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I need a durable black coating for stainless steel
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Hi I have been looking for a durable black coating for stainless steel frets like on a guitar. It would need to be durable, as it is in constant contact with steel strings. No one has ever made black frets, so I thought it would be very cool if someone did make them. If there wasn't a coating that would work, then maybe there would be a coating that would work on a different kind of metal. I'm not sure, but titanium sounds like it wouldn't wear down after a lot of use. Can you anodize titanium? I am in 11th grade.
Ryan K.hobbyist, student (11th grade) - Holladay, Utah
First of two simultaneous responses -- +++++++
Whatever you do will be fairly temporary, Ryan. The frets themselves wear down, so any coating on them will wear down. But you can anodize titanium quite easily with very mild electrolytes. And I see no reason you couldn't repeat the process regularly with a brush plating procedure that would not necessitate any disassembly. Black isn't easy, but blues, golds, greens, and even red aren't that hard to do.
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 Ted Mooney, P.E. finishing.com Brick, New Jersey |
Second of two simultaneous responses -- February 21, 2007
Try black chromium-but you must find nearest plating shop-that is job for professional plater.Hope it helps and good luck!
Goran Budija- Zagreb, Croatia
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http://www.basscentre.com/cat/product_info.php?products_id=1338
This site (in London) offers black frets as well as gold and bronze. They may be able to help you with frets that are already designed for guitars. Whether they are plated or not will require correspondence with them.. Tom
- Lake Elsinore, California
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Black metal was created in an optics lab last year at the University of Rochester by Dr. Chunli Guo.
I was fortunate enough to read of the discovery and contact Dr. Guo regarding the process. Guilford Guitars (google them) is currently building me a guitar which will have the worlds first Black Metal frets (the guitar is dubbed, "The Black Rocket").
You may wish to also contact Alan Wald at Buzz Feiten Design, I believe that Buzz Feiten will be featuring the guitar on their website when finished. It may also make an appearance at NAMM in
2008. There is a possibility that Buzz Feiten may offer Black frets in the future - depending on the market for them and the costs involved in bringing the idea to market.
- Gainesville, Florida
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Thanks, Larry!
Although this particular thread is about guitar frets, the site is about metal finishing -- and this is indeed a very exciting development in metal finishing!
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 Ted Mooney, P.E. finishing.com Brick, New Jersey |
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Please feel free to contact the University of Rochester Office of Technology for more information on the Black Metal Process. They were extremely nice people and are looking for products that can utilize the "Blackening" process.
Aside from the black guitar frets (which I am pretty sure was NOT their primary market) Dr. Guo's process should have many, many uses in the future and I imagine in 5 to 10 years it will be a fairly common process to many metal finishers. So be the first on your block to own a Femtolaser and start blasting away!
:)
Best always,
- Gainesville, Florida
January 18, 2008 -- appended here by editor in lieu of spawning a duplicative thread
Is there a fairly easy way to blacken guitar frets, including stainless steel? Not on the guitar, but prior to installation. Do blackening agents penetrate the surface or are they a coating?
Thanks in advance.
Hobbyist - Temecula, California
May 2010
Hi, Bill. Black chrome plating and black nickel plating are only coatings, but they are metal and I'd expect them to be reasonably durable.
Regards,
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Ted Mooney, P.E. finishing.com Brick, New Jersey |
May 8, 2010
Hey I have been pondering this idea for months as well, how to do black guitar frets for an electric guitar. I am a novice builder and have an idea for coating frets with Ryno-lite not sure if that's spelled right. It's the stuff that's rough and black and you coat pickup truck boxes with it, you may be able to get it in different colors as well, or dye it that way, not sure. but the stuff is very durable, meant to not come off from metal! So I would like someone who comes across this by researching to try it and tell me if it worked for you because I'm gonna try it pretty soon. My guess is you will eventually have to touch it up but far less often than you would any paint and it should be easier to touch up with it. This is my idea tell me what you think I would like to know a better way!
Peter Quistgard- Grand Rapids, Michigan
May 10, 2010
Hi, Peter. I personally don't think truck bed lining has any possibility of success as a guitar fret coating. It's not metal, so the metal strings will be much harder than it is and wear through it quickly. Plus, it's thick and gloppy; in a good guitar the strings are very close to the frets, and will rub against it and be dampened.
Regards,
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Ted Mooney, P.E. finishing.com Brick, New Jersey |
Black Chrome ==>
