The dipped finish is just as strong as a painted one.
There is a guy here in Newcastle who does it and I got him to show me some examples.
The finished product can turn out well with minimum irregularities, but more often than not there will be some flaws in the patterns and smoothness of the surface.
Maybe it was just his results, but it ended up costing me less to get him to repair and repaint my Magna centre console inserts gunmetal grey with a clear top coat, than what it was to have it dipped with a flaming skulls design.
The WOW factor novelty of the skulls was there at the start, but if it doesnt go to plan and you're not happy with the end result it may grind away at you until you would probably just end up getting it bead blasted and powder coated again lol :lol: