any one done this??? im thinking of getting my 06 1000 fork tubes anodized black!! the lady on the phone said you can only do it once as it slightly reduces the diameter of the tube, if it was done a few times the forks may not fit correctly any more
anodizing fork tubes????
zedxten
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any one done this??? im thinking of getting my 06 1000 fork tubes anodized black!! the lady on the phone said you can only do it once as it slightly reduces the diameter of the tube, if it was done a few times the forks may not fit correctly any more
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5,378 Posts
Not sure what she means. Anodize is very very thin.
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I've done it to a Marzocchi. it is possible to use big rubber stoppers in both ends of the tube so you don't affect the inside. Remove all the bushings and seals. The first step is to strip it. This can be done with a solution of cool water and lye. A wallpaper pan works great here. Once you've soaked it for about 15 minutes, you can use polish the "smut" away to expose the bare aluminum. Then anodize. After it's stripped, you can remove the plugs. Since you haven't removed the anodization inside the fork, you aren't going to change the ID at all.
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I assume you mean you want to anodize the fork sliders black correct? The fork tubes are already DLC coated black on the K6 1000.
You can pretty easily anodize the sliders whatever color you want. Just dismantle the forks and remove the bushings inside the fork so the coating doesn't get on them. They are teflon coated and to allow the inner fork tube to slide on them.
There are also suspension shops that do special "hard anodizing", a little more durable finish.
http://www.moto-pro.com/otherservices.asp
$205 a pair
http://www.racetech.com/HTML_FILES/HARDANODIZE.HTML
$200 a pair
If your wanting to anodize the outer tubes, they are already anodized from the factory,, they will need to be stripped first and then re anodized,,any good anodizer should be able to strip the original for you,,but be warned if they are not polished after stripping and before re anodizing they will turn out with a dull finish from the stripping process,,
I`m not sure what she was telling you about it reducing the diameter,, if anything it would get bigger,,
I`m not sure what she was telling you about it reducing the diameter,, if anything it would get bigger,,
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that is what i thought, but apparently as anodizing is not a coating like paint or powder coating , it actually penetrates the metal surface itself, a process that actually marginally reduces the surface rather than building it up, therefore she said they will only ever do it once as repeated anodizing may reduce the fork tube size to the point where they are not tightened in the triples correctly. i know it seems drastic and probably unlikely but forks and triples are definately to be within spec and tolerance so i dont want to take any chances, but i think im going to do it.
and yes i am talking about the fork tubes outers gold. not the inner or slider which is black
thanks for the responses
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15,582 Posts
Anodizing does grow the metal somewhat, but also penetrates into the metal. When you strip and anozide again, you do change the ID slightly. We're talking really small measurements here. It's best just to plug it and leave the inside alone.
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9 Posts
Yes and no. There are a few things you need to know. Annodizing is a thin layer of colored rust really. It does make the material grow slightly but no where nearly as much as a sheet of paper. There is a process done by many annodizers called brite-dip which is some bad ass chemical stuff. Basicly they strip your stuff which removes the annodizing, and then brite-dip it which cuts down on how much polishing needs to be done. That eats away a small layer of metal and gives you the deepest, shinniest colors in the annodizing.
I worked in the paintball industry for over a decade and dealt with design and manufactoring so i have dealt with annodizers and raw aluminum parts and worring about how much the thread pitch changed, will o-rings still seal in groves and lands still.
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333 Posts
yeah, i was very impressed with the outcome, its the same as what you would see on the black 750 gixxer forks, as in the finish and colour
also impressed by the price, i had to ship them to the anodizers as they are in a different state and i have heard they are the best so i wanted to use them
postage cost $40 Au
anodizing cost $77 Au
total $117 plus my time in dismantleing and re assembly
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