Fluid Bed and Powder Response...

[KCLOST]

Hello to all....

I have been making round head bass jigs for several years now, and recently started using a few homemade fluid beds for the powder coating process. I used to always take a few 2oz jars of the powder and poured the entire contents in a small Glad container with a lid. Fluff it up before dipping the jig heads in it and was relatively successful with that method. But after using a fluid bed, I switched to that and have never gone back. However, after trying a couple dozen jigs or so lately, I noticed that the powder is not fluidizing like it should. It looks like the powder has absorbed some moisture and won't boil like it should. In turn it doesn't coat the jig right either, inconsistent finish and thickness out of the oven.

Has anyone tried to dry this stuff out to restore it back to its "out of the jar" state? I hate to waste it if it can be salvaged. I am only dealing with black and green pumpkin. For whatever reason, the GP is the worst of the two.

Thanks for your help....

[brushsjigs]

It would help to know what you are using for an air supply. Possibility the moisture is coming from that. If your using an air compressor and reducing the pressure by valve, with no type of dryer would defiantly cause the condensation problem. OR your getting your jig heads too hot and its getting the powder too hot, causing it to clump. You just want the lead hot enough for the powder to stick to it. A second or 2 on each side is more than enough. Are you using an alcohol wick lamp and using denatured alcohol, or some kind of an oil for the flame? If so the oil could be the problem. Id try to crush the powder like you would crushing an aspirin, grinding it like a pharmacist would with their stone. The GP would have more pigment in it than the black. All these powder suppliers just by from S/W or one of the PPG companies and just repackage. Big difference would be if the powder is poly or an epoxy for durability.

[DiawaKid]

I use and Aquarium pump for my 2 station fluid bed. Use paper sack material glued to the bottom of the baths tubes.

[DiawaKid]

I also use pipe caps they have for blanking off pipes to keep out contaminants till they are hooked up. They are round thin white pieces with a lip on them. you push them and the fit inside the pipe to keep out stuff. Like a jar lid basically.

[KCLOST]

I use and Aquarium pump for my 2 station fluid bed. Use paper sack material glued to the bottom of the baths tubes.

Same here, aquarium air pump. Not sure what you mean about the paper sack glued to the bottom of the baths tubes? If you are referring to the fluidizing paper, I am using FedEx priority envelope paper...

I also use pipe caps they have for blanking off pipes to keep out contaminants till they are hooked up

Same here....


The powder has the same look in my storage container (the Glad containers). It just looks like it has absorbed moisture during storage. Is there a way to dry it out?

[KCLOST]

Id try to crush the powder like you would crushing an aspirin, grinding it like a pharmacist would with their stone.

Thanks brushjigs, but the powder is not stuck together or not fully separated it just seams to be slightly packing together like damp sand does. It just does not fluidize like you normally see with good powder.

The air will find a path of least resistance through the powder bed and then it will form a tunnel for the air to continually pass through. It doesn't bubble or fully fluidize it. If that makes sense.
It is the standard Pro-Tec black and GP...
81v+oMWIrML._AC_SL1500_.jpg

[apdriver]

Best advice I can give you is to try a vibrator with that fluid bed. Works wonders for fluidizing all powder paints. This little puppy has gone up 5 bucks since I last bought one. Throw away the detachable legs, tie wrap the vibrator to your fluid bed and be done with all your troubles. I just use 3 or so layers of newsprint and rarely change it.

https://www.amazon.com/NBSXR-Stainle...606394&sr=8-18

[tlefire]

Add 30 to 40 percent clear......

[Jig_Man]

My cups haven’t made volcanoes for years. I suspect that it is moisture. I believe that they will all do it unless you have a climate controlled environment or empty the cup and store the paint in a sealed container after each use. I am too lazy to do that.

What has worked for me is I turn the cup upside down a time or two before I put it in the fluid bed. As the air flows I give it a couple of stirs. Sometimes I have to do an additional stir depending on how many jigs I am painting.

My heat source is a heat gun. I only heat the head until a light dull coat of paint will stick to it. I tap off any extra and put it in to bake.