Monday, December 21, 2015

Bead Blasting a Vital Process for a Pleasant Finish of Aluminium Parts


Various metals, including steel and aluminium, greatly benefit from abrasive blasting, as the process improves upon the metals’ appearance and their resistance to corrosion. Once blasted, these metals can be coloured, masked, polished, or even anodised to create both standard and bespoke designs. Abrasive blasting, often done with the use of abrasives like beads, aims to add a finish to these metals by removing small amounts of metal from the surface. Aside from improving the inherent qualities of these metals, bead blasting also produces finishes that are aesthetically appealing. In turn, these finishes are the top choice for architectural applications.
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Sunday, December 20, 2015

Design and Art Galleries Feature the Versatility of Colour Anodising


London once again proved itself to be the design capital of the world with the recently held London Design Festival. In celebration of the role the design community plays in the city’s creative economy, over 350 events and installations were offered and displayed across London. Pieces of some of the city’s best designers were featured at the 10 Designers in the West Wing of Somerset House. Most of the installation pieces presented in this year’s festival integrated an interactive element to encourage audience participation. One thing prevalent among the installations featured in the festival was the ability to enable interaction and immersion, as these pieces strive to engender emotional involvement among the audience. These installation pieces are made of different media and materials, and one particular piece made use of the aesthetic appeal of anodised aluminium.
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Saturday, December 19, 2015

A Few Design Factors to Consider Before Anodising Aluminium Pieces


Aluminium is one of the most widely used materials for metal workers and artists. A few characteristics that makes aluminuim a good medium for art is its resistance to corrosion, non-magnetic properties, zero toxicity, lightness and strength. Artists often choose to anodise their aluminium pieces to strengthen the surface and even to add colour to it. Artists, however, must consider a few things before they subject their works of art to the anodising process in order to achieve the best results. Decorative Anodising For metals that are going to be used in intensive applications such as automobile parts, thicker oxide layers need to be applied. In decorative pieces, one can do with just a thin layer. This, however, comes with one drawback – it does not offer the same level of wear resistance as with hard anodizing. A thinner oxide layer will still give a good level of corrosion resistance which can help preserve aluminium better.
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Friday, December 18, 2015

Four Helpful Tips to Make a Metal Polishing Job Go a Lot Smoother


Metal polishing is widely used many in applications across many industries in order to achieve a more attractive and even appearance. By removing a thin layer on the metal’s surface, microscopic directional marks are left to give it the nice polished look. Although it is a pretty straight forward process especially for trusted metal polishing companies like Badger Anodising (Birmingham) Ltd, some factors can affect the outcome. This is why you should still do everything you can to make the process go smoother, at least on your end. Finish Up First It is a bad idea to send metal pieces to the polishers if you plan on doing more work with it later. For instance, if you do some welding, etching or any other process after, it will ruin the polishing. Then, you would have to repeat it all over again, wasting time, money and effort in the process.
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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Polishing Aluminium and Other Metals for Better Protection and Lustre


Many of the stuff you have at home are made of non-ferrous metals, from the vehicle in your garage to the wedding ring on your finger. These metals are unlikely to rust anytime soon. In fact, some of them may still have the smoothness and lustre they have had when you first bought them. Those preserved properties are proof that these metals were excellently polished and finished before being turned into the products they are now. How Polishing Helps Even non-ferrous metals like aluminium, copper, and chromium cannot evade the onslaught of aging and corrosion. They will become paler and less attractive over time, especially if they are constantly exposed to the elements. Polishing and finishing are done to restore their original decorative appeal as well as to improve their chemical properties. Polishing aluminium, for instance, will enhance not only the metal’s sheen but also its tarnish resistance and durability.
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Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Anodised Aluminium: Making Metallic Products Stronger and More Durable


When someone says aluminium, the first thing to usually come in mind is the foil you use to wrap leftovers. The truth is that aluminium is in more objects you use every day than the ones you already know—cans, vehicles, lipstick sleeves, jewellery, to name a few—and for good reason. Aluminium is the second-most abundant metallic element on Earth, right next to silicone, which by the way is an even less familiar element despite its abundance. Aluminium is known for its shiny surface and resistance to rusting. The only time aluminium changes its appearance and properties is when it’s alloyed, cladded, or galvanized with other metals. There is, however, another way to improve aluminium’s properties and usefulness in various applications—anodisation. Anodised aluminium is known to last longer and to produce better decorative finishes.
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Sunday, December 6, 2015

