Non-Hard-Anodized Parts?

[Pyzik]

So I have the 80% SNEK lower done. It was raw and not hard anodized.

Should I worry about hardness if I get it Cerakoted and not anodized? What about an upper? There is a lot more wear in an upper than the lower with the BCG.

[Dstrbdmedic167]

I would not worry too much about it. As far as the anodization itself, it gets blasted off before cerakote anyway(or its supposed to be). you could also get a non ano upper and run a little test on it to see for yourself but i don't think you'd see much difference imo..

[Pyzik]

I would not worry too much about it. As far as the anodization itself, it gets blasted off before cerakote anyway(or its supposed to be). you could also get a non ano upper and run a little test on it to see for yourself but i don't think you'd see much difference imo..

Ah, didn't know it's removed for the cerakote. Thanks.
Now I kind of want a raw upper and leave them... Get a raw rail and stainless barrel... Haha.

[Dstrbdmedic167]

i think Mike did a in the white build and ghosted a pattern on one a while back. Don't think he went quite that far

[Slippers]

Does bead blasting for cerakote remove 1-2 thousandths of aluminum? That seems crazy to me. That is a significant amount of material if they completely blast off the anodizing.

[Dstrbdmedic167]

From what little i've played with it helping my friend that does it. it mainly depends on the manufacturer or who ever did the ano for them. Some lower quality name lowers all the ano comes of in one easy swoop while some better named companies you really had to work for it if you wanted it all removed.

[GOST]

Does bead blasting for cerakote remove 1-2 thousandths of aluminum? That seems crazy to me. That is a significant amount of material if they completely blast off the anodizing.

Yes, but not all Cerakoters go all the way down to the white. The Cerakote just needs a some texture to adhere to. If the surface is really smooth when applied it can flake when scratched. Some battle worn Cerakote finishes are actually scraped on the asphalt.

[Joelski]

I was told Cerakote is a microns-thick coating and that's why definition is retained in engraving, tolerances don't shift as much, etc...

Back in my motocross days, we shot the cranks and insides of the cases with Kal-Gard Gun Kote to help with lubricity and heat dissipation. That practice didn't stick around though, so it may have been a fad in passing, but it never hurt my engines. Of course, they got torn down and rebuilt several times a year at the level I was running.

[UWone77]

So I have the 80% SNEK lower done. It was raw and not hard anodized.

Should I worry about hardness if I get it Cerakoted and not anodized? What about an upper? There is a lot more wear in an upper than the lower with the BCG.

Dave I have 2 Aero Precision sets in the RAW. Cerakoted one and NiB'ed the other. They are fine, the NiB set has a lot more use than the cerakoted set, 2k+ mostly suppressed rounds and no problems to speak of.

[Pyzik]

Dave I have 2 Aero Precision sets in the RAW. Cerakoted one and NiB'ed the other. They are fine, the NiB set has a lot more use than the cerakoted set, 2k+ mostly suppressed rounds and no problems to speak of.
Great! Thanks!

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[Corpsie]

Ah, didn't know it's removed for the cerakote. Thanks.
Now I kind of want a raw upper and leave them... Get a raw rail and stainless barrel... Haha.

BlownDeadline has clear CeraKote or at least a clear coat he puts on his work if you request it

[Axlnut]

Most cerakote shops don't remove all the anodizing - I don't unless I have a damn good reason. the 100/120 alox used to blast can give a good bite without removing anywhere near .002"

Mike (BDL) uses Cerakote Clear over patterns, or if raw metal is left showing, same as I and many others do.

I've never seen reason to believe that the anodizing matters in a lower/upper vs cerakote alone. In fact, like DstrbdMedic said, the ano quality is all over the board. I usually find it much easier to blast ano off than properly prepared cerakote.

Very few parts in any modern weapon move in relation to each other within tolerances that cerakote, ano, phosphate, etc will wear off, and cause an issue.