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It's been my experience that any brittle coating will show cracks when the substrate deforms. I use it to discover where deformation has occurred. Chrome either cracks or flakes. Powder coat cracks unless it is very elastic. Paint cracks. Even mill scale, the blackish stuff on the surface of hot rolled steel, will crack if the part deforms.

Of course, I was using something I had already learned. An older way of determining strains in parts (before finite element analysis) was to make a part and coat it with special paint called "brittle coat". Then load the part. Remove the load and inspect the part. Cracks in the brittle coat would be perpendicular to the strain. One could tell from the cracks what strains were occurring.

R.

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I agree to a large degree, however I think the issue with chrome is it can delaminate, hiding a beginning crack, and as others seem to think, powder coating is elastic, which would delay? a coating crack. the brittle paint idea is cool. Regardless this is splitting hairs, unless this is an F1 site.

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I would do it if the springs are pit free after blasting (most are not) and BTW, after you blast and powdercoat , get a re-build kit with the interleafs and straps you may have over $500 into a set of old worn out springs.

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