Building A Anodizer

[ballknives]

The first step is to get a variac that is 0-130 5 amp output.On ebay type in variable transformer.The same on I have is listed buy now for $46.95 Be sure to get one that has the volt meter, fuse and power receptacle already in place. The only other pieces needed is a full wave bridge rectifier 400volt 8 amp and insulated claw or alligator clips and a cheap exstension cord. The rectifier and clips cost around $5 and radio shack has both.Cut the extension cord 10-12 inches from plug end and conect white and black wires to the rectifier on corners marked with ~ symbol,one on each corner. Use the rest of the extension cord for wiring to your clips,put red clip and wire to the + corner and black clip and wire to - corner on rectifier. Mount rectifier on variac but be sure to insulate it from metal enclosure.I'll show pics of what we have built so far then show the beaker and solution

[ballknives]

The next step is to get a glass or plastic jar to submerge parts in. A jar 10-12 inches deep and 4-5 inch in dia should be enough. Something with straight walls will work best. I got mine at walmart also the plastic craft screen. Take a piece of thin SS and bend to fit inside of jar. It should be at least 6 inches high and go 3/4 of diameter of jar. On one end cut a strip 1/4 inch wide from bottom to within 1 inch from top and bend up and out of jar to attach black clip to. Take plastic mesh and wrap inside of SS piece so part CANNOT touch SS piece in jar. Make a part hook out of (titanium only) and make it longer than the jar is tall,bend top over to attach red clip to. Mix 2 teaspoons of Trisodium Phosphate to jar filled with distilled water.You can buy TSP at home depot. Make sure variac is turned OFF and put part on hook and place in jar with RED clip attached .Attach BLACK clip to SS piece on outside of jar.Turn variac on with output on 0 and slowly turn up voltage and watch the colors change as voltage increases.Hope ya'll find this useful,I know I have,this machine works very well.Anyone have questions let me know

[ballknives]

Has anyone found this useful or did I waste 1 1/2 hours of my time to pic and post this? This machine works as well as a prebuilt and is much less money.:RXX:

[M.TEX]

I like it. THANK YOU . I will soon try anodize some stuff....
I don't know nothing about this . and I have 1 question :

_ what materials (steel ) can be Anodized ? and what are the quimicals used for each material ?

I hope this ain't a stupid question...

[M.TEX]

Oooops sorry another question : what if the " TI hook " touch the SS somewhere ? would it be bad ? or I have to make sure they don't touch anywhere? Ummmm questions questions.....

[ballknives]

I like it. THANK YOU . I will soon try anodize some stuff....
I don't know nothing about this . and I have 1 question :

_ what materials (steel ) can be Anodized ? and what are the quimicals used for each material ?

I hope this ain't a stupid question...

AS far as I know it only works on titanium and the TSP solution works good.If the hook touches the SS it will blow the fuse,thats why its there for our protection.As far as I can tell touching the hook when its in the solution will not shock you as ive held it while its on.If anyone knows any other solutions to use PLEASE let us know.

[NEWT]

Thanks amigo. :devilzeek i'm head to the store now.:growhorns:

[M.TEX]

Thank you !

[Viperkiller]

That is a pretty cool setup, I would imagine you could use a variable output DC transformer as well to save a step in rectifiying the AC output of the variac. Now if I only had some titanium that needed anodizing I would build one of these! Hell, I might just build one for the hell of it. :jdsmokin:

[fludunlimited]

AS far as I know it only works on titanium and the TSP solution works good.If the hook touches the SS it will blow the fuse,thats why its there for our protection.As far as I can tell touching the hook when its in the solution will not shock you as ive held it while its on.If anyone knows any other solutions to use PLEASE let us know.

if you spra eagleone (http://www.eagleone.com/pages/products/product.asp?itemid=1001&cat=5006) mag wheel cleaner on the ti just before you anodize the colors look more vibrant.

[ballknives]

if you spra eagleone (http://www.eagleone.com/pages/products/product.asp?itemid=1001&cat=5006) mag wheel cleaner on the ti just before you anodize the colors look more vibrant.
Thanks for the tip flud I'll try it.

[fludunlimited]

your welcom

ther is somthing about boiling cascade and straining it and using it in place of TSP but i cant remember what it was.
if I find it Ill post it.

[M.Olexey]

Just wanted to drop a thank you here. Using these instructions I built one of these this weekend and it works great!

Also did some research and found a solution that works way better than the TSP.

First windex the ti part and dry it off, then spray it with the Eagle One Mag cleaner (etching kind) and let it set for 10 seconds then hose it down in windex and dry it off (after about 15-20 seconds the Eagle One starts screwing up the finish on your ti so dont think more is better). Your part is now prime for ano'ing.

The solution......

boil some water (doesn't really matter how much) a few cups or so. Dissolve as much Cascade dish detergent as you can into it. Keep adding and mixing until it just want dissolve anymore (super-saturated solution). Strain this mixture through a coffee filter and you now have your TSP replacement. Add 1 tablespoon of this mixture to 32oz of distilled water and there you have your anodizing solution. It made a drastic difference in how consistent and vibrant the colors were when I started using this solution. Color also started appearing at lower voltage and I was able to get more colors.

All this info came from other makers( namely Alan Folts) I just did a shitload of searching and thought I would share.

Another helpful hint... when you're at Radio Shack getting supplies buy a shitload of the tiny 5A fuses that fit the vari AC. The auto parts stores don't carry them and if your like me you will blow a few before you get the bugs worked out.

Again big thanks to ballknives for this post/info.


mo

[ballknives]

Just thought I would bring this one back up to see if there are any new ideas on formulas to use to anodize,always willing to try something new.I hope everyone who built this gizmo is still luvin it I know mine still works very well. THANKS for the comments.

[potterma]

Great tutorial! I purchased a variable output DC power supply a couple years ago, but never set it up. The rectified variac is a great idea, and much cheaper than the variable DC supply.

Any comments from users about the durability of the electrochemical Ti anodize versus heat anodize?

Thanks!

[Bill V.]

I spent many months trying to get some of the funky colors I have seen on some customs. I finally found some answers from several people and places and thought I'd share.

I have tried the TSP, Salt Water, Coke and all the other electrolytes that have been recommended but the best by far is sulphuric acid. Just go down to your local plumbing supply house and pick up a quart of Industrial drain cleaner. The base is sulphuric with some other inert ingredients. Mix 2 tablespoons of the acid into 1 gallon of water. This is by far the best electrolyte for anodizing Ti. Wear gloves when handling this stuff. If it will eat away hairballs and sludge in your drain, you can bet it will burn a bit if it gets on your skin.

Another secret to getting the best colors is a proper etch on the Ti prior to anodizing. Reactive Metals sells a Ti etching solution called Multi-Etch. It's about $35 a gallon but well worth it. I haven been using the same gallon for 4 years and it still works fine.

I have an anodizing tutorial on my site if you want step by step instructions.
http://www.medawebs.com/knives/tutorials/anodizing.htm

Hope this helps!

Bill