How to: Anodize your buell

[iman501]

i asked her today about it, she said it would be a cool experiment, but she'd have to think about it since it really doesnt fit in with any of the stuff she has planed for us to learn haha

 

[gear2078]

Hey, anyone watching this know if the rubber on the 1125 pegs would be damaged or otherwise screw up this process? I'm thinking red pegs and heel guards on my black CR

 

[wiznut]

Hey, anyone watching this know if the rubber on the 1125 pegs would be damaged or otherwise screw up this process? I'm thinking red pegs and heel guards on my black CR

Hmmmmm... Well, theoretically the rubber shouldn't dissolve in the acid or lye... I have absolutely no idea how it would affect things though... I wouldn't try it, but you could always give a test piece thats similar a go before trying your actual parts...

 

[loser54023]

hey gear2078 there isn't much for us to annodize on the cr. your lightning though that's another story. oh and welcometo the forum. it's about time.

 

[nemesis_buell]

you're not kidding about it being hard to find thick enough aluminum wire. I can only find 17 g. I looked at every hardware store in town including welding supply places. is the aluminum wire 100 percent needed? what would happen if I used steel or copper?

 

[flaya564]

ace hardware has some thick stuff but it's got a plastic coating you can cut off. I believe it's used for hanging close out to dry.

 

[gear2078]

Thanks Loser. You know me, always a little outdated and resistant to change. Thought I had my bases covered with that other Buell forum but this one is definitely better.

For anyone in the know, would stainless steel welding wire work in stead of the aluminum wire? I have plenty of that. I guess I have aluminum welding rods too, but I think they would be better used with the tig welder.

Thanks all!

 

[wiznut]

For anyone in the know, would stainless steel welding wire work in stead of the aluminum wire? I have plenty of that.

Steel will get dissolved and dirty your anodizing mix. Aluminum or titanium only.

 

[hula Buell]

Holy Craps that is very cool!!You folks are very tuned in.Great job...

 

[gear2078]

Thanks Wiznut! Did you ever invest in "real" anodizing dye? Was it worth it?

 

[redbolt04]

anyone have any reviews on how this holds up? im thinking about doing my clutch and brake levers on my 12R but i dont want to if its going to end up wearing off and looking like crap

 

[buellbee]

I'm trying this now. Will be done with my first piece soon.

I didn't have enough acid for a 1-1 mix so I'm kinda worried, but we'll see. The piece was definitely clean enough to eat out of before I put it in the dye.

 

[buellbee]

Update,
I picked up more acid from O'Reilly's. Lighter colors don't come out as well. A lot of imperfections in the yellow parts I did. The blue and black I tried came out well.

I rubbed hard with my thumb (really ******* hard) and got a little residue. I'm sure a clear coat over it would work pretty well.

I'm no pro at this stuff so I'm sure someone with more knowledge on the subject can get much better results than I did. However, anyone can do this on their own. Big kudos to OP for throwing this up.

 

[nemesis_buell]

buellbee, what did you end up using for the aluminum wire? (where'd you get it an dhow thick is it?)
I bought all the stuff to do this weeks ago and havent had time. When I do finally get this done i'll post some photographs.

 

[ctmallam]

It also should be sealed with a nickel acetate compound:

http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/lcd_ano.pdf

REMOVING DYE
You may find that a mistake has been made on your work-piece, perhaps the color is wrong, whatever the reason, you have to remove some, or all, of the dye. As long as the part has NOT been sealed, most dyes will easily be removed by immersing in household bleach. We've found that our black dye (the most dense color) whites out in about 1 minute with a splash of bleach.

SEALING THE ANODIZE WITH ANODIZING SEALANT
Anodizing Sealant is a nickel acetate compound for sealing anodic coatings on aluminum. It is a fine flowing greenish powder, readily soluble in water and specifically formulated with a pH regulator and an agent to help minimize smut. Anodizing Sealant is suitable for clear anodize and offers increased weather and light-fastness on coatings dyed with aluminum dyes.

 

[buellbee]

@nemesis
I actually went to Lowe's and bought some power line cables (I forget the actual name), stripped the coating off and inside is like 12 aluminum wires spiraled together. I payed $3 for 3 2' sections. I put one piece through about 5 cycles of cleaning and anodizing and no wire disintegration.

 

[Raisingicarus]

Ok, I hate to admit it, but I've tried this and failed. I've followed the directions to the letter and my heel guards and foot pegs won't hold any dye I put on them. The foot pegs have become dark grey and I don't know how to get them back to normal. The heel guards have turned a sickly green color (tried to dye them black using RIT dye). Help?

 

[bacillo]

hi guys, I'm an italian Buell fan and I find this forum very interesting

a question:
-how % of "Roebic Crystal Drain Opener 100% Lye" I must put in distilled water? How many parts?

Thanks in advance [cool]

 

[dave_xb12r]

I'd like to know how this is holding up to use over time.

 

[ASH]

Very informative.[up][up]