Surefire 6P led: hard anodized?
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kito109654
Newly Enlightened
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They are Type II "hard anodized." Members on this site using the term "HA" are usually referring to HAIII or type III hard anodizing.
harlansmart
Newly Enlightened
Hmm - what's thae difference between Hard Anodizing and Type II or Typoe III Hard Anodizing, anyone got a simple answer - I was waiting for a Surefire UV Flashlight bought from ePray but after 4 weeks it didn't arrive and I am on the market again for something to make my watches lume material glow hard!
carrot
Flashaholic
Size15's
Flashaholic
It's a tpyo.
The 6PL is type II anodised.
The 6PL is not type III aka "Hard" anodised (HA).
There is no such thing as type II HA (or "HAII" etc)
The 6PL is type II anodised.
The 6PL is not type III aka "Hard" anodised (HA).
There is no such thing as type II HA (or "HAII" etc)
recDNA
Flashaholic
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How is anodizing different from a process like cerakoting? Is cerakote "harder" than type II or HA III? Is there any coating on earth that isn't removed by bouncing around in my pocket with keys or dropping on cement?
AnAppleSnail
Flashlight Enthusiast
There are two ways to remove anodizing without chemicals. Scratch it with things harder than the anodizing (HA3 is secretly sapphire) or by denting the aluminum under the anodization.
ElectronGuru
Flashaholic
HA is harder and tends to be broken away
Cerakote is 'stickier' and tends to be torn away
The basic problem in both cases, is the aluminum underneath. It has a number of advantages but toughness is not one of them. Like a house with indestructible walls and a weak foundation, any coating can be undermined. So it helps to think of these as reinforcement for a material rather than a material itself.
The most resilient finish is no finish at all, a tough solid metal. Titanium is desired for this reason, without being to much heavier, but hella pricy. Stainless steel is even stronger, but with considerable weight.
There's no magic answer.
Yoda4561
Flashlight Enthusiast
Anodizing is "grown" on aluminum, it's basically a really thick layer of aluminum oxide ceramic. The part is immersed in a special chemical bath and an electric current is applied, causing a controled oxide growth on the surface. Ceracote is a coating, sprayed on and then cured via heat or time. Durability of normal type II and ceracote is a tough one to crack because coatings these days have gotten really good. Ceracote IS softer than either type II or type III, but type III is thick and hard enough that it should prove more durable against wear.
Type III HA is a much thicker layer of Aluminum Oxide than type II and tends to be extremely durable, to the point where it will scratch keys and keyrings instead of the other way around. Most scuffmarks on Type III are not coating wear, it's metal from other objects that's embedded itself into the coating, it will after some time wear though, and if you drop it on concrete it may be enough to chip through the anodizing layer.
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Kestrel
Flashaholic
My SF T1A (HA-BK) took a hard 'header' onto my concrete driveway not too long ago.
Here's a good close-up of the chip in the HA: (the chip is 1/16" across)
Woods Walker
The Wood is cut, The Bacon is cooked, Now it’s tim
Kestrel
That looks like a classic road drop. Nearly every light I EDC has hit the deck, in fact dropped one today. Funny how it never happens on soft grass or leaf litter. My lanyards seem powerless against butter fingers. On the flip side when a light takes a hit and still runs I trust the gear item more.
That looks like a classic road drop. Nearly every light I EDC has hit the deck, in fact dropped one today. Funny how it never happens on soft grass or leaf litter. My lanyards seem powerless against butter fingers. On the flip side when a light takes a hit and still runs I trust the gear item more.
kito109654
Newly Enlightened
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2010
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The only difference is thickness.
harlansmart
Newly Enlightened
Whoa - thank heaps for all the helpful info there team, good old Titanium is still a safe bet it seems! Right, getting back to my need to make my watch dials lume up for photography purposes, and seeing as my eBay sourced Surefire never arrived what does this little guy look like... for some reason in my head I was thinking 365 Lumens would be better for my purposes, I don't know though, will 390 suffice my needs?
This is what I want to do, make the Lume show up really bright but without needing to use really low light like this, and without the camera flash to get it going... I want to be able to make the lume glow in pretty much ordinary room light so all the other features on the dial are still easily visible... this shot here I had to flash the watches with my camera to 'lume them up' but I am hoping the Black Light will do the job, maybe the Arachnid 49 LED UV Flash Light will do the trick, any ideas what's best for me as you see in this pic the light is too low for the watches dial and hand features to show up easily... I want more light on the subject but the lume to be glowing like crazy.
** Hotlinked images deleted - Kestrel **
This is what I want to do, make the Lume show up really bright but without needing to use really low light like this, and without the camera flash to get it going... I want to be able to make the lume glow in pretty much ordinary room light so all the other features on the dial are still easily visible... this shot here I had to flash the watches with my camera to 'lume them up' but I am hoping the Black Light will do the job, maybe the Arachnid 49 LED UV Flash Light will do the trick, any ideas what's best for me as you see in this pic the light is too low for the watches dial and hand features to show up easily... I want more light on the subject but the lume to be glowing like crazy.
** Hotlinked images deleted - Kestrel **
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Kestrel
Flashaholic
harlansmart, that is off-topic for this thread. Also, please note that hotlinking images from other websites is against CPF rules.
Not only, if I'm correctly informed:
Different media ('the liquid') are used under the anodization process and the type of dye can differ.
ElectronGuru
Flashaholic
Like basic vs advanced, II vs III are different versions of the same process.
Both use a bath of sulfuric acid to create aluminum oxide (rust) above and below the surface of the aluminum. But after a point, the action in the tank will start removing the coating as fast as it is applied. Type III applications get around this by mixing the bath, lowering the temperature (to near freezing), and pumping in electricity (on the order of 20 amps per sq/ft). All of this together allows the layer to continue growing.
And its all of these extra concerns that makes type III tricky and expensive. Better equipment and better training. Put the part in wrong, for example, and the electricity can burn through the metal, dissolving it away.
Both use a bath of sulfuric acid to create aluminum oxide (rust) above and below the surface of the aluminum. But after a point, the action in the tank will start removing the coating as fast as it is applied. Type III applications get around this by mixing the bath, lowering the temperature (to near freezing), and pumping in electricity (on the order of 20 amps per sq/ft). All of this together allows the layer to continue growing.
And its all of these extra concerns that makes type III tricky and expensive. Better equipment and better training. Put the part in wrong, for example, and the electricity can burn through the metal, dissolving it away.
