Mech Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 so i sandblasted an aluminum part today, sprayed some clear coat on it.....looks nice, but it came out darker than the original unfinished aluminum....like a gray color. how can i keep the bright/light look of the original aluminum after sand blasting it? the metal is just too tarnished to get the look i want just by cleaning it....tried that. suppose could just paint it a color that matches it....but seems silly to do all that when it i get the look i want by sanblasting it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott87star Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 Darker because it's rough, smooth it out with wet/dry paper after blasting it and when you clear that it will maintain the aluminium look much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IntercooledFlatty Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 what he said ^ start with 600 and work your way to 1500 depending on the finish you want Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucw458 Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 The material you blast with will add some color to the finish. Try glass beads or walnut shells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markhansenconquest Posted October 18, 2014 Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 Drill motor with polishing buffing wheel ..Buff the sht out of it ..........no clear and polish it up every so often.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87redcat Posted October 18, 2014 Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 yea, after sandblasting, sand up to 1500 grit. 2000 even. Then polish. the smoother it is the shinier it will get from the polish.Aluminum is a soft metal so it pretty easy to polish. You can make it look like chrome with not too much effort. Not the best pic but this motor had more gloss than the chrome front fender. And clear coating it will dull the finish a little. Clean, clean, clean before spraying. I use 99% alcohol and wipe it till the cloth doesnt have any more dirt on it. usually 3x or more. Wear gloves cause the grease from your hands will make fingerprints and they will show up ... good luck! http://i1314.photobucket.com/albums/t563/originalmoxiecat/Mobile%20Uploads/newest%20170_zpsirqeajnf.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mech Posted October 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 Thanks guys. Not looking for the chrome bling look though.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC_99 Posted October 18, 2014 Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 So, you just want the "freshly blasted" look without it being easy to get dirty and greasy again? I guess you are just going to have to test some parts with different clear coats ect. Or find the right color paint. Or powder coat. BC_99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mech Posted October 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 So, you just want the "freshly blasted" look without it being easy to get dirty and greasy again? exactly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mech Posted October 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 im thinking about just painting it with rattle can that is the same color as aluminum....i have to do something with the block, but obviously wont be able to sandblast that... gonna need a high temp paint.....not sure what to do here....suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC_99 Posted October 18, 2014 Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 Rattle cans are a fine short term look, but with underhood temps from any motor, coupled with the added heat from a turbo, and that stuff will be burning off a little to quickly in my opinion. I would recommend aluminum colored powder coating. I did mine yesterday in shadow chrome, but there are different shades of silver. In fact, I'm almost certain I have seen a "sandblasted aluminum" color choice. Let me check on that. Here are some pictures of some parts I've done myself recently. http://i601.photobucket.com/albums/tt93/BC_99/20141017_164133_zpsnd3ggrxj.jpg http://i601.photobucket.com/albums/tt93/BC_99/20141017_163910_zpswj1vl0wj.jpg BC_99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BC_99 Posted October 18, 2014 Report Share Posted October 18, 2014 Yep, here is a link to the blasted aluminum powder coating. http://www.eastwood.com/hotcoat-powder-blasted-aluminum.html BC_99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
87redcat Posted October 19, 2014 Report Share Posted October 19, 2014 Nice color on the intake. Looks just like polished alum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randy Posted October 19, 2014 Report Share Posted October 19, 2014 Nice work BC_99. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AUSSIEJB Posted October 19, 2014 Report Share Posted October 19, 2014 IMO Soda blasting is a better method as it does not mark the surface like sandblasting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucw458 Posted October 19, 2014 Report Share Posted October 19, 2014 IMO Soda blasting is a better method as it does not mark the surface like sandblasting. Soda blasting and sandblasting are the same process. Just different blasting media used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AUSSIEJB Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 Soda blasting and sandblasting are the same process. Just different blasting media used.I understand that but soda blasting also leaves a steel surface with a anti rust protection and can strip single layers of paint off if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ucw458 Posted October 20, 2014 Report Share Posted October 20, 2014 But soda blasting can still warp body panels if left in one spot too long. It is a safer abrasive but not 100% safe. Walnut shells on the other hand are a safe abrasive. It will hardly affect paint at all. It's mostly for cleaning and light surface rust. It can't hurt metal surfaces. That's what I have in my blast cabinet now. It was all I had after I moved. I'm kinda disappointed with it because I need a harsher abrasive. It wont remove the scale from rusty parts. Glass beads are also an abrasive that brings out the shine of the base metal. It takes alot of blasting to hurt sharp corners in soft metals. Any residue can also be dusted off with a brush or compressed air. I used glass beads to clean copper masks for a CD manufacturing plant. It left the copper looking beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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