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Originally Posted by acidrain
First thing I would do is etch a piece in sodium hydroxide stripper (lye will work). Observe the smut. If it smuts terribly, try sanding an area, and etch again. If it does not smut the second time, there is a coating that is giving you grief.
If the wire does not smut much, it really is 5xxx alloy, and the problem lyes somewhere else.
It makes no sense that you successfully ano one alloy, but not another. All things indicate your wire is not 5xxx, but rather 2xxx or 7xxx.
Have you tried anodizing for 1/2 the time?
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Thanks, acidrain, for the suggestion. I always use the stripper that came with the kit first. Is this sodium hydroxide or do I need to get some, and where? When I use the stripper, it does not smut but just a little, if at all. It turns the most beautiful pale grey, almost white after a dunk in the de-smut.
I have tried cutting the time in half because it does not seem to turn as dark that way. The problem is that then the red in the orange dye does not take and the piece comes out almost yellow.
This probably sounds silly, but I live in the Knoxville, TN, area and am trying to get Orange to make jewelry for the "VOL" fans. I have been fooling with this since July and am getting very frustrated. I have a good customer base and an opportunity to make some money, if I can figure this out.
I need a hard temper wire to hold up and keep its shape and most "over the counter" wire is too soft.
There has to be a way to do this because I had to resort to buying pre-made orange rings from a supplier in Canada. They are incredibly expensive with shipping and all and drive my costs up and profit down, not a good thing at all. They are not talking about how to do this on my own and have assured me that the wire I bought is the same as they use.
I have had no problems with the heavier gauge wire, 16 and 14, but have not even attempted any 20 because of the problems with the 18.
Because the wire comes out of the ano so dark all the colors I have tried to dye come out "muddy" looking and not nice and brilliant like the heavier wire. I really need a variety of wires in the same colors to do what I need to.