Help with painting a helm

[GodfreyofGyldenholt]

Hey all, i would like to have my bascinet made black and have decided that the easiest, most professional way to achieve a dark black is to have my helmet powdercoated. Is there anything i should know before hand before persuing this? Anyone who has powdercoated a hat for SCA combat, please, enlighten me =P. Thanks.

[Lorccan]

Powdercoating I know nothing about, but you might want to ask Duke Edric about the process he uses. I can't remember the details, but his spaulders & helm have a very nice black that seems to be holding up well. He should be at Darkwell War.

[audax]

Well the easiest (and periodest ) way would probably be to just paint it but for powdercoating you'll probably have to pay to have it done professionally, unless you want to invest in the equipment.

The process involves applying a powdered paint which is electrostatically charged to a carefully prepared surface, then it is placed in an oven where the powdercoat is melted, then removed and the coat is allowed to cure. The complicated part is the preparation of the surface. In the case of steel it is: clean>rinse>etch>rinse>grain refinement>zinc phosphate>rinse>acid rinse. I may have gotten the steps out of order; it's been a while.

It can be somewhat expensive and it's impossible to DIY without investing in proper equipment. It's a pretty durable finish but not immune to dings and scrapes and I'm not sure how easy it would be to touch it up compared to painting or bluing.

I hope this helps you.

audax

[GodfreyofGyldenholt]

Thanks for the reply, and yes it did help. Keep em comin fellas!