Anodizing tanks

[FredMnkyDad10]

Looking to finish couple projects. Will also ask anodizer their thoughts experience doing tanks.

But wanted to see if you guys know if these can be anodized.
And would there be any issues that you know of.
thanks

[jokers]

It can be done and it looks amazing, couple tips I am going to give you if you want to use the marker with the tank then send them off for an early hydro so you have it as long as possible with the anno. If you want to rehydro the tank after the anno then they will have to stamp it and it is not as pretty as it was. It is hard to see with the picture but the HPR is annoed as well and it looks awesome.
For mine I have a carbon fiber tank with a reg and this tank the carbon fiber is for playing this one is for showing.
Something to check if they need the tank stripped. Also if you polish it will it reduce the cost.
Good luck keep us updated.

[Chuck E Ducky]

That’s fancy..

[Trbo323]

I would also ask a hydro shop because the buck really stops with them

My gut says hell no. Anodizing runs current and heat through the metal, so who knows what that will do to its strength. Obviously jokers has had it done but I would still ask your hydro shop first. Since some external stuff can be automatic fail and I've never heard of any exemption for anno or might be up to the hydro shops discretion

Sent from my motorola edge 5G UW (2021) using Tapatalk

[FredMnkyDad10]

Great idea. I did not even think about talking to hydro tester. The one I use is not far. I can stop by and ask.

[jokers]

FredMnkyDad10 Just to give you a heads up I am going to guess the hydro tester is going to tell you no and not to do it. I may be wrong but a lot of times if someone does not understand something and will just say no. If he says no and you decide to do it anyway I would not take that tank to that hydro tester otherwise it will auto fail since you did not trust him.

[FredMnkyDad10]

Yeah very true. I will just a general question if he has seen any or tested any tanks that been anod. Maybe.

[Chuck E Ducky]

Just do a 2” round 2AL tank then hydro don’t matter (it’s exempt). I’m going to do up my MaxTac 9ci and a nice aluminum reg bonnet to mach my Phantom eventually. If I ever stop changing parts and pieces out on it.

There are people very aggressively against having a tank anodized or even Cerokoted and have strong opinions about it here. It’s really up to you and the risk you’re willing to assume for cosmetic reasons. Some concerns are warranted some are a lil extreme. It has been discussed before if you search around.

[Spec]

The 17 cu in tanks are perfect for this. I like them paired with a myth style shorty reg for perfect length of pull.

[Chuck E Ducky]

I got a 17ci it’s definitely the perfect length for an Off the grip ASA. I like the 9ci for the Vert setup on the phantom.

[FredMnkyDad10]

Chuck E Ducky the raw tank above is under the 2", so that should be good. That will be for automag pump, so it would be a good fit.

The other tank will be for pneumag. Would be better fit for it. Unless they make a hella long 2" tank.

[Chuck E Ducky]

There are places that will hydro them if need be go to a local place.

[Spec]

Chuck E Ducky the raw tank above is under the 2", so that should be good. That will be for automag pump, so it would be a good fit.

The other tank will be for pneumag. Would be better fit for it. Unless they make a hella long 2" tank.

22 cu in is the same width as a 9, 13, 17, etc and hella long.

[Chuck E Ducky]

I forget how long it is but there is a thread I measured all of them if you search for it. 22 is way too long for me and I prefer a longer setup. You would need like a drop forward or something unless you got abnormally long arms. It’s way to long to run off a grip frame ASA.

[DocsMachine]

Okay gents, maybe a bit of misinformation here.

The big trick here is that an aluminum tank gets a LOT of it's strength from heat-treating when it's manufactured. Any change to that heat treating is a massive risk.

Anodizing does use a heated bath, but well below "boiling", and even boiling is below the point you'd start changing the heat treating. The anodic surface is usually only around a thousandth of an inch thick, and doesn't materially effect the strength or structure of the tank.

That said, it is very much up to the hydrotester. They can pass or fail your tank almost at a whim- and if they don't like the anodizing, they kind of have the last word.

THAT said, you can also shop another hydrotester- the anodizing does not materially affect the strength of the tank, and the hydrotesting is specifically to prove that! One hydrotester might not have experience with annoed tanks, and may pass on it just out of caution. Another might see them regularly and knows how to handle them.

Cerakote and the like, and especially powdercoat, are a whole different story. Many of those need to heat the part to 400F to get the stuff to cure, and that IS getting to the point where it affects the heat-treating.

DO NOT Cerakote, Moly-Kote, powder-coat or use any other "bake on" finish on a tank. Hydro-dip, sure, but nothing that "bakes" the tank. Regardless of the diameter of the tank, absolutely do not. That's literally a "kill the guy filling the tank" risk.

Doc.

[Chuck E Ducky]

Cure temps for H series Cerokote is 250*F they do plastics and everything it would be just as safe as Anodizing. E Series is 300* F.

Powder coat has to get hot tho 400*F cure time goes up as temp goes down apparently. There are some that will cure at 300*F but they take a long time to cure. To many variables I wouldn’t mess with powder coat.

[FredMnkyDad10]

I been told that there are two types or ways to Cerakote. If anyone can confirm this.

Baking is the preferred method since this will make it stronger, lasts and pretty much scratch proof.

The other is just apply and let it air dry. Still strong, but wont last and can scratch.

[JeepDVLZ45]

Okay gents, maybe a bit of misinformation here.

The big trick here is that an aluminum tank gets a LOT of it's strength from heat-treating when it's manufactured. Any change to that heat treating is a massive risk.

Anodizing does use a heated bath, but well below "boiling", and even boiling is below the point you'd start changing the heat treating. The anodic surface is usually only around a thousandth of an inch thick, and doesn't materially effect the strength or structure of the tank.

That said, it is very much up to the hydrotester. They can pass or fail your tank almost at a whim- and if they don't like the anodizing, they kind of have the last word.

THAT said, you can also shop another hydrotester- the anodizing does not materially affect the strength of the tank, and the hydrotesting is specifically to prove that! One hydrotester might not have experience with annoed tanks, and may pass on it just out of caution. Another might see them regularly and knows how to handle them.

Cerakote and the like, and especially powdercoat, are a whole different story. Many of those need to heat the part to 400F to get the stuff to cure, and that IS getting to the point where it affects the heat-treating.

DO NOT Cerakote, Moly-Kote, powder-coat or use any other "bake on" finish on a tank. Hydro-dip, sure, but nothing that "bakes" the tank. Regardless of the diameter of the tank, absolutely do not. That's literally a "kill the guy filling the tank" risk.

Doc.

[DocsMachine]

Addendum: I once dealt with a hydrotester that didn't want to deal with a fancy splash-annoed tank simply due to handling. They'd done some before, and if they didn't take a lot of extra care in handling it, they'd wind up scratching the surface, and then the customer would get mad. So there's that aspect to keep in mind, too.

(The typical hydrotesting procedure is to clamp the bottle in some sort of vise, remove the valve [or reg in this case] fill it with water, attach it to the lid of a heavy pressure chamber [also full of water, hence "hydrotesting"] and that is lowered into the chamber and pressurized. They then pull it out, remove it from the lid, put it on a drying rack, re-clamp it to reinstall the valve/reg, etc. And if the operator is not careful at every step, it could scratch the finish. They usually have to be careful of the gelcoat on composite tanks, too.)

Doc.

[jokers]

[Lt. head-shot]

I've usually only seen co2 tanks done, there were a few phantoms back in the day that had matching 3.5 oz tanks. There are a few types of cerakote, but if you are going to do a non-bake air dry method, I'd personally do duracoat. Not as thin of a coating but I've had it hold up extremely well once the cure fully sets.

[Chuck E Ducky]

You have done some sick Duracoat jobs. That Typograph style one came out really nice.