To paint or not to paint ?

[baja stu]

I have a new class 5 car that is made out of cromo and it's tig welded. Should I paint the frame , leave it bare and deal with the small amount of rust, or powder coat it?
It now has about 170 test miles on it and after I wash it it's a mad dash to blow it off and wipe it down with wd/oil.

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[Gonzo 5/1600]

On a nice TIG'ed chassis... I vote no paint/powder coat. Shame to hide that craftsmanship to save a little clean up time now and then.

Also, much easier to detect and repair any cracks that may develop.

[VIEJAS_RACING]

I believe in racing a vehicle a season prior to painting. You never know what you might want to mount or remount in a different location. Plus any cracks that may appear are easier found when its unpainted. After you have everything the way you want it and know there are no cracks or weak points, paint it.

[movindirt]

Light colors of paint don't make it to hard to chase cracks in the chassis. And with moly you will get some cracks over time. I think where the you live/ car is stored is a big factor in which way to go.

[TRichards]

You can also do a clear powdercoat. Makes it look like it is wd=40 all the time. But wait and see if you have cracking issues.

[KevinT4R]

Rattle-can paint is fairly thin stuff--you'll be able to see the welds even after it's painted. Powdercoat is thick and the welds will somewhat disappear underneath.

"Chassis grey" rattle-can paint would be a good way to go. Another plus is that it's easy to touch-up the paint if you do have to brush it off in order to repair a crack, add something, etc.

[5racer]

no paint stu ,race cars are never finished .

[baja stu]

That’s true Steve, plus I wouldn’t want to cover up all of that beautiful work !

[Getrdone]

I like no paint on race cars when tear downs are frequent. It's the play cars that don't see a complete tear down very often that start to look shady. By that I mean, areas of pristine tube and then areas that are fully orange or rusted. This is not due to lack of effort, just impossible to reach on a fully assembled car. I like rustoleum satin black without primer. It will come off with little thinner and scotch brite. Blending in with scotch brite easy also. The satin is less scratch prone but stays cleaner than flat.