Engine Mount Powdercoating

·         Wayne Eckertson

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I am considering having my engine mount powder coated instead of painted. I'd also like to hear what color is recommended. This is for the J230 I am building.

I have had one person tell me they recommend painting it instead because it is easier to repair if a crack were to develop. I got the impression that the person who suggested this also considered rewelding the crack while the engine was still on the plane. I think I would prefere to pull the engine and mount if that type of repair were necessary.

Are there any specific areas that should be masked off from paint or powder coating?

I am also consider having the nose gear leg powder coated. Any concerns or advice here?

Wayne Eckertson

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·         Doug Smith

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Hi Wayne,
We generally run black paint on the engine mount but I've also seen white and grey... And red and blue. It's a bit of a subjective choice so really I'd recommend you just pick a colour you like and that ticks your boxes.
Powder coating can be a big issue for aircraft structures: if the temperature goes too high you can get hydrogen embrittlement which can cause cracking etc down the track: bad news all round. It is possible to powder coat in a way that avoids that issue but I'd be very careful to use someone familiar with aircraft structures and able to guarantee that their systems are appropriate.
...all of which is why most folk go for something like a 2 pack urethane or hard-wearing acrylic 🙂
Same arguments apply to the leg.
As for masking, it's pretty self-explanatory: avoid coating the mounting points on the Mount and the upper socket section / pivot sockets of the leg.
Regards,
Doug.

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·         Wayne Eckertson

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Thank you for your reply Doug. I will consider your advice as I do more research.

I had a suggestion from some mechanical engineers I work with to use Cerakote. This product it typically used as a surface protection for firearms but has some very attractive properties. One nice property is the thickness of the coating is very thin. I believe I will be able to coat the bearing surface of the nose gear leg. The company I work for uses Cerakote to finish the metal chassis for our luxury aircraft displays. This option might be out of my price range but may be comparable to having the parts professionally painted. Any thoughts or experience with similar surface coatings?

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·         Doug Smith

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I'm aware of Cerakote and I'm pretty sure I've handled parts treated with it but I can't say I've heard of it used on an engine frame.
I got the impression it was a little brittle so may struggle with a structure that flexes as much as a jabiru engine mount but that's just thinking out loud - someone who knows the product would be worth talking to.
One thing I've found is that with maintenance etc it's very hard to avoid scratching the paint on the engine mount so personally I'd lean towards something a bit flexible and tough... but that's based on my experience with my own mount - and the paint on my mount was put there by me (as a painter I make a great engineer) so I may be biassed!
Regards,
Doug.

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