Witter updates towbars with tough paint finish

Witter, the towbar manufacturer, announced this week a new way it protects its products with a tougher protective paint finish.

Their customers were telling them that wear and tear from the road made the Witter towbars unsightly on the back of their towcars. Although a stone-chip, or road salt won’t affect the performance of their towbars, it does impact the look of them.

And, when you’ve got a clean car or motorhome but a dirty towbar, it’s not a good look!

To overcome this challenge, Witter spent months testing out paint finishes which would stand up to ultra-violet light, corrosive substances, gravel chips and harsh, winter road conditions.

Their ‘revolutionary’ new process takes a five-step route to make the final finish as tough as they wanted.

Step 1 - Each towbars gets a powerful shot blast (to Swedish standard SA 2.5, no less) which rids it of any contaminants on the surface.

Step 2 - Next, the towbar gets a powder coating using a zinc phosphate primer using a strong electrostatic charge.

Step 3 - Witter then applies further coating to the primer.

Step 4 - Next is the final ‘top coat’.

Step 5 - Each towbar then goes into a 220˚ oven for 12 minutes to cure both powder coating layers.

Once that’s complete, each towbar has an 120 Micron thick coating, not only tough but it looks great too.

Witter’s new process is better for the environment compared to their previous method using a ‘wet zinc’ process. It uses no solvents, uses less energy and rids them of the need to dispose of chemical waste. Witter’s new process is so good that they’ve reached a recognised, effective Environmental Management System standard, namely ISO 14001.

The company tests their products for more than 2000 hours, twice that of towbar makers, according to Witter.

Above: Freelander ATV – SUV Mk 2 Fixed flange Towbar in the new paint finish

Witter sales & marketing director, Andrew Royles said:

“We are always looking at ways we can improve and develop our products and give our customers greater value for money.

“We have been testing and refining the new paint finish process over the course of the past year until we were entirely satisfied it was fit for purpose and would enhance the product.”

www.witter-towbars.co.uk