Hi guys,. I have an old work horse for sea fishing ( Hipolito 502 ), & was wondering whether or not to Powder coat it, to prelong its life from the salt water / atmosphere..... would this be ok to do ? external parts only .....your views would be interesting & appreciated, Cheers
You'd need to check out the temperatures involved. According to Wikipedia, most powder coatings are cured at around 200 C. This is probably higher than the melting point of the solder used during construction of the lantern.
: ) You can get an idea of where to powder coat by running the lamp and if you can bear to put your hand there then it will stand to be powder coating ok. But bear in mind that salt water will strip off any powder coating that hasn't already been galvanised?
@Burkster After another look on the internet, I recommend you visit Powder coating - Wikipedia taking note particularly of "More advanced technologies allow other materials, such as plastics, composites, carbon fiber, and MDF (medium-density fibreboard), to be powder coated using different methods that require less heat and time." It may indeed be posible to have your lantern powder coated at a temperature below which the structural integrity of any soldered joints would be compromised.
@podbros but you were already correct, it was me who was in the wrong. If I had read more of the article before posting, I would have known about "More advanced technologies . . . . methods that require less heat and time." and posted accordingly. If one was considering powder coating a lantern, it would be prudent to inquire about the temperatures involved. And the cost. It may be that being rinsed in (unsalted) tap water and dried after each fishing trip is all that's needed to keep the lantern free from corrosion. I understand @Burkster 's enquiry. I've had a Hipolito 502 that had suffered the ravages of long term exposure to a salty atmosphere - not good !
