anodized metal

mornish said:

I was wondering, what exactly is anodizing?

From 'Wikipedia' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anodizing)

It's a surface treatment that protects the metal and can also give it
nice colors. It's more durable than paint. Typically done on aluminum
alloy parts. I don't believe you can anodize steel.

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is it expensive to have done, and how does it last compared to a
powdercoat?

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mornish

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<>UNICYCLING FOR MYSLELF TOO<><

trials_uni said:

Where did you hear that Bedford unis are not strong? They are the best
thing since sliced bread!!

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It can be expensive, or it can be cheap. Depends on the type of
anodizing and where you get it done. If you can get it done with
another batch of parts it can be cheaper, but then you'll be limited in
color choices.

It also depends on what you're getting anodized. If you're anodizing
an entire frame it is going to be more expensive in part because
they'll need a larger tub to dip it in. Small parts are cheaper and
more convenient to do, and some you can even do yourself at home.

I'm not sure of what kind of price range to expect.

What do you want to anodize?

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how does one go about annodizing at home? (without burning down the
house or voiding the warranty on just about everything in the house)

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iridemymuni

Evan Byrne said:

hope you like my super crappy present, but hey, you said you needed a
wrench.

~~hold bananas and chug counterfeit tobasco for christ~~
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a rim.

--
mornish

Quoted message said:

<>UNICYCLING FOR MYSLELF TOO<><

trials_uni said:

Where did you hear that Bedford unis are not strong? They are the best
thing since sliced bread!!

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a 19" rim.

--
mornish

Quoted message said:

<>UNICYCLING FOR MYSLELF TOO<><

trials_uni said:

Where did you hear that Bedford unis are not strong? They are the best
thing since sliced bread!!

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iridemymuni said:

how does one go about annodizing at home? (without burning down the
house or voiding the warranty on just about everything in the house)

Proper anodizing at home is a little involved. It requires a DC
electric charge from something like a car battery charger and chemicals
like sulphuric acid. It's a full blown potentially dangerous chemistry
lab experiment at home. Google for something like "DIY anodizing" or
"home anodizing".

The more practical way to do it at home is chemical etching. It's not
anodizing. However, it's more convenient to do at home than proper
anodizing. You don't need the DC current, but you still need some
potentially nasty chemicals. I'm not sure what this method is called
so Googling for a DIY guide is a little difficult. It's all a chemical
process, no electricity involved, so more practical to do at home.
Colors are not going to be the same as for proper anodizing. And
chemical etching actually removes material so will not be appropriate
for all parts.

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mornish said:

a 19" rim.

Talk to local machine shops and plating shops. See what they suggest
or what they can do. I don't know what kind of ballpark price you can
expect for something like that.

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Anodising involves putting aluminium in an electrolyte bath (acid) with
a DC current running through it. The part becomes the anode of the
electricity supply, hence the name. What happens is, the electricity
causes the surface of the metal to oxidise. This oxidisation is porous
so if you want colour (which is mostly the point of it but it's not
necessary) the piece can then be put into a dye bath and the pores are
then sealed to retain the colour. It's not as hard to do at home as you
may think as long as you've done your research. You need a power supply
that can be had from ebay, wire, some battery acid will work for the
electrolyte, a couple of chemical resistant tubs, and the dye. Not any
old dye will work. The right ones can be found at a website i'll get
for you but certain RIT fabric dyes will work although the colours are
limited.

Titanium, Niobium and Zirconium can also be anodised and are slightly
easier since they don't require dye. They just require a variable
voltage in acid to create different thickness oxide layers which
changes the refraction properties.

The best websites I know of are:
http://www.focuser.com/atm/anodize/anodize99.html
http://www.caswellplating.com/ (this place has all the dyes and a good
forum to ask questions)
If you're interested, http://mrtitanium.com/ has some info on titanium
and instructions on how to build an anodiser (it wont work for
aluminium though since they require different voltages and amperages).

I might be able to help out if you've got specific questions but i'm by
no means an expert.

