I'm glad you asked that, Denny. I need to add this info to my web page:
At first, I thought powdercoat was the way to go, too ... but consider this:
You get a chip in the powdercoat ... you can't paint/touch-up powdercoat and it's impossible to remove ... rust starts growing where the chip is ... it starts spreading ... and you can't get to it!
Have you ever seen an 18-wheeler or large utility vehicle that has a rear bumber all rotted out? That's powdercoated.
The best way to go is what I'm doing now. After sandblasting, we're laying down an inorganic zinc-rich apoxy primer, followed by a top-coat of aliphatic urethane which provides UV protection so the color doesn't fade and has elastimeric properties so it doesn't crack or chip easily -- the more top-coats and/or clear coat, the more durable.
