Best clear coating for aluminum motorcycle engine parts

A. We do finishing on many aluminum motorcycle pieces. Anodizing works very well & holds up great.

A. The best process is Clear Chromate Conversion Coating for this purpose . You can ask from your local surface treatment chemical supplier for it.

A. Frank,

A Plasma Deposited Silicon Oxide coating developed by Dow Chemical has several motorcycle aftermarket suppliers already using it. Salt spray corrosion tests indicate several thousand hours with no attack.

Regards,

A. There are a number of different methods to prevent surface degradation. the first is an anodizing process, The second would be a chromate conversion coating, the third is conversion coat followed by a clear powder coating.

The first step is to quantify your requirements. This could include salt spray, humidity requirements. Are there any heat requirement that the part will be exposed to? Will the part be exposed to gravel and other loose impediments from the ground?

You can get together with pretreatment suppliers, paint suppliers and job shops to review the best preparation based upon your requirements and the substrate.

Good Luck

A. Hi Lars. It's not clear whether Frank is a parts manufacturer or a motorcycle owner looking for something simple for his own bike. But the banner at the top of this page will tell you about some good clear coats that you can apply yourself.

Like with anything else, Lars, and like you probably expected, durability and ease of application tend to be opposites. You'll probably never hear a vendor claim that, although their clear coat may not be the most durable you can buy, at least it's difficult to apply and requires highly specialized equipment :-)

But if you are looking for something you can apply yourself, anodizing and plasma deposited coatings aren't going to be doable, and you will need a spray-on clear coat.

Good luck.