Sprayers say a part cages, or is caging, when powder piles on the outside edges and refuses to go into a corner, slot or deep pocket. It names the problem without the physics and usually comes with a request to drop the kV, switch nozzles or grab the tribo gun. The noun cage also names the trouble spot itself.
Bottom of that U-channel cages every time, give it a shot at 30 kV before the auto guns hit it.
Also heard as
- caging
Related terms
Faraday cage effect
The tendency of charged powder to avoid inside corners and recesses because the electric field bunches on nearby edges.
kV
Kilovolts, the voltage setting on a corona gun that governs how hard it charges the powder.
Tribo gun
A powder gun that charges particles by rubbing them against a plastic tube, with no high-voltage electrode.
Shoot
To spray powder, as in shooting a part or shooting a color.