Tips from Anodisers: Ensuring Flawless Results in Anodising Aluminium


Anodising is a great way to protect the surfaces of aluminium. It is a process that coats aluminium with a protective layer without affecting its mechanical properties. You can expect the characteristics like ultimate strength, percent elongation and yield strength to remain the same after the process. Skilled anodisers process aluminium meticulously but there are things that could go wrong especially if the material sent off to them were not in good shape in the first place. Here are a few tips to help you ensure flawless results while anodizing aluminium. Clarify Your Specifications Not all specifications for anodising aluminium will be the same for each project you take on. One tiny, wrong detail can affect the process, and you would end up paying for it still. To avoid that, you have to be upfront and specific with anodisers. Things like gloss of finish, colour of anodized coating, weight per area of coating, corrosion resistance measurement and aluminium alloy.
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Saturday, December 5, 2015

The Aesthetic and Practical Advantages of Using Anodised Materials


The technical process of coloured anodising is common throughout many industries, and it can provide numerous aluminium products with an eye-catching appeal. Anodising is a well-known process that will protect aluminium objects such as cans, climbing equipment, jewellery, and even bicycle parts with a high level of corrosion resistance. Although the physical benefits of this technique are widely known, it is also just as important to realise that decorative finishes are another massive advantage. Enhanced Visual Qualities As opposed to adding a design directly upon an aluminium substrate, anodised materials provide a surface that can readily accept colours, patterns, textures and prints. This is apparent when viewing a traditional steel beverage can alongside its modern aluminium counterpart. Designs are much “crisper” and brighter, able to literally jump out at the consumer. This is a massive benefit from a marketing standpoint.
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Friday, December 4, 2015

Improve a Metal’s Corrosion Resistance By Anodising Aluminium Products


Anodising is a method of increasing corrosive resistance in non-ferrous metals, and is most commonly used in the treatment of aluminium. The material may be treated prior to the process, usually by sanding and priming the surface, before an electrical current is passed through an electrolytic solution, with the aluminium item acting as an anode. Improve Aluminium The process is used on a wide variety of aluminium products and items, and its primary benefit is that it improves the corrosive resistance of the material; especially important for products that will be used in damp and wet conditions, but that need to retain their strength and integrity. As such, it is not uncommon to anodise bike parts, including wheels and brakes, or in the manufacture or improvement of climbing equipment and accessories. In most instances, aluminium is chosen because of its lightweight nature, but without further treatment, it may be prone to corrosion.
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Thursday, December 3, 2015

Aluminium Anodising: Metal Finishing with a Wide Range of Applications


Few chemical or industrial processes that could possibly be mistaken for magic, but anodising metals, especially aluminium, definitely qualifies. Not only does the process thicken the oxide coating on the metal, it can be used to infuse the item with a range of beautiful colours and shades that will not run or fade over time. Aluminium oxide is harder and therefore more durable, offers a degree of electrical insulation, and is relatively inert, which means that the metal will not affect nor be affected by any other compounds that it may be exposed to. This type of metal finishing can be used for a range of purposes, from industrial to domestic. The products that can be anodised for practical purposes include screws, nuts and bolts, and plumbing pipes and clips.
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Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Aluminium Polishing: The Benefits of Using Anodised Aluminium Products


Aluminium anodising provides a number of benefits that can help to provide protection against the elements, increase longevity, and enable a product to be coloured. The process of anodising can be traced as far back as 1923 when it was employed to protect certain parts of planes from the corrosive nature of salt water. In these modern times, anodised aluminium is a product that is often taken for granted due to its ubiquitous nature within society. What are some of the benefits associated with anodised aluminium? Anti-Corrosive Properties One of the most important advantages of anodised aluminium is that it is highly resistant to corrosion. This is accomplished by adding a protective layer to prevent oxygen from reacting with the surface of the metal. So, it should only make sense that products such as mobile phone cases, aluminium cans, spray bottles and bottle tops (such as those used with perfumes and soft drinks) will often utilise anodised aluminium.
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