Letter 23008

How to finish aluminium small castings?  

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I need some technical advice on the following:

1. What is the best method to get excellent surface lustre and finish on cast aluminium curio items such as statuettes? I have seen some with excellent finish but I don't have an idea to produce the item myself.

2. What is the type of tank to be used for electropolishing solution (mixture of heated acids)? Our stainless steel tank doesn't last long.

Alex Abraham
- Ernakulam, Kerala, India

Vibratory tumblers work quite well, you will however round off the detail the longer it is tumbled for. With our castings (small light weight high detail) we run them for several days in 3 stages of silicon carbide imbedded plastics, followed by a full day cycle in saw dust imbedded jeweler's rouge [link is to product info at Amazon]. They come out with a great finish!

As for bright dip-electropolish tank, try a ceramic lined vessel. If your like me and do this is in small quantities you can find the tumbler setups through jewelry suppliers, and you can even get ceramic lined containers in various sizes at your local grocery store.

Good luck!

Jason Aube
- Flint, MI, USA