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Aluminum finishing

Posted by Triode_Kingdom (A) on April 13, 2015 at 11:47:16

In Reply to: RE: Motorola tube monoblocks with custom aluminum cages posted by sanman on April 12, 2015 at 15:55:19:

It's difficult to predict that sort of thing. I can tell you that I recently examined a polished aluminum bracket that I had installed inside a piece of equipment about 20 years ago. It was essentially unchanged, with no sign of significant oxidation. However, I do remember wiping it off after installation to remove fingerprints. The answer to your question probably hinges on both relative humidity (aluminum will oxidize more rapidly in a basement or seaside environment) and whether it's frequently touched. You could use a mag wheel polish to "reshine" it from time to time, but that leaves one other issue. Most alloys of raw aluminum are very soft. Some can be marred with a fingernail if they've been polished to a mirror finish. All of the finishes I mentioned will prevent that from happening, except maybe lacquer. I only use lacquer on machined or matte aluminum where minor blemishes won't show, just to prevent oxidation and keep it shiny. One other thing, many alloys of aluminum will go dull gray or slightly yellow when they're anodized, even if they have a mirror finish. If you really like the mirror look and you don't know the alloy, the best long-term solutions are probably clear powder coat (used on motorcycles) or nickel plate.

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