I am wondering if an anodized frame, finish like Cervelo uses on some of it’s bikes, can be re-done or painted over in the future?
Or is this just stupid because it will be there forever?
I’m interested in a response to this also!
What’s the best cleaning agent for anodized metal that won’t scar or shorten it’s life?
BUMP!!!
bump
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you can repaint it but there isn’t likely to be any reason for it (i.e. it is very scratch resistent and won’t chip). as for a cleaning agent, any of the normal cleaners will work without a problem, you won’t damage the finish.
supposing we do scratch it (and I’m not entirely sure how this scratch got there) how would one best treat the area?
I’ve got a nice one that I can only assume came from doing something stupid… it’s on the chainstay on the drive side, about half an inch long, pure silver color as it went right through the finish.
Is there anything I should do to protect the spot?
It’s not really necessary to treat the spot, the reason you would want to treat a scratch in paint has more to do with protecting the paint around the scratch than with protecting the Aluminum. With an anodized finish, there is no worry about that. so it really is just a visual annoyance in this case.
Hi,
You won’t get good adhesion if you paint over the anodize. Anodize is basically a thin aluminum oxide layer on the outer surface. It’s very difficult to paint to an oxide without special prep. Unfortunately you would have to strip the anodize first. You would have to take it to a plating shop. It would probably cost around $60-$80. The stripping would remove a small amount of material, and could attack the weld joints somewhat. I don’t like to see welded and finished parts go through the stripping process, although it can be done. In addition, anodize is a better finish for corrosion protection then paint and is more scratch resistant. Most likely you will be fine with a small scratch as far as corrosion resistance goes. The scratch will form it’s own protective oxide coating naturally, although it is not nearly as thick or protective as the anodize. (I assume this is 6061 aluminum which is quite corrosion resitant even in the unfinished state.) However, for added corrossion protection you could oil the scratch or touch up paint it. To touch up the paint, you would need to prep the scratch prior to painting. (basically you would need to clean it so it’s free of oils and then remove the oxide layer.) If you would like some tips for surface prep let me know.
FYI: Something to look for: If you start to see any white powder in the scratch area, then it is corroding. If that happens, then you would need to remove the corrosion and touch up paint that area.
Teresa Taylor
Metallurgical Engineer
Triathlon LAB
put a decal over it, maybe a cool carbon fiber look chainstay protector…