Sanding 304 Stainless

[erikmannie]

I picked these up from the autobody shop that applied the clearcoat this morning. They all look great. He charged my brother $700 for putting clearcoat on the eight quantity 5’ long brackets.

 

[rwm]

Expensive project! Did you say this was for a fence?

 

[WobblyHand]

Expensive project! Did you say this was for a fence?

Yes, it's for a fence, as I recall. Seems like a lot of money for something that is going to sit outside.

My wife and I paint our fence when it needs it. Fences really do get beaten up by the weather.

 

[aliva]

Can't understand the need for clearcoat on SS. You can buy clearcoat in a can for $10.00

 

[erikmannie]

The San Francisco Bay is less than 2 miles from this fence, & the Pacific Ocean is about 12 miles from it, the point being that there is appreciable chloride ion in the air. It is also somewhat windy in this area.

My brother is copying the design of the neighbor’s fence in his neighborhood. It is a good thing that he is not building a longer fence!

This autobody claims to pay $900 for 2 gallons of his 2 part clearcoat system. I myself have not had rattle can paint jobs hold up very well, & I live about 35 miles from the ocean.

My brother’s specifications were that he would not have to address any corrosion issues for a minimum of 15 years.

 

[erikmannie]

Yesterday when I posted pictures of the finish, I was in a terrible hurry rushing off to work. Today I had time to wipe them off with a clean, dry cloth, & get some better pictures of the hard won results.

I wrapped them up in a USMC wool blanket made in 1945. Next Sunday my Dad & I are driving down to deliver these to my brother. The three of us are going to have lunch together.

I hope that anybody who reads this thread & finds himself in a similar situation decides to take their stainless to a professional metal finisher.







Here they are wrapped in the blankets for the 60 mile journey:

 

[stupoty]

Yesterday when I posted pictures of the finish, I was in a terrible hurry rushing off to work. Today I had time to wipe them off with a clean, dry cloth, & get some better pictures of the hard won results.

I wrapped them up in a USMC wool blanket made in 1945. Next Sunday my Dad & I are driving down to deliver these to my brother. The three of us are going to have lunch together.

I hope that anybody who reads this thread & finds himself in a similar situation decides to take their stainless to a professional metal finisher.

Looks very shiny , should be a good looking fence for quite a while.

Stu

 

[erikmannie]

My brother got his fence put together & here are those brackets installed.

 

[rwm]

That is stunning. Great work! I hope it holds up to the weather.

 

[pontiac428]

That is stunning. Great work! I hope it holds up to the weather.

304 is miserable to work with (well, except welding and bending, where it's simple), but weather resistance is the #1 reason we use it. The result is beautiful and reflects the time put in, like a Fabergé egg. The sweat of the craftsman meets the benefaction of a statesman.