Nov 9, 2006 · I've never painted anodized aluminum before, I just finished a small project using some anodized 1/2" plate and was just wondering if a general purpose automotive primer would hold suitably to it. I could skim the anodizing off with a …

Oct 23, 2003 · Painting anodized aluminum is not the same as painting plain aluminum. A number of problems may occur. The anodic coating is a hexagonal matrix of aluminum oxide, the pores of the matrix are filled with trapped dye molecules. Aluminum oxide is a hard glassy material and does not hold paint nearly as well as properly treated bare aluminum.

May 21, 2012 · When we paint aluminum spars we use Alumiprep 33, Alodine 1201 and AwlGrip 545 epoxy primer followed by a 3-4 topcoats. Provided everything is clean and prepped properly it will last for years. Damage the coating and let moisture in and it'll peel off surprisingly quickly.

Jan 12, 2003 · The site mentioned by Forrest has some guidance on the mix. Probably a few minutes of wiping will get the matte finish you want after you use a hot solvent like MEK to remove any lacquer coating on the bright aluminum. You might check around and see what it would cost to have the part black anodized but leaving it bare or painting it should work.

May 30, 2021 · (I don't know if painting anodized aluminum is a thing or not.) The issue with anodizing alone is that the color choices are very limited. I don't remember all the details, but there are different levels or types of anodizing, and think they have implications for color choices, where the better types offer fewer colors.

Mar 21, 2004 · I got some aluminum parts anodized, and some parts, ( 4 out of 20), have somewhat of an "orange peel" look and feel. To me, it looks like overspray of paint. I called my anodizer on it, and he talked about poor aluminum, who knows where the material came from, poor finish on the material can cause an orange peel effect, blah blah blah.

Feb 10, 2015 · Clear powder coat is tough and will last many years. The clear coat lasts longer if not exposed to UV (it can become yellowish if exposed often to the sun). I made many aluminum parts that were hand polished in a buffer to get close to a mirror-like finish and then powder coated clear (parts were not anodized).

Apr 7, 2006 · Aluminum needs a nice matte finish on all surfaces and edges prior to anodizing,as nothing gets covered,like in painting.We use a Makita random orbital sander on large surfaces,and a vibratory finisher on small parts AFTER completely deburring the parts. best regards, L. RUSS

May 6, 2016 · I'm working on an aluminum enclosure for a consumer electronics device that requires a satin aluminum finish, much like that on Apple's MacBooks and iPhones. After machining, the part is tumbled for deburring, bead blasted with glass beads, then anodized. The trouble we're running into is at the bead blasting stage.

Dec 30, 2008 · I'm sure this is "material dependent", but what is the suggested treatment for the freshly exposed Alu (6000 or 7000 series) after machining a Mil-spec anodized 80% lower. Certainly sending out for re anodizing is NOT the desired option. Lots of risks and the FFL hassle etc. A good coat of paint seems like a workable option. "baked on".