In a message dated 5/3/01 8:34:30 PM Pacific Daylight Time, ke3yt@usa.net
writes:
<< Hi Val,
You're absolutely correct in saying that, maybe I should have been more
clear
at first though. My main objective is to coat previously uncoated new tower
sections with the best material possible, other than the usual procedure of
hot dipping. I would like to experiment with a full size 10 foot bath in my
shop and coat the inside of the legs as well, it's just finding the right
'stuff' that's tricky.
73
Dan KE3YT
ke3yt@usa.net
>>
I've got a paint 2 procedures that work well. On a new galvanized or even an
aluminum tower clean it with soap and water or someone said use vinegar. I
then paint it with 2 coats of Derusto. It will last a long time.
After working at Boeing and seeing the green epoxy primer or paint on the
aluminum, I said "that is the way to go on an old tower that needed painting
also". I've purchased tubing from Boeing Surplus with this primer on there
and even a rotary steel brush hardly touched it. A file was the only way to
really get it off.
I had a WWII tower that needed a paint job. I ordered this 2 part green
epoxy from Jarvie Paints and painted a 8' section of tower. The next day I
could scrape it off with my finger nail. I called the president of Jarvie
Paint about it and he came out and scratched his head and a few other places
around in back. I had to apply paint remover to get it all off and reprime.
He gave me 2 gallons of another yellow version. I painted 60' of tower with
this and it stuck. One coat of this is really all I needed of this stuff but
is was yellow. He gave me some white paint for a finish coat. I apply that
and it doesn't stick worth a damn and it even peels. He doesn't know why
either and he's only the president. The company folded after that.
I went to the paint shop at Boeing and had a chat with the paint boys. This
epoxy primer gets so hard its difficult for anything to stick to it. So how
do they get a final coat to stick on it--I thought you would never ask. They
paint it before it really sets up while it's still a bit grabby.
Now I have a big problem. I did all this work "so that I wouldn't have to
ever paint this again in my lifetime." As it is now "I'll be patching and
repainting this for the rest of my lifetime to cover up the yellow primer
underneath".
I took a section down to the galvanizers and put it in their acid cleaner
baths. It wouldn't take the epoxy primer off. I'll have to sand blast it to
get it clean enough for galvanizing. The original sections I still have from
WWII have a very tough green paint of some kind that is literally as tough as
the modern epoxy primer. If I can get this 2 part epoxy in silver that would
be the way to go unless I could live with a yellow or green tower. K7GCO
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