Anodizing aluminum frame

[Dongulus]

Although I'm happy to have just received my printer, I was slightly disappointed to have received the plain aluminum frame instead of the black finish that I had requested.

I am in no way dissatisfied with the look of the printer, but it did get me thinking about the possibility of anodizing the frame to my liking. From a cursory search through Google, I learned that anodizing aluminum doesn't seem to require highly expensive materials nor inaccessible tools; the process seems to require just some cheap chemicals and common tools. However, most guides I have come across require sulfuric acid which is a nasty chemical that I wouldn't want to keep around and is also difficult to procure.

Fortunately, I did find this website:
http://www.observationsblog.com/scie...t-battery-acid
This guide recommends using Sodium Bisulfate instead of Sulfuric Acid which is an easily purchasable and disposable chemical used to balance pool pH.

I from all of what I have read, I gather that anodizing the RapideLite frame is within reach. It may be worth experimenting on some test pieces to get an idea of what sort of results are achievable.

[BobenhamHotspur]

Good luck with it, keep safe and keep us posted.

[milstream]

You will probably have to remove the existing anodize first.

[jasonized]

Hey Dongulus,
Anodizing yourself is not something to be tried on a whim. :} It's not very expensive to pop it down to a local house and have them do it, whatever color you want (within price that is!). With black, you could do "cold" anodizing, which is a heavier coating and a bit sturdier than "standard". It's about twice as thick.

Anodizing is a many step process, and requires a power supply of a bunch of amps. I had a setup once (the extended version, 14 steps!), and got rid of it because of how often I didn't use it.

It's messy, and you need a ventilated area to do it in, with lots of space.

That said, you can probably pick up a kit (without power supply) for about 800.00 that would do a great job. And if you had the room to set it up, you could do other peoples as well. :} :}

Cheers!