[sdiy] DIY Aluminum panel painting

[Grant Richter]

Here is a mad scientist procedure I once saw a production house that  
made Wallensack 3/4" video decks.

Use at your own risk.

You degrease the panels.
The tech would dip the machined aluminum panels very briefly into a  
tray of Ferric Chloride (the PCB etchant).
This would rapidly generated a lot of stinky gas and heat. A kind of  
"unanodizing" happened in seconds.

Afterwards the the panels were washed in water and dried. They   
panels would turn flat blackish in color.

According to him, the surface was now etched enough to bind well with  
a primer paint, or so the tech who invented the whole thing  
maintained. The after coats seem to stick fine too.

Be careful as the process is highly reactive, use only outdoors or  
with breathing protection since any gases released may be toxic.

On Jul 26, 2006, at 11:42 AM, Altitude wrote:

>
> I'm looking for a good process to finish some raw aluminum panels.   
> I am
> aware of alodine but was wondering if there are more DIY friendly  
> methods
> for getting paint to bond well with aluminum.
>
> Cheers,
> Raph
>
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