Very cool. What is the white coating, paint or something else?
I think it's powder coating and is baked on. I know some people have picked up old stoves from the side of the road and used just for this purpose because once you bake the powder coating you can't use the stove for food.
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Here's something about powder coating...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powder_coating
I Googled it and came across a few "powder coating at home" links also so it looks like you could do it yourself.