Need advice on wet sanding a powder coated finish

[SuperTroye]

I just had my Lian Li PC-A05N powder coated and it's got some orange peel visible. I want to wet sand the panels to get a smoother finish. The case panels were originally anodized and I think there was 3 coats of powder applied. I've got 400, 800, 1000, and 2000 grit 3M wet/dry sand paper and a sanding block. I've read in other places how to do it: use water bucket with dishwashing soap to aid in sanding, and wipe with a cloth to gauge your progress.

Question: how do you know when you're done with a grit and it's time to move on? I don't have any experience and some advice on amount of pressure to apply, tips and tricks would be greatly appreciated. Also, what kind of buffing / polishing compound should I use after the wet sanding is done?

Thanks!

Here are the pics:

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_WL3Fnh5ZiZ8/SqA8GW5_58I/AAAAAAAAGuM/P-nMX86_Wgo/s800/IMG_0031.JPG

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_WL3Fnh5ZiZ8/SqA8HiW0a1I/AAAAAAAAGuU/Z5KexvYBZgM/s800/IMG_0033.JPG

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_WL3Fnh5ZiZ8/SqA8IFg3QAI/AAAAAAAAGuY/y-ufGztF35M/s800/IMG_0030.JPG

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_WL3Fnh5ZiZ8/SqA8JFs4SJI/AAAAAAAAGuc/gvIybu7k4s8/s800/IMG_0034.JPG

[shawnoen]

You can't wet sand powercoat. Its not paint, its powder and its baked on. Sorry.

[SuperTroye]

You can't wet sand powercoat. Its not paint, its powder and its baked on. Sorry.

Thanks for your reply however powder coat is paint, just without the solvent. Yes, I've read many times about people wet sanding a powder coated finish, I just thought someone who has done it before on a computer case could share about their experience.

[xdivenx]

Blast it and redo it, you are wasting your time. >.>

[shawnoen]

I've never heard or seen anyone wetsand powdercoating. I used to do it for a living.

Either it wasn't put on thick enough or with too much pressure and too close.

If you're unhappy with the finish take it back and they'll strip (blast) it and redo it.

[SuperTroye]

I've never heard or seen anyone wetsand powdercoating. I used to do it for a living.

Either it wasn't put on thick enough or with too much pressure and too close.

If you're unhappy with the finish take it back and they'll strip (blast) it and redo it.

Thanks, Shawn for your advice. I think that's exactly what I'm gonna do! On the same note, I'm still curious, would you see a problem with wet sanding these panels?

[bigbadgreen]

I've never attempted it but to me it would seem that it would leave a dull finish on powder coating. With paint you can wet sand it and then buff a gloss finish back into it to remove the scratches and force polish down into the paint. Powder coating is harder than paint and you can't manipulate it in the same way.

of course i have limited experience with powder coat so make sure to get other opinions.

[SuperTroye]

I've never attempted it but to me it would seem that it would leave a dull finish on powder coating. With paint you can wet sand it and then buff a gloss finish back into it to remove the scratches and force polish down into the paint. Powder coating is harder than paint and you can't manipulate it in the same way.

of course i have limited experience with powder coat so make sure to get other opinions.

Yeah, that's exactly what I thought too! Then, I ran across this worklog (http://www.hardforum.com/showpost.php?p=1034091974&postcount=34&highlight=wet+sand) post and it's what gave me the impression that it was a mainstream method. The case is the same aluminum as my Lian Li. I posted a question on that worklog and haven't heard back yet on how he did it.