Need a list please.

[Empire03]

Well im looking to start annoing and just bought a 12 amp cc power supply to do it with.I would like to get a list of everything I will need.I know some stuff I need.Most of the stuff will be bought through caswell.

heres what I know I need.

Striper
desmut
sealant
heaters
battery acid
couple things of dye
maybe a thermostat

I would also like to know what yall prefer to store things in.Such as the bath what do you use to hold it.

[acidrain]

You have a pretty good list... first though, is your PS capable of at least 15v? 20v preferably (minimum)?
I prefer a storage bin for the ano tank... they are rectangle, and hold parts better than round buckets.
3gal buckets work good for the other solutions. 2gal buckets or bins work good for starter dye tanks.
You can get by without the heaters if you have a large canning pot and a camp stove. Put water in the pot and heat buckets of solution placed in the hot pot double boiler style. It heats quickly, and is cheap.
Pick up a digital thermo from Harbor Freight.
You could skip the Caswell stripper and use lye. With some practice, it's safe.
You'll need some degreaser. Caswell's SP degreaser works well, but will dull gloss parts a bit.

You'll also need:
Racking (I suggest skipping the aluminum wire, and go right to titanium)
Agitation (at least a fish pump)
Rinse water... you can buy gallons of distilled water, but at $1 per gallon, you'll quickly burn up the money you could be spending on a reverse osmosis system. Look on eBay.
Sprayer for rinse water... pick up a small hand-held pump-up sprayer from the garden department.
Scrub brushes... toothbrushes work well for general outside stuff, but you'll also need an assortment of inside brushes.
How about bead blasting and buffing equipment?

[Empire03]

Originally Posted by acidrain

You have a pretty good list... first though, is your PS capable of at least 15v? 20v preferably (minimum)?
I prefer a storage bin for the ano tank... they are rectangle, and hold parts better than round buckets.
3gal buckets work good for the other solutions. 2gal buckets or bins work good for starter dye tanks.
You can get by without the heaters if you have a large canning pot and a camp stove. Put water in the pot and heat buckets of solution placed in the hot pot double boiler style. It heats quickly, and is cheap.
Pick up a digital thermo