Siege

--
Siege

"Catapultam habeo. Nisi peciniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum
immane mittam."
(I have a catapult. Give me all your money, or I will fling an enormous
rock at your head.)
"Halo 2 is a lot like Halo 1, only it's Halo 1 on fire, going 130 miles
per hour through a hospital zone, being chased by helicopters and
ninjas ... And, the ninjas are all on fire, too." —Jason Jones, Bungie
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i've got a 5 litre tub of sulfuric acid in the shed.
i've got a 12 volt charger i can use.
i've got buckets and whats not.

i dont have dye for it.
i dont have anything to annodize.

i really want to annodize something but i havent got anything DAMNIT
what can i use thats aluminium?

--
iridemymuni

Evan Byrne said:

hope you like my super crappy present, but hey, you said you needed a
wrench.

~~hold bananas and chug counterfeit tobasco for christ~~
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try aluminium. what about buying some metal, make something creative and
then do it

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If it's true that we are here to help others, then what exactly are the
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thats no fun, i need to do something i've already got. hmmmm.

--
iridemymuni

Evan Byrne said:

hope you like my super crappy present, but hey, you said you needed a
wrench.

~~hold bananas and chug counterfeit tobasco for christ~~
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Do you have a bike with aluminium brake levers? Or a Magura, the levers
on them are aluminium.

It would be more fun to buy some aluminium and make something though,
like a seatpost clamp or something.

I might try this to anodise some stuff for my car!

Rock on!
Edd

--
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you have a 5 litre tub of -sulfuric- acid? why?

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i'm not sure why we've got it. but it was funny, i put it in the shed
next to the tub of chlorine which is next to the bag of fertilizer. dad
was like "[censored] i hope the cops dont see this they'll think we're
friggen terrorists"

--
iridemymuni

Evan Byrne said:

hope you like my super crappy present, but hey, you said you needed a
wrench.

~~hold bananas and chug counterfeit tobasco for christ~~
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you gotta be the worlds lamest terrorist

--
tomtrevor

'A GALLERY!!'
(http://www.unicyclist.com/gallery/?g2_itemId=196944)
'KEEPIN' IT WHEEL' (www.mediahug.com/bikes)
So, what are you wearing?
If it's true that we are here to help others, then what exactly are the
others here for?
'g' (http://www.google.com.au/)'o' (http://www.google.com.br/)'o'
(http://www.google.co.uk/)'g' (http://www.google.com.ni/)'l'
(http://www.google.to/)'i' (http://www.google.ch/)'n'
(http://www.google.com.mt/)'g' (http://www.google.com.na/)'s'
(http://www.google.rw/)'!'
(http://www.google.com.do/)'t'
(http://mediahug.com/bikes/?page_id=26)o'm'
(http://www.funnyjunk.com/)''s'
(http://www.freelineskates.com/) 'r'
(http://www.tlb.org/park-all.lowbw.mpg)'a'
(http://www.burntfaceman.com/)n'd'
(http://tinyurl.com/c1as)'o'
(http://www.cheese.com)'m'
(http://www.coverpop.com/whitney/index.php?var=v0)
'l'
(http://www.mediahug.com/bikes/)i'n'
(http://www.mediahug.com/almax/)k'a'
(http://www.bakedbeans.com)'g'
(http://www.joecartoon.com/)e's'
(http://www.break.com/)
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You can make a pretty good bomb with some fertilizer and other household
ingredients (not mentioning them here for safety's sake). throw in some
sulfuric acid and it becomes even more dangerous...

Timothy McVeigh made a pretty devastating bomb(s) from
easily-obtainable supplies - I wouldn't call him an especially 'lame'
terrorist.

--
burjzyntski

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hey guys, is it possible to annodize some aluminium with HCl instead of
sulfuric acid??

--
iridemymuni

Evan Byrne said:

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~~hold bananas and chug counterfeit tobasco for christ~~
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iridemymuni said:

i've got a 5 litre tub of sulfuric acid in the shed.
i've got a 12 volt charger i can use.
i've got buckets and whats not.

i dont have dye for it.
i dont have anything to annodize.

i really want to annodize something but i havent got anything DAMNIT
what can i use thats aluminium?

you could do my nimbu's cranks (but if you srew it up then 😠 BAM)

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