Tri-Five Chassis Powdercoating - Frame Prep Work

Then he used a hammer and chisel to break the flange loose.

After being blasted, the frame was sent to RTS Powder Coating, also in Chino, for the application of the powdercoat. RTS is primarily a production powdercoating shop, with most of its business coming from big jobs for companies like Eibach Springs. But owner Don Reed is an avid hot rodder, so he's always willing to take on smaller jobs for individual enthusiasts. Coating our frame was no problem, since RTS is equipped with large ovens that can handle big parts. And even though RTS offers a rainbow of powder colors, we ultimately selected a semi-gloss black for the frame. Why basic black? Well, for starters, we don't even have a car to put on top of this frame yet, so it would have been impossible for us to match it to the exterior color of the vehicle. In addition, we envision the finished car as a real-world driver, so most of the parts on the undercarriage are probably going to be "basic black." We want everything to be clean and well detailed, but not overly flashy.

With that said, the following photos highlight the tasks involved in preparing and powdercoating our frame. We think you'll agree that the new coating really made it look a lot better, and should keep it looking great for years to come. In fact, it will start looking a lot better next month when we begin putting the front suspension together.

After cleaning up the area with a grinder, a few deep gouges remained on the frame.
Earle Williams filled the worst ones with weld...
...then sanded the area smooth again.

When finished, it was hard to tell the brackets were ever there, except for the heavy surface rust that had accumulated inside the brackets. Heavy pitting like this can be fixed by cutting out a section of the frame and welding in a patch, but we didn't feel that was necessary on ours, since it's destined to be a "driver."
When finished, it was hard to tell the brackets were ever there, except for the heavy surf
Earle walked around the frame with us to help find and fix other minor flaws. Imperfections like this broken weld on the front frame horn are common for a 40-year-old frame...
Earle walked around the frame with us to help find and fix other minor flaws. Imperfection
...and are easy to fix with a welder.

Other brackets, like this tailpipe hanger at the rear of the frame, were also eliminated. Brackets like these are simple to remove if you drill out the spot welds and chisel them off. The holes can then be welded shut.
Other brackets, like this tailpipe hanger at the rear of the frame, were also eliminated.
The brackets for the manual transmission bellcrank and column shifter were removed as well, since we plan on using a late-model automatic transmission.
The brackets for the manual transmission bellcrank and column shifter were removed as well
When Williams was finished prepping the frame, we trailered it over to Polyrock to be media blasted. Two months of exposure to the open air had generated some surface rust, which needed to be blasted off prior to powdercoating
When Williams was finished prepping the frame, we trailered it over to Polyrock to be medi