Could someone explain why this finish is called “Hardcoat”?
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It is a type of anodization. Hardcoat Type III is the usual candidate. It is a harder ano than what is normally done, a little thicker.
Here is some more info: Type III Hardcoat Anodizing: Superior Hardness & Durability
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Ah, so it refers to the hardness of the ano, not its color.
Were any Kuntoshes of other colors given the hardcoat treatment, or just the dark gray one?
Who else hardcoats their yoyos?
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There aren’t very many of them. If I remember correctly it’s harder to color the finish. I had to use it in the past on non yoyo stuff and I used black but I think they said they could do blue as well. Without any coloration it’s a light greenish gold that I believe becomes more pronounced with thicknesses
There’s a hardcoat version of the alley cat out there.
Just out of curiosity, what color is it?
It’s almost like ano, but it’s PAINT applied to a finely sanded specimen and electrically charged so it bonds better.
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So why bother with this process? After all, so few yoyos get this treatment. Is it worth the (production) fuss?
It was black, see the photo here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Throwers/comments/80ysgt/got_this_in_the_mail_recently_hardcoat_alleycat/
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I think you’re referring to powder coating, little different than anodizing
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Probably a bit of novelty & a bit of improved durability.
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Yep, you’re right, hardcoat is just really durable paint.
Yep, this is it.
Side note, it is still anodizing on aluminum. It can still be scratched, dinged, etc. it just offers slightly better durability. Most of it I think is the novelty of it and rarity. But for me it’s cool because I like solid gray yo-yos regardless 
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Ano is hard to remove takes HOURS (it felt like hours) of hand sanding, or at least AN hour. Maybe quicker with a Dremel and the right attachment.
The silver half use to be black, you can see it in the friction sticker seat.
Core Co has done 2 Alleycats
Most AntiYo are hardcoat
OneDrop did the Kuntosh, QV5000, Cascade I think there was more, can’t remember
YYF did a number of yoyos in hardcoat
Spencer Berry’s Walter and Theodore
Underdog was hardcoat Teflon
I’m sure there are a lot more.
There was also a army green color of those too.
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Harcoat is NOT paint.
It is an electrochemical process that creates a controlled oxide film on the surface of aluminum. per a number of companies that offer it.
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It’s more of a dye than a paint, isn’t it?
I’m not 100% sure of the process, but I believe there is a dye added to the solution (is it just water?). Hardcoat needs to have a cold solution though, temperature wise. A lot of shops are not setup to get their tanks as cold as it needs to be to do hardcoat.
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Read: anodization