As the title says, I'm trying to find light bars with a white housing. I know they make marine grade that are white but there's always something else I don't like. I'd prefer a bar from Baja Designs since they use 5k LED emitters but there mostly black Housings. Has anyone tried painting one and gotten good results? The color of the bar needs to be stone white.

Thank you in advance!

 

Has anyone here ever painted a light bar?

 

It should just be an anodized aluminum housing so you should be able to ask your local paint supply place what they recommend for that. Good prep and possibly an etching primer should get it done, but that's a guess.

 

Anodizing has to be removed, and after that, it's just paint or powder coat....of course, with the proper prep for either................

 

Source? That's not what I've seen mentioned. Most people seem to like the anodize to seal the aluminum from oxidizing instead of removing it and opening the aluminum up to oxidation.

 

Source would be the local powder coating company that I had talked to about powdercoating some stuff I have that is anodized currently.

Anodizing makes the surface too smooth for paint or powder coat to adhere to effectively.

Google painting over anodizing...you'll see......all mention sanding, then etching primer....which effectively removes the anodizing....


.

 

I agree that removal of anodize is probably necessary for powder coating. The heat involved in baking would mean that any gassing of the anodize could ruin the powder coating. Sanding the anodize for paint isn't what I would consider removal. Likewise an etching primer doesn't remove any anodize unless you consider chemically etching and possibly converting some portion of the anodize with the etching primer.

My apologies, but conflating the prep needed for powder coating and painting, while possibly accurate in some circumstances, is a disservice to logic.

 

I am only relaying what I was told by a professional, and what I find using google....

I also asked for them to get painted, and the answer was the same as for powdercoat.

The problem is the anodizing makes the metal too smooth for the paint to stick well.....exactly the words they used....

Do what ya want.................

Good luck !

 

That paint shop sounds like a real source of information. Right or wrong, I'm sure you're getting exactly what you want from them. I've searched some and been around paint/powder since I was old enough to walk. I think your terms are extremely generalized and you don't seem to think favorably of anybody questioning your secondhand knowledge. Sorry that someone looking for logic and reasoning is a thorn in your side.
I stated my peace, you stated yours. OP can figure it out as he wishes. A forum probably isn't a great place to ask these questions, for reasons shown by the last 4 or so posts. I heard , they said, generalized input, assumed, etc.

 

Wow....you really can't accept that someone doubts you have all the answers can you ??

1) The OP asked a question, and I answered it based on what I was told by a professional, not my own opinion, as I was originally of the same thought process as most, that anodizing wouldn't hurt anything under paint.

2) Your own answer in your first post says the same thing as I have been saying...normal surface prep and etching primer. What do you think an etching primer does ? It etches (or eats into) the surface of the metal giving a rough surface for the paint to adhere to. Normal surface prep also includes sanding, which is yet another way to remove the anodized layer of metal.

3) You questioned my source of information, which is a round about way of saying I don't know what I am talking about....and it is kind of an offensive tactic when I was only relaying info I was provided.

4) I provided the info you demanded - even though you are not the OP - and even googled to verify, yep, it is was right, since sanding and using etching primer will effectively remove most of the smooth chemically altered surface that makes anodizing so effective at preventing oxidation. I even mentioned that I asked about painting vice powder coating, thinking it may not be as costly, but they told me the prep is the same.

5) Then you tried to insult my comments by claiming I was saying you have to do the same thing to paint or to powder coat.......sorry, it was the professionals I consulted and google that say the prep for both is essentially the same...clean, sand, etch, especially if it older anodizing.

6) I don't think my second hand knowledge as you call it is right or wrong, but it is what I was told, and from someone who makes a living at it, not someone who "has been around paint/powder since I was old enough to walk". I do know the research I have done agrees with them more so than your vast knowledge.

7) It seems maybe you need to look in the mirror…..maybe it is you who has the issue with someone implying you are wrong......I relayed what I was told was required when I asked the same question as the OP.....but you didn't like it, and have since just antagonized things.

A forum is exactly the place to ask such questions, as you will either get all the same answer, and go with it, or you will get varying answers, forcing you to do more research.

The last 5 posts or so now are only from you trying to prove your know more than me, hurray…..you win….you just might know more, but I never even tried to say I had any knowledge on this other than repeating what I was told when a local shop was asked the same question the OP posted. I doubt your "been around paint/powder since I was old enough to walk" knowledge is better, but apparently you believe it is. I've been around and worked on engines & transmissions since I was old enough to walk, and I still do not claim to be an expert on them or claim to have all the answers either.


To the OP, check with a local shop or professional and see, then go from there....as far as you know, I am just as much of a keyboard jockey as the other guy.....so ask someone who does it for a living instead..................

 

Easy peasy bud. Sorry I brought some logical thought to the discussion. Logic and facts don't burn. Sure seems like jeep guys are getting easier and easier to trigger. Only 5-10 years ago it seemed like jeep forums were filled with people strong willed enough to take criticism when they didn't have facts or logic on their side.