I use to powder coat years ago, and now I'm in management for the same company. Powder coating is not that bad to deal with, it is just like any other paint. The biggest key is in the surface prep. Your average powder coating only requires your metal temp to be at 380 degrees for 10-12minutes to cure out. However there are powders out there now that can be baked out at a lot lower temps and you can get it to paint just about anything, even wood. In my slightly biased opinion you are almost better sending it out to be painted. A good gun that will fluidize the powder well will run you around $5,000 and you will need a large gas fired oven if you plan on doing your sub frame or any other larger part.