Is HAIII coatingsupposed to be pretty tough or crap? I have a 4sevens that is already chipped tat was in my pocket. I have a Eagletac to that seems to be chipped. I very carefull of my flashlights, iused to have a older olight T20 and that never had a problemwith the coating
HAIII coating chips easliy
- Thread starter cbr400rr
- Start date
ElectronGuru
Flashaholic
HA is not a single standard. A shell can be as thin as a shop wants to make it and it can still be called type III. Thicker HA is more durable but its also more work, more money, and more risk (higher failure rate). And unless you're willing to quote the thickness in the specs, of limited short term (read: sales) advantage.
ErickThakrar
Enlightened
Not true. There are multiple specifications, including military ones, that specify the thickness of the coating for something to be called Type III. Generally speaking, all of these standards call for a coating thickness greater than 25 μm.
Echo63
Flashlight Enthusiast
A knife blade and HA3 will be similar in hardness.
HA3 is fairly brittle, and can chip easily, but it is very wear resistant, it tends to disappear from sharp edges first
I have wear on all but one of my HA3 lights.
the one that shows no wear is my Oveready bored and anodized SF9P.
it has been EDCed for ages, in an open carrier, has been dropped and has a massive ding on the side of the head, but is only missing anodizing on a ding on the tailcap, the area missing is less than a mm across.
Whatever Electronguru, Moddo and the rest of the Oveready crew are doing, they are doing it right because their HA3 is solid.
HA3 is fairly brittle, and can chip easily, but it is very wear resistant, it tends to disappear from sharp edges first
I have wear on all but one of my HA3 lights.
the one that shows no wear is my Oveready bored and anodized SF9P.
it has been EDCed for ages, in an open carrier, has been dropped and has a massive ding on the side of the head, but is only missing anodizing on a ding on the tailcap, the area missing is less than a mm across.
Whatever Electronguru, Moddo and the rest of the Oveready crew are doing, they are doing it right because their HA3 is solid.
Last edited:
HotWire
Flashlight Enthusiast
- Joined
- Mar 9, 2011
- Messages
- 1,651
According to anodizing.org type III can vary from 12.7µ-115µ. I have flashlights that despite hard use over time have few or no scratches and nicks. I have other lights that are scratched and nicked. They don't seem to be created equally. Most were labeled as type III anodizing. What really counts is how good the light is. I don't care if my lights have a hard-earned patina.
Vinniec5
Enlightened
Sunwayled/Sunwayman's Anodize coatings are excellent and tough. they really do a nice job on their finishes. I've banged my sunways around alot and they really don't show it
Agreed Sunwayman is very good along with Surefire, Wolfeyes and Xeno.
Anodizing is a process involving several variables that have to be controlled, and is also affected by the grade and treatment of the aluminum.
There's no free lunch. A lot of people think the whole story behind Chinese lights being less expensive "for what you get"(in most cases I'd say for what you perceive you're getting) is cheap labor vs. expensive labor and brand recognition, but you're also dealing with uncontrolled manufacturing with unknown raw materials.
We don't know if the aluminum was tempered or anodized properly. We don't even know if it was the same grade of aluminum as the marketing claimed. We have no way of knowing, so we take it at face value, but over and over we see the inferior results.
I think it's no accident "type III hard anodized" finishes from Fenix, NiteCore, or 4Sevens(my experience, I'm sure there are plenty of others) consistently show wear many times as quickly as type II ano from Streamlight or Surefire, and are visibly different in new appearance from type III ano by SF, Arc, and some Chinese companies like Zebralight and Jetbeam, and even more visibly different after impacts or wear.
Google: "aluminum temper", "aluminum grade", "anodizing aluminum", and "you get what you pay for";)
There's no free lunch. A lot of people think the whole story behind Chinese lights being less expensive "for what you get"(in most cases I'd say for what you perceive you're getting) is cheap labor vs. expensive labor and brand recognition, but you're also dealing with uncontrolled manufacturing with unknown raw materials.
We don't know if the aluminum was tempered or anodized properly. We don't even know if it was the same grade of aluminum as the marketing claimed. We have no way of knowing, so we take it at face value, but over and over we see the inferior results.
I think it's no accident "type III hard anodized" finishes from Fenix, NiteCore, or 4Sevens(my experience, I'm sure there are plenty of others) consistently show wear many times as quickly as type II ano from Streamlight or Surefire, and are visibly different in new appearance from type III ano by SF, Arc, and some Chinese companies like Zebralight and Jetbeam, and even more visibly different after impacts or wear.
Google: "aluminum temper", "aluminum grade", "anodizing aluminum", and "you get what you pay for";)
The anodising on my fenix and zebralights seems better than that on the 4sevens for what its worth.
I've got a fenix and a 4sevens that do everything together (literally - they are on the same lanyard), and they rub against each other a lot in my bag. The 4sevens is not holding up as well to the wear this causes.
I've got a fenix and a 4sevens that do everything together (literally - they are on the same lanyard), and they rub against each other a lot in my bag. The 4sevens is not holding up as well to the wear this causes.
fyrstormer
Banned
In regards to chipping, the underlying metal is more significant than the anodizing itself. If the metal is a cheap soft alloy, it will dent easily, and the brittle anodizing will crack and fall off.
Up All Night
Enlightened
- Joined
- May 29, 2012
- Messages
- 487
Regardless of the above mentioned parameters HAIII is going to chip. It all comes down to what you expose your lights to, some do it better than others.
My SF's do it well while some of my other lights chip as you look at them, or so it seems.
Personally, I think if a light has served you well those chips are earned and to those that chip as I gingerly slip split rings on....SHAME ON YOU!
Some lights should be packaged with Sharpies and those who make them know who they are. Just sayin!
My SF's do it well while some of my other lights chip as you look at them, or so it seems.
Personally, I think if a light has served you well those chips are earned and to those that chip as I gingerly slip split rings on....SHAME ON YOU!
Some lights should be packaged with Sharpies and those who make them know who they are. Just sayin!
GordoJones88
Flashlight Enthusiast
I've used a black permanent marker on my Quark Turbo X, Olight i1, and Jetbeam BC10.
It fills in any missing black paint quite well.
It fills in any missing black paint quite well.
I had a 4Sevens which arrived chipped in the box. I have a Fenix E01 on my keys, it rattles around in my pocket every day and the ano has not chipped yet, but has worn very slightly around the split ring attachment.
The finish on the 4Sevens was more 'glossy' black, almost like a sprayed on finish. None of my other lights look like that, the ano on those is a bit duller and just feels more durable.
The finish on the 4Sevens was more 'glossy' black, almost like a sprayed on finish. None of my other lights look like that, the ano on those is a bit duller and just feels more durable.
fyrstormer
Banned
Glossier anodizing is usually thinner, like what's on Maglites.
madecov
Flashlight Enthusiast
I have found that a glossy finish will usually chip easier than a matte finish. I do usually prefer a satin type of finish. I love the Thrunite Scorpion finish.
I find that black permanent markers usually have a purple tint.
I find Birchwood Casey's "Universal Touch-Up Pen Black" is a better match for most anodized finishes. Even better, use their "Aluminum Black Finish" first to chemically blacken the aluminum and then finsih coat with the Touch-Up Pen.
I find Birchwood Casey's "Universal Touch-Up Pen Black" is a better match for most anodized finishes. Even better, use their "Aluminum Black Finish" first to chemically blacken the aluminum and then finsih coat with the Touch-Up Pen.
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