I wanted to have the aluminum belly pan powder coated, but with the thin gauge of the aluminum they were worried that it might get a bit warped in the sandblasting process. Since I didn't want to deal with possibility of warping I decided id just refinish it myself. Ended up using a VHT high heat paint called Burnt Copper. Replaced the hardware with new stainless steel shoulder bolts as well. I think it finished out pretty well and the color works great with the Sonic Bronze Metallic color of my RX-7.

 

Looks good. I like the color.

If that is the factory belly pan, it's not aluminum. It's thin metal. I've blasted and powercoated several of them. I like to use antiseize on the bolts because they get wet. I also used stainless bolts like you.

 

Yes, it is factory. I thought it might have been aluminum, but it's probably thin gauge steel.

 

looks sharp! I love detail like this

 

Looks great. might have to do mine!

 

I've bead blasted these for years w/out any problems. I've had a couple that were an extreme pain in the a** to clean up due to an over zealous application of undercoating. One had it "painted" on both sides for some odd reason. I suppose too much pressure with too aggressive of a media (steel shot or similar) could warp or damage em, but like with all things, you have to exercise adult judgement when working.

Yes, I'd bet the burnt copper would accent sonic bronze very well. I used to clear zinc mine as it more closely resembles the factory, OEM appearance. A couple years ago, I tried yellow zinc'ing one and ended up liking it better. It's not as factory looking, but I like the look better.