm and parts of the cradle because you get coverage without laying down a thick layer with primer and all, but even it probably isn't going to stay put.

I used the standard POR-15 on a lathe restoration and it is everything they said it would be. Amazingly hard but not brittle or easy to chip. Oil doesn't get under it and cause it to lift, love it.

P.S. I just saw Dave's post when I previewed my post before submitting it, so, "Yeah, like Dave said".

The way I did mine gave me great grounds throughout the bike too. I didn't have to install any ground jumpers or anything, it just worked, I checked every thing with my Fluke and the resistance was less than the Fluke leads throughout the bike. Notice I masked the coil holder bracket, that's my main ground for the harness front.

The guy that did my PC was a DOD contractor and even had a phosphate coating put on after complete blasting, he said even if it got scratched, it would only rust on the scratch, it won't go under the PC. I had painted my frame with the old zinc chromate last time I did it with spray cans, the black paint didn't hold up much especially where gas and oil got on it, but the chromate did and the guy complained about getting it off.

Dave
69S