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Which finish does your part need?
Pick a finish for what it has to do: resist corrosion, wear or chemicals; conduct or insulate; look a certain way. Then match it to the material. Anodize is for aluminum, passivation for stainless, zinc and e-coat for steel, texture and polish for molded plastic.
Treatments and marking2
Cost, time and fit
| Finish | Applies to | Cost | Adds | Standard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As-machined | All machined metals and plastics | — | ASME B46.1 (surface texture) | |
| Bead blasted | Aluminum, stainless steel, titanium, steel, zinc and aluminum die castings, and 3D-printed metal and nylon parts | 2 d | MIL-PRF-9954 (glass bead media) | |
| Vibratory deburr (tumbling) | Stampings, machined parts, powder metal parts, die castings, and 3D-printed metal and nylon parts | 1 d | ISO 13715 (edges of undefined shape) | |
| Anodize Type II (sulfuric) | Wrought aluminum alloys, best on 6061, 6063, 5052 and 7075; poor on high-silicon die castings such as A380 | 4 d | MIL-A-8625 Type II, Class 1 (undyed) or Class 2 (dyed) | |
| Anodize Type III (hardcoat) | Wrought aluminum alloys, especially 6061 and 7075; high-copper and high-silicon alloys coat thinner and darker | 5 d | MIL-A-8625 Type III, Class 1 (undyed) or Class 2 (dyed) | |
| Chem film (chromate conversion) | Aluminum alloys, wrought and die cast, including A380 | 3 d | MIL-DTL-5541 Type I (hexavalent chromium) or Type II (non-hexavalent) | |
| Powder coat | Steel, stainless steel, aluminum, springs and wire forms, and zinc and aluminum die castings that tolerate the cure temperature | 5 d | ASTM D3359 (adhesion) | |
| E-coat (electrocoat) | Steel, zinc-plated steel, aluminum, zinc and aluminum die castings, springs and wire forms | 4 d | ASTM B117 (salt spray) | |
| Wet paint (liquid coating) | Plastics, cast urethane, 3D-printed parts, steel, aluminum and die castings | 5 d | ASTM D3359 (adhesion) | |
| Zinc plating | Carbon and low-alloy steels, including stampings, fasteners, springs and sealed powder metal parts | 3 d | ASTM B633 (SC1–SC4, Types I–VI) | |
| Zinc-nickel plating | Carbon and alloy steels, including fasteners, stampings, brackets and hydraulic fittings | 5 d | ASTM B841 (zinc-nickel alloy deposits) | |
| Electroless nickel (EN) | Steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper and brass; powder metal after sealing | 5 d | ASTM B733 (Types I–V, SC0–SC4, Classes 1–6) | |
| Chrome plating | Decorative: steel, brass, zinc die castings, plating-grade ABS and PC/ABS. Hard chrome: carbon, alloy and hardened steels | 7 d | ASTM B456 (copper-nickel-chromium, decorative) | |
| Black oxide | Carbon and alloy steels, tool steels, stainless steels (with stainless-specific processes) and sealed powder metal parts | 3 d | MIL-DTL-13924 Class 1 (carbon and low-alloy steel); Classes 2–4 for stainless | |
| Passivation | 300 and 400 series stainless, precipitation-hardening grades such as 17-4 PH, and powder metal stainless | 3 d | ASTM A967 (nitric and citric treatments) | |
| SPI mold polish (A-1 to D-3) | Injection molded thermoplastics and TPEs; masters for urethane casting | 3 d | SPI / PLASTICS Industry Association mold finish grades A-1 through D-3 | |
| Mold texture (Mold-Tech, VDI) | Injection molded thermoplastics and TPEs; urethane casting masters | 7 d | Mold-Tech texture numbers (e.g., MT-11010, MT-11020) | |
| Laser marking | Stainless and carbon steel, aluminum (bare or anodized), titanium, brass, and laser-markable plastics | 1 d | MIL-STD-130 (UID marking) | |
| Heat treating | Carbon, alloy and tool steels, stainless steels, powder metal steels, spring wire, heat-treatable aluminum and titanium | 5 d | AMS 2759 (steel: /1 carbon and low-alloy, /3 PH stainless, /7 carburizing) |
Add it in the builder.
Pick a finish and color, and the estimate adds the lot charge, per-part cost and days.