Misumi extrusions

[happyhour]

Quick question
I went and quoted the extruded aluminium from Misumi and I had a quick question. Is there any disadvantage in gonig with the anodized black extrusions? Just into dressing my machines up and think a colored frame would be cool. If the anodizing dosent hurt I might even have raw ones colored locally.

[TLHarrell]

There are no issues at all with regular anodizing. Hard anodizing will make it extremely difficult to cut and is not necessary for frames. I like the idea of having the frames colored.

[bdring]

Some people have used the Misumi black. It does look cool, but the ends are not black and a few ends might show. It does add some cost. The MakerSlide is clear anodized. The anodizers can strip and re-coat with colored or hard coat on already anodized aluminum, but I would be sure to tell them first.

I do not recommend re-coating the MakerSlide to reduce the extra handling. They might bang it up. If you were doing hardcoat it might be worth the risk, but I don't know about just an extra color. My black hardcoat piece is not quite as black as my black anodized parts.

[happyhour]

Great to know. I think Black and Blue will look good together. I will price it both ways. The couple of parts I sampled looked to be the same price. Still gathering quotes but the build is about to start.

[r691175002]

I have used black extrusions.

It does have a major disadvantage though, which is that the coating can be scratched off and it shows. Anodizing is by no means a delicate coating, but it is still just a coating.
Slips with a drill or saw will leave marks. As well, the coating will wear down when you tighten screws against it.

They look great, and you can cover the ends with those little black plastic caps. Not sure if I would use it for prototyping or if you plan on disassembling/reassembling much.

[happyhour]

The cost to by the black anodized extrusions are $60 more. Not a big deal but you guys are correct, the ends will be clear and all teh scratches will show. Since I am on a budget, I can use the $60 to buy other parts and move me along. Once Im done if I feel spunky I can take it apart and have the frames colored locally. Atleast this way I can choose any color and all my ends and screw holes will be colored.

[TLHarrell]

Or you can save a lot more money and just buy a can of Krylon. Once you've done all your holes and other machining, paint it. You can even get the ends. Just ease all the sharp edges first as paint will pull back from a sharp corner like the cut ends.