a lot has made the destiny… the rest I …
(sorry, the photos are bad and the light even more, in the sense that the colors are much more iridescent in reality… but I can’t do better …)
p.s. the processes were deliberately very long (from an hour and a half to two hours), and with high enough tensions in order to obtain a very hard and thick oxide layer (from 30 to 35 microns), with very narrow pores, which therefore they do not welcome the color very well and do not return it in the chosen shade, this is because my first interest was to make the finish that I myself had created years ago with the blasting of microspheres (mainly 90 microns in diameter) very resistant.
so, first of all thank you all for the encouragement!
My main purpose was to solve a problem, specifically that of making the micro-blasted finish that I had created on each of them permanent and non-scratch.
Many times, in the past years, I had embraced the idea of trying to anodize, but then, knowing that I am not a very tidy person, patient, that materials that are difficult to find were needed (from this year a European regulation prohibits the free sale of sulfuric acid if not at a maximum concentration of 15% because it is considered a “precursor of explosive”), due to the lack of adequate spaces and specific tools, then in the end I tried after years of guides and films often in English, thanks also to that well detailed in Italian.
The initial ideas were very different from the results obtained and what perhaps moved them a lot was my priority to ensure that a very hard oxide layer was greased, because I could no longer bear the idea that I had to be extremely careful about undo a knot with a wooden toothpick due to the risk of scratching the finish.
The first result was completely unexpected and surprised me … but in the end I liked it and then I said to myself … let’s leave everything to fate!
Let’s go into detail, the first was the
Bully
current voltage to obtain 30 microns of thickness, duration of the process 90 minutes, the color of the first dye bath, black (yes, you read that right … black! the idea was to pay tribute to the OG) … duration of the bathroom 30 minutes … the color you see is the one that came out … the first thing I thought was to a speech that I had done in PM a couple of days with @Mystik, about the purple color of the cactus Santa Rita … I have told myself this is a sign of the destiny, so I decided to abandon all my ideas and entrust myself to destiny!
the second was the Mercury … same procedure, always 90 minutes but at a voltage of 300mA less … color … believe it or not, always black! but then I did the “acid wash” with a small brush and caustic soda, before the final step of sealing the pores … undoubtedly and the most beautiful of all and the one for which luck accompanied me the most.
Then it was the Sleipnir’s turn, the first idea was that of a “cold” multicolored splash, that is, not immersing in hot solution for many minutes … here it is as it was before sealing
once I finished I didn’t like it … so I started again, I made some cold splashes in yellow and then a classic bathroom in a bright blue solution … the result is not the best but … I didn’t want to do it again third time!
Then I did 1937 … the color is the same blue as the sleipnir and the shading effects … that combine in the cups for very precise calculation (which is called luck! ) are actually very simple to obtain … . the cups are partially immersed and in a passage that lasts 40 minutes at a temperature of 70-80 degrees celsius, the dye tends to evaporate, making it necessary to constantly add it to stay at the same level … if you do not add it and it is makes it lower … that’s what you get.
The Seed … same process from 1937, mint green color just always adding dye to stay on the same level (enough at least)
the Leggenda is the example that objects have a soul …
first anodizing, everything seemed excellent, two hours, cups all uniform, colored 40 minutes, nothing … everything was stained with black dots … what to do? … ten minutes of soaking in caustic soda and start again … over two hours with lower current voltage … I had prepared some bright red color … (50% magenta 50% yellow) … 40 minutes soaking … nothing just a gunmetal color a a little stained … it was almost midnight … what to do? … a pass of Sidol, then one finished with Iosso paste and it is as you see it … it seems to be nickel plated … I don’t know how but I am very happy … a prototype that never went into production … it would have been wrong to color it … he understood it before me!
p.s. however I think that even the colors I used are not good … they are colors for inkject dye … I have read and seen that many use these colors because they are the ones that give the best results, but I don’t know … certainly the cavities on such a hard and thick anodizing they are minimal and the volume of oxide modifies the refraction of light, further to give that changing effect given by a lot of metal compared to a little pigment
I LOVE these. I wanna try my hand but my only raw throw is my pre production FreqMod and I’m not willing to screw that up yet. My first attempt will NOT be that good haha.
you can follow various ways … do tests on pieces of scrap aluminum or buy a yoyo for a few tens of dollars, maybe if it has a solid color, just keep it in water and caustic soda for 5 minutes (a 10% dilution must be done) and the color is dispersed … it is however a step that you have to do before the anodic process even if the yoyo is not colored, as it is used to clean and degrease the pieces chemically (decaping on metals ).
If the result of coloration should be unwelcome … again in caustic soda for 5-6 minutes and we start again
at the time, having taken the v1 and having the v2 a shape very similar to the yyr I decided not to take it … but I regretted it many times over time … 1937 was the first yoyo in 7075 alloy, yoyo by excellent quality, to be sold at a price that was unmatched at the time … whoever had them or still has them, can undoubtedly confirm it!
) are actually very simple to obtain … . the cups are partially immersed and in a passage that lasts 40 minutes at a temperature of 70-80 degrees celsius, the dye tends to evaporate, making it necessary to constantly add it to stay at the same level … if you do not add it and it is makes it lower … that’s what you get.
