Typical Standard ~10 days (prod + air sketch) · Express ~6 days · to 0.001 mm

Q&A · Aluminum anodizing in Dongguan, China

Will anodizing plug mating threads?

Yes. Do not anodize mating threads, dowel holes, mating faces, or ground points by default. When the film thickness changes, threads seize and fits get tight. Call out masking on the drawing, or state that coating the threads is allowed. If it is not written, we mask.

Yes. Do not anodize mating threads, dowel holes, mating faces, or ground points by default. When the film thickness changes, threads seize and fits get tight. Call out masking on the drawing, or state that coating the threads is allowed. If it is not written, we mask.

Anodize is applied on aluminum. In the quote, 6061 and 7075 can be clear, black, or hard anodize. Stainless is not anodized. 304 and 316 take passivation or polish. Passivation adds about 1–3 production days. The material field says 304 / 316.

Hard anodize can be selected. It changes dimensions. Put film thickness and fits on the drawing, leave allowance in the tolerance, and mark which faces get hard anodize.

Finish is included in the production days. Shipping days are listed separately. As-machined usually adds no days. Tool marks stay visible. It suits internal parts and mating faces. Bead blast adds about 1–2 days and is often the prep before anodize. Anodize adds about 2–4 days. Hard anodize takes longer. Powder coat adds about 3–5 days. The coat is thick, so threads and mating faces need masking. On the quote page, standard is still about 5 production days and about 5 shipping days. Finish is counted inside production days. The quote split is what counts. Choose the finish on the first quote.

Mask threads and mating faces before anodize, unless the drawing requires coating the threads. Masking for threads and ground points is written on the drawing. In the quote illustrations, the drone-arm mating face is not anodized, and the thermal contact face of an electronics heat-sink plate stays as-machined. These are illustrations of quote dimensions, not independently verifiable customer cases.

STEP carries the shape. The PDF carries masking, cosmetic faces, and which threads must not be coated. If the two disagree, align them before the price is locked.

Upload the STEP together with the PDF that marks the masking, select the anodize or powder coat you actually want in the quote, and see the itemized reference price. A reference price is not a contract.

Related process guide

Upload a drawing to see a reference price

Upload a drawing to see a reference price