One of our biggest retail shops is asking for sample part for a product we have coming out. I have samples of the part in raw aluminum, but not anodized. Does anyone have any experience with any of the spray paints that fake an anodized finish? My other options are to try and anodize it myself with a small home setup (I have done it before with limited success,) or find a shop that is willing to do a small single piece. Any advice or experience on the subject will be greatly appreciated! I need to turn this around in the next two days.
Go to à shop and anodize it in the earliest batch they have going, regardless of color, could be an option?
Never seen a paint that resembles anodizing. Closest I’ve been was sandblasting that atleast had a similar texture. Wanted to try to dye it with textile dye, but never got around to it. (a friend dyed clear plastics to make them look tinted which looked genuine, which is where i got the idea from)
I am hoping for a blue finish. The parts have a light bead blasted finish. I think I might be able to color it with a marker and then hit it with a clear coat.
A long time ago I used black marker to fake a small piece of anodized aluminum for a sample. The thin dye of markers lets the metal material surface show through. Maybe you could get the effect you are looking for with an evenly applied coat of marker refill. Cotton swab or airbrush, maybe. Or if 60mm covers your part, a super wide marker. MOLOTOW™: Home
I’ve used transparent spray that comes in these small cans. It’s at the hobby stores not hardware stores. That duplicolor metal cast looks awesome, I’m going to try that out.
Well, I went with the Krylon X metal (Thanks Lmo!). I think the results were quite good. You can tell it is painted, but it is good enough for a model. I did my Xacto knife also. As with any project, the prep work is key. I sanded the xacto to 400 wet, degreased, and hit it with three light coats, sanding with 600 in between.
