Metal finishing Q&As since 1989

-----

Need a clear coating to preserve color anodizing on titanium

December 16, 2009

Greetings, I have a custom made titanium flashlight that was recently textured and flame anodized to a beautiful rainbow pattern. I would like to find a gloss clear coat that will protect the color anodizing from wear.

Obviously, no mechanical metal preparation can be done, as the anodizing is thin.

I was thinking of clear powder coating but not sure if the anodizing is conductive enough for that process. Any thoughts on a clear epoxy or acrylic spray?

Thanks for your help.

Mark Miller
hobbyist - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

---

December 17, 2009

Hi, Mark. It doesn't sound promising. letter 28243 implies that clear coats won't stick, although letter 35475 implies that one brand will. Letter 40569 implies (and I tend to believe this although I haven't tried it) that the coloration will be removed by the clear coating because it's only a diffraction pattern (like an oildrop rainbow on water), so as soon as you add a 2nd clearcoat on top of the thin clear titanium oxide which is causing the diffraction, the cause of the coloration is gone.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey