Anodizing Rubbing Off Suddenly

General Yo-Yo
1

Hi all, have had my Shutter Wide Angle for just about one month now and last night the anodizing suddenly started coming off while I was playing with it.

I’ve had zero problems up to last night with many hours on the yoyo, but as I was practicing thumb grinds (which I’ve done many times over the last month), the internal grind lip suddenly started feeling rough and my thumb turned blue. Wiped the lip off with a dry tissue, lots of blue came off.
Then it started coming off the inside of the cup where the tip of my thumb contacts when I thumb grind.

I don’t mind the patina that it has from the ano coming off, but it doesn’t thumb grind well at all anymore. Only the blue color seems affected, the splash colors appear to be alright. But when I thumb-grind, it’s vibey and “grippy” on my thumbnail and really slows down the yoyo. I think this is because the blue-anoed areas are softer while the splash-anoed areas are harder and the disparate surfaces are abrading my thumb.

Anyway does anyone have any ideas as to why this happened suddenly or what I can expect it to develop into? Up until last night the yoyo has been perfectly fine.
It was purchased directly at YYF HQ in Phoenix so I’m confident it’s not a fake.
It is worn on my belt and played daily so it does get subjected to sweat, temperature changes, etc. but never exposed to chemicals or anything of that nature. I’ve only ever used a dry cloth or tissue to clean it.

Oh, and one other thing. I do a lot of fingerspin practice (including last night) and the fingerspin cup is still perfectly fine, no signs of ano coming off from either fingerspinning or thumb-grinding the inner cup.

I love the way this throw plays but I like to thumb-grind and it’s now very unpleasant and scrubs spin speed like mad. If I have to replace the yoyo, will I have better chances of longevity with a solid color vs. splash, or did I just get a fluke?

I also find if baffling that this issue surfaced all at once, without any previous signs of ano coming off.

I may try wet-sanding or steel-wooling the inner lip to make it thumb-grindable again, but I really feel like the material is softer where the splash colors aren’t so I think the problem may not go away.

Any help, suggestions or heartfelt condolences are appreciated.

Ivan

IMG_20211115_004456347
IMG_20211115_0044563471440×1080 152 KB

IMG_20211115_010718149
IMG_20211115_0107181491440×1920 231 KB

IMG_20211115_112943391
IMG_20211115_1129433911440×1080 167 KB

IMG_20211115_112950822
IMG_20211115_1129508221440×1080 174 KB

5 Likes
2

I came upon this phenomenon pretty much exclusively with 7075 alloys.
Is this the case for this yoyo?

At first, you did not notice it, because your thumb only attacked the colorless oxide layer protecting the pigments. As soon as this barrier was no more, you dug into the colors.

4 Likes
3

It’s a Shutter Wide Angle, according to the specs it’s 6061 aluminum.

The thing about depleting an outside protective layer makes sense to me, I don’t know much about the science of anodizing. Is there anything I can do to stop the issue from continuing?

Ivan

3 Likes
4

Yes, omit thumgrinds. :woozy_face:

4 Likes
5

I was hoping for maybe a magic spell or something.

I guess the next question is, if I replace this yoyo with another, will I be better off with a solid ano vs. the splash or can I expect to run into the same issue in a month? I’m guessing this is just a fluke but would like to maximize my chances.

Ivan

3 Likes
6

hello, the problem is that the last phase of anodizing, the one that serves to close the pores of the aluminum oxide, so as to trap the colored pigment, was not carried out correctly.
You should get demineralized water and when it is boiling, immerse the cups in suspension (so that they do not touch the container anywhere) … Leave them to boil for about 20-30 minutes so that the pores close, imprisoning the pigments … (those who remain).

p.s. the problem is not the type of aluminum or the type of color (solid or splash)

p.s2 for those wishing to learn more, this video in Italian but has English subtitles

13 Likes
7

the thumb grinds have nothing to do with it … the yoyo will discolour even with the simple contact of the hands … like this one I have (which I bought used, in these conditions and for this reason paid less than half of its price…)

photo_2021-11-15_20-58-23
photo_2021-11-15_20-58-23720×1280 92.6 KB

8

Thumbgrinds are one way of the abhrasive ways to uncover this flawed anodization. Saying it has nothing to do with it is unclever.

It may not be the root cause, but it is certainly leveraging this issue as proven by OP.

2 Likes
9

unintelligent was your previous answer, which certainly did not suggest a solution (as requested by the user) to the problem.
The hardness of a well-done anodization has a hardness of 9 points on the Mohs scale … a fingernail can do it no harm even after a thousand years of friction.

1 Like
10

I don’t thumbgrind for this reason. I would expect this to happen to any non-raw yoyo… eventually.

Fingernails are relatively hard and pretty jagged along the edge if you magnify them. They will act like an abrasive sandpaper if you drag them along a softer surface.

But unlike a sander where you typically move the abrasive itself and the material is stationary, in this case your thumb is stationary and the yoyo is moving at hundreds of RPMs during the thumbgrind.

Essentially, your fingernail “sanded” it’s way through the yoyo’s finish.

4 Likes
11

Boiling these damaged halves is unlikely to prevent any more damage in the area in the same usecase.

1 Like
12

as already above this is a nonsense, written by those who do not know things.

1 Like
13

Ok… well, give me one of your yoyo’s and some sandpaper. Let’s test my theory. :smiley:

Just 3rd grade physics, my man.

1 Like
14

testing costs nothing and certainly does not cause harm.

15

no, don’t change the cards on the table … I’ll give you one of my yoyos and you only use your fingernail … in the sandpaper there are very hard materials such as silicon and / or diamond dust (class 10 on the scale Mohs) … in your nail there is none of this!

(according to your theory, a hard material 9 like aluminum oxide can be affected by a nail of 2.5 … yes, you have to go back to third grade, undoubtedly… … “my man”… )

3 Likes
16

If water can do this to rock, then a fingernail can scratch paint.

iu-6
iu-62122×1415 477 KB

5 Likes
17

the only thing escaping you is that the water carries molecules of minerals that are extremely harder than the rocks it corrodes … and even if they were of equal hardness … that would be enough for corrosion

2 Likes
18

Coming back to my original post: In my 17+ years dealing with anodization on yoyos, I can definitely say the lack of sealing on anodized yoyos cumulates on 7075 halves.

I haven’t found any research on this yet, but I believe that these alloys require longer sealing processes than 6061. Besides, sealing of anodization layers should always be carried out in two steps with the first being nickelacetate followed by demineralized water. If the first step wasn’t carried out correctly, the second step will not yield ideal results.

And please don’t recommend performing this sealing step as well, it will most definitely cause harm.

4 Likes
19

this is correct and it is not a mystery.
The ergal (7075) receives the anodic coloring treatment much more difficult than the 60xx class alloys (anticorodal).
It depends on the presence of the elements that make up the alloy (the differences are also seen in other aspects, the 7075, raw, tends to stain with dark oxide over time, which will never happen to 60xx class alloys … but with suitable parameters (voltage, current, time of immersion in acid) excellent results can also be obtained on aluminum of the 70xx class … many Brands that have always used these alloys are witnesses of this, but certainly the difficulty and the risk of imperfections are greater.
Returning to the subject though (and Shutter is in 6061) … the problem is the incorrect closing of the pores and this can happen with any alloy

on what experiences is this statement based?!?!?
no because with that Pulsefire I did it and for 4 years it has certainly not deteriorated since I bought it and it has not suffered any damage!
And what damage would be done, by grace, by letting two pieces of aluminum stand immersed for 20 minutes in boiling water?! ??!

Please tell me … we don’t write nonsense just to argue … without bringing precise experiences.

p.s. before writing, watch that video, you can put automatic subtitles in German too … that piece, as it happens, it’s in 7075!

3 Likes
20

I was referring to the nickelacetate sealing usually performed prior to demineralized water.