Powder coating fork tubes?
 

Ok, 07 Night Train, I had my lower fork sliders powder coated black and Id like for the upper sliders to match. Can I powder coat the upper sliders in a gloss black?

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

ummm... by "upper sliders" do you mean the "tubes"?[part that the "lower sliders" slide over]
if so... no

if youre referring to the "triple trees"[parts the "tubes" are anchored to] then yes...

the pic shows my bike's lowers and triple trees done in gloss black


[IMG]local://upfiles/19220/52A51A333D824BF0B897C86C75DD483C.jpg[/IMG]


or if you have an inverted front end... i guess you would have "upper" sliders... and then your answer would be... yes

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

metal_mike is correct. Your fork tubes are machined surfaces. Powder coat or paint would cause lots of problems trying to get them into your lower legs, your triple trees and would cause seal leaks in the legs if you DID get them together.

If you want them black I suggest getting them anodized. Anodizing is a super thin liquid coating that basically stains the metal so you won't have fitment problems.

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

Yeah I meant the fork tubes, Im just trying to black out my front end cheaply. Does it make a difference on an inverted fork kit? The MOCO has that inverted fork kit thats all black, looks awesome but the price is up there. The description says those tubesare PVD coated, never heard of that?

What does anodizing cost compared to powder coating?

thanks

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

I don't think you can anodize chrome. But I do believe you're right about the PC. Wouldn't recommend it.

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

The fork tubes are hard chrome. Not the same as "shiny chrome". You can get them anodised like the sport bike sliders which have some sort of a black or gold coating to lower "stiction" lol i think thats the word

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

Sorry, I can't help ya on the cost comparrison between powder coating and anodizing. The best advise I can give you is to check around your local area, starting at the indy shops. Those guys deal with that suff all the time and could possibly steer you in the right direction.

Good luck!

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

Did someone say "stiction?" I like it!! :D

RE: Powder coating fork sliders?
 

You can only anodize aluminum and titainium, not steel or hard chromed steel like your fork tubes. Even if you could, it would eventually wear off from the seal sliding on it. Anodizing is not a liquid stain, it's an oxidation layer that is created when you add current to the part in an acid bath, it looks like a dull white color, then it is dyed and sealed.

I was wondering about powder coating my fork tubed also, but concluded it would wear ou quick, or chew up the fork seals, but you can powder coat to where the sliders travel and use fork boots (like the nightster). still pondering that one.