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ted_yosem
Sound technical content, curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Pine Beach, NJ
finishing.com -- The Home Page of the Finishing Industry

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  -----

What is the "Blackodising Process"



Current question and answers:

Ed. note: No abstract questions
Please, please, pretty please!!

Q. Does blackodising add hardness to the surface along with the corrosion resistance?

Vaibhav Mestri
- Mumbai, India
January 8, 2021


A. No. The finish is a few millionths of an inch thick and offers no hardness or abrasion resistance (and very little corrosion resistance).

Luck & Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
January 2021




⇩ Related postings, oldest first ⇩



Q. We are into auto component manufacturing and want to know about blackodising on steel parts.

Rakesh Darbari
Auto Component Business - Gurgaon, Haryana, India
May 2, 2008


A. Hi, Rakesh. Although I haven't heard the term 'blackodising' used in my country, from numerous letters posted to the site it is apparent that what American metal finishers call "black oxiding" is often called 'blackodising' by metal finishers in India.

It's an oxidation process (most people have seen it on rifle & shotgun barrels) and is done by immersing steel in a very hot (290 ° F) solution of strong caustic soda ⇦liquid caustic soda in bulk on Amazon [affil link] , plus oxidizers like nitrates, that leaves the steel with an extremely thin but attractive blue-black color. It is always oiled or waxed and offers negligible corrosion resistance without the oil, and little protection with it. We have a brief "Black Oxide vs. Cold Blackening FAQ" on line here. You can read a good introduction to the process in the Metal Finishing Guidebook. Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
May 2, 2008


Q. Dear Sir,
We usually use flash chrome as the finishing process for our base plate (normally of size 800 X 510 X 12). But recently the plating is found not useful due to rusting. Is there any other process which does not involve shining of job. The finish should be matte finish. Do Blackodised jobs rust later on, in absence of oil? because we were planning to try it out.

Vaibhav Khollam
- Pune, Maharashtra, India
July 11, 2011


A. Hi, Vaibhav. Blackodising offers little corrosion protection -- none without oil. The matte vs. shiny appearance of blackodising depends on how matte or polished the substrate was though. A very highly polished surface comes out more dark blue than black.

Dull nickel plating might possibly do for you. But certainly it is possible to apply a corrosion resistant plating sequence that ends with matte black chrome if that's what you want. Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
July 12, 2011



Q. I AM INTERESTED TO START A SMALL BLACKENING PLANT. PLEASE GIVE AN IDEA.

P.GNANAMANI Mr.MANI
SUPERVISOR IN ENGINEERING COMPANY - HOSUR, TAMIL NADU, INDIA
August 27, 2011



A. Hi, Mr. Mani.

You will definitely want to use proprietary chemicals, whether hot or cold, because you are new to blackening. Please contact any local supplier of plating process chemistry and they will be able to help you choose whether hot or cold is better for you.

adv.
- Cold blackening is a major product line for EPI / Electrochemical Products Inc. [a finishing.com supporting advertiser]

Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
August 30, 2011



Q. What is the difference between Blackodising and blackening process? Please reply.

Ravi gupta
process technology - Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
April 5, 2012


A. Hi Ravi.

Blackodizing is explained on this page. "Blackening process" doesn't really have any specific meaning, any more than "whitening process" or "brightening process". Blackodizing is one blackening process, but it's easy to imagine others.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
April 5, 2012



Q. Is there any alternative for Black oxidising? Can we go for Zinc plating or other process?

Mahesh Kabra
- Nasik, Maharashtra, India
January 15, 2013



A. Hi Mahesh. Certainly zinc plating can be done... it's the world's most popular plating service. And it can be black if you wish.

But you haven't yet given any indication of what you are black oxiding or why, so people can't guess whether zinc plating will prove okay. Please get back to us with the details of your situation and people can try to help you. Thanks.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
January 15, 2013



Q. Sir I am looking to start my small plant of blackodising. Can you tell me the process of blackodising and chemical required for the process?

Abhijeet Kulkarni
- Aurangabad, Maharashtra, India
April 26, 2013


A. Hi Abhijeet. Please read our FAQ, and then the Metal Finishing Guidebook, and meet with a local distributor of blackodizing chemicals as we've suggested. If that effort leaves you with some highly specific questions, please post them and people will probably be pleased to try to help answer them.

But different steels require different processes and temperatures, and different precleaning, and you need to decide between hot and cold processing, and waxing or oiling, depending on what kind of parts you intend to produce for who and why. And the safety issues of hot black oxiding are very serious. Sorry, but we can't condense the subject of how to specify, design, build and operate a blackodizing plant into a forum response here :-)

After you have read some good introductions, please get back to us with specific questions. Thanks!

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
April 30, 2013



Q. Does blackodising a screw help in any manner? Recently we faced a rust issue in the screws and found out that they were blackodised. It's evident that this process does not provide corrosion resistance, apart from our specific requirements, if any, does it help?

Surya Kulkarni
- Indore, MP and India
October 28, 2013


A. Hi Surya. As you say, the corrosion resistance of blackodizing is very little and depends mostly upon periodic application of oils or waxes. The advantages of the finish are its appearance, and the fact that it causes no dimensional change (whereas painting and plating have measurable thickness). It's a finish that is best restricted to items that are lovingly maintained (like firearms), or where dimensional changes aren't acceptable (like bored gears and sprockets), or where there are no corrosion issues (like indoor use in controlled atmospheres).

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
October 30, 2013




Want detailed process and chemistry info for black oxide

Q. Dear Sir

I am running my auto component manufacturing industry in India. Many of my components need a blackodising process, and right now we are outsourcing it through a local suppliers. But I think the cost he gives us is not worth it and I think I should start blackodising process in my plant.

I'm a little aware about this process, but I don't know the details. Can you help me out, and please tell me detail process and which chemicals should be used during this process.

Thanks & Regards!

SUMIT AHER
engineering works - Pune , Maharashtra, India
May 3, 2014


A. Hi Sumit. Please begin by reading our FAQ on the subject and then the relevant chapter in the Metal Finishing Guidebook as we've asked twice on this page already. Then you might wish to review letter 1150, "The black oxide process and gun bluing" where Rod Henrickson answers all your questions about chemistry and operating conditions. Then do a search of this site and read additional threads about black oxiding.

But if you do not have access to a knowledgable black oxide consultant, or at least an experienced gunsmith, we must again urge you to go to a proprietary supplier of black oxide chemicals and equipment, as it is quite a stretch to go from even rather good book knowledge to designing, installing, and safely operating a practical black oxiding process. Best of luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
May 2014




Black oxide doesn't work on OHNS steel

Q. Dear Sir,

Recently for our customer we are using OHNS material and as per their requirement we are following Induction Hardening. We found that, after Blackodising, the hardened face is giving a reddish appearance. That means the blackodising is not effective for the hardened area. Can you suggest any other process / care to be taken while blackodising? And why this reddish appearance comes to OHNS material?

SATEJ

SATEJ RAJPUT
- Pune, India
August 8, 2014


ACRONYMS:

OHNS = oil hardened non-shrink steel
or oil hardened nickel steel



Q. Why blackodising is needed?

bhushan p patil
student - jalgaon Maharashtra India
December 9, 2014



Hi cousin Bhushan. As a student, you may want to practice the synthesis of knowledge acquisition by gathering facts from here and there, and merging the bits & pieces into a fuller picture. Do you understand why objects may require finishing of some sort? Do you understand that every process has advantages and disadvantages compared to other processes? Do you understand that blackodizing is one of those many potential finishes?

If so, then previous statements on this page beginning with "leaves the steel with an extremely thin but attractive black color", "always oiled or waxed", "offers negligible corrosion resistance without the oil, and little protection with it", "matte or shiny appearance", "the safety issues of hot black oxiding are very serious", "It's evident that this process does not provide corrosion resistance", "advantages of the finish are its appearance, and the fact that it causes no dimensional change" should provide plenty of fodder for your essay.

Please prepare and then post a two or three-paragraph abstract and we'll be happy to review it. Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
December 2014




Black oxiding, rust proofing, and shipment by sea

Q. After Blackodizing for preservation & dispatches of material to overseas which type of rust preventive is required on spring steel material (Disc Spring is the product)?
Is rust preventive oil required after Blackodising process as it is self coating process?
Regards,

VINOD BHINGARDE
- Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
March 3, 2015


A. Hi Vinod. When parts are black oxided, it is not a matter of just dipping them into a single tank, but taking them through a process sequence of cleaning, rinsing, activating, rinsing, oxiding, rinsing, boil-out and post-treatment with wax or oil. So, when you ask whether black oxiding involves a dip in rust preventative oil, or whether it's a separate process, it's a question of semantics, i.e., whether you are referring to the black oxide tank proper or the usual black oxiding sequence.

In any case, even with a dip in good rust-preventative oil, the corrosion resistance will only last as long as the oil. If shipping overseas, you must keep the environment away from the parts. The parts must be literally drowning in oil that keeps the salt air away, or they must be sealed away from it.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, finishing.com
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 2015




Root cause for black oxided parts failing 24-hour salt spray

Q. Dear sir,
please tell me: we are using blackodising process on parts, but they are getting corroded, so please suggest what is the root cause? I have checked parts in salt spray test; they get corroded in 24 hours. So please reply to us.

yogesh singh yadav
- nashik, Maharashtra, India
July 30, 2015



A. Hi Yogesh. The root cause is that your process does not produce parts with sufficient corrosion resistance to resist salt spray for 24 hours :-)
What are the parts made of, and what is the process sequence (including the lacquer, wax, or oil) that you are employing? Please don't expect black oxided parts to resist 24 hours of salt spray without an effective lacquer, wax, or oil post-treatment! You're lucky when they can resist the ambient environment for a 1/2 hour without flash rusting :-)

Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
September 2015




Q. Why is there a shade difference between Castings and MS parts after Black Oxidizing?

Manoj Kajale
- Pune, Maharashtra, India
December 5, 2015


A. Hi Manoj. Castings and MS are entirely different metals (for example, lots of silicon in castings), so it's to be expected that they won't automatically adopt the identical look when oxidized. I don't know enough about black oxiding to answer your question well ... because what you probably would really like to know is what to do to get them to look more like each other. But I think the first step is an equal degree of polishing. Hopefully an experienced black oxidizer will jump in and help :-)

Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
December 2015




sidebar

Q. Is it possible to blackodize on aluminum? If possible please provide the details about chemical and process.

Harsh panchal
- Kadi, Gujarat, India
March 23, 2016



A. Hi Harsh. As I said earlier in this thread, I have never heard the term 'blackodize' used in the USA, but it is apparent that it is widely used in India to describe the same process which we in the USA call 'black oxiding' or 'bluing' of steel (and sometimes cast iron and stainless steel). It is a process that works on ferrous metals not on aluminum.

There are a number of ways to get a black surface on aluminum: anodizing and black dyeing; zinc plating and black chromate; plating with black nickel or black chrome, painting, powder coating, etc.

If you can tell us what you are trying to do, i.e., what properties you are trying to give to the aluminum, in what environment, and for what reason, I think we can assist you -- but you can't say you want to 'blackodize aluminum' because, as far as I know, that wouldn't have any meaning at all. Good luck.

Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 2016


A. Dear Harsh,
I think you want black colour on Aluminium. It can easily be achieved with help of dye colours or electro colour after anodizing.

Happy Anodizing.
Regards

Sumit Lodha
- ahmednagar Maharashtra India
March 28, 2016




Possible to black oxide a nitrided surface?

Q. I want to cover patches on the ground (grinded) surface of a part which is already gas nitrided to increase its hardness. Can blackodising affect the nitriding results?

sachin raut
sunfab automation - Pune, Maharashtra, India
April 19, 2016


A. Hi Sachin. If I understand your situation, you gas nitrided some parts but you are unhappy with their patchy appearance in the ground area so you want to black oxide them. Although I have no personal experience with it, my understanding is that this can work, i.e., that you can blackodize nitrided metal without harming it ...

However, the black oxide is millionths of an inch thick, and not hard, and will quickly wear off. You might consider the QPQ salt bath nitriding process instead. Good luck.

Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
April 2016




Removing/stripping black oxide finish

Q. I have a cutter made up of HSS and EN19 material which is blackodized. But company requirement is without blackodizing.
So what can I do to removing blackodizing? Suggest please.

sandesh londhe
tools - Pune, Maharashtra, India
June 29, 2017


----
Ed. note: Readers may wish to see letter 3974, "Removing Black Oxide Coatings".


Is Brown Color on Iron Metal "Blackodizing"?

February 18, 2018

Q. Dear Sir,
Please tell me about brown color on Spurs used in horse riding. How to come to it, which chemicals are used on it.

48674-1c   48674-1b   48674-1a  

It's not Powder coating.

Eshwar Shukla
Product Manufacturer - Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India


A. Hi Eshwar. Although some modifications to the black oxide process can generate a brownish color, I wouldn't rely on visual determination of a finish even looking at the actual parts rather than a photo; and I doubt that black oxide would prove satisfactory for this duty anyway unless the spurs are strictly decorative.

But if you wish to make spurs which look rather like these, and assuming they are made of steel or iron, I'd suggest looking into electrocoating with a brown post dye. If they are actually made of aluminum they can probably be anodized. Please tell us your situation; as things stand, we can't post responses to this particular question from people not known to us for fear of crowd-sourcing industrial espionage :-(

Good luck & Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
March 2018





Tip:   Readers want to learn from your situation,
        often just skipping abstract questions.

Q. Request to please tell me whether the chemicals used in blackodising process are hazardous and so banned by Govt?

Nitin T.
Suyog Autocast Pvt.Ltd. - Pune, Maharashtra, India.
June 25, 2018



Hi Nitin. The chemicals used are indeed 'hazardous'. More importantly, the process is hazardous because it is an aqueous process which operates far above the boiling point of water and is thus subject to 'erupting' if make-up water flashes to steam because of improper addition methods.

The process could be "banned" in certain areas of the world by local, regional, or national governments, but I doubt that it is banned in your area.

Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
June 2018





Tip:   Readers want to learn from your situation,
        often just skipping abstract questions.

Q. BLACKODISING AND BLACK OXIDE ARE THE SAME OR NOT? WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

KRISHNA AHUJA
- CHANGHUA TAIWAN
November 6, 2020


A. Hi Krishna. I've already expressed my opinion twice on this page that they are the same thing -- usually called black oxide in the USA and usually called blackodizing in India. Other people are welcome to offer their take on the question. But the problem will remain that both terms are slang more than specification. So if you simply specify blackodizing there is at least some chance that you'll get cold blackening rather than hot black oxide, and be into a contract dispute.

Luck & Regards,

ted_yosem
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
November 2020




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