Letter 36012

Can I re-iridite after engraving powder-coated aluminum? [Maryland] 

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I am a mechanical designer of communications equipment. I am engraving text into powder coated 2024 aluminum. Having conversion coated the parts prior to powder coating, can I then re-iridite these parts without experiencing any problems. the shiny affect left after engraving is undesirable to our customer and presents uncoated aluminum. it seems logical to re-iridite.

Gary Belt
communications equipment oem - Gaithersburg, MD, USA

I used to do this on a regular basis with large telecom cabinets, I can tell you that it worked with our process, but I don't have any extensive test data so I don't know if it will work with yours. The applied paint was a smooth TGIC poly/poly, 75 to 85% gloss on 5052 aluminum. Re-iriditing did not affect either the mechanical or cosmetic properties of the paint(the whole cabinet had to be resubmerged). Is it possible to have your process engineer send out a sample and then test the paint for damage afterwards? That being said, all I can add is, yes it can be done, Good luck with it.

Sheldon Taylor    supply chain electronics Wake Forest, No. Carolina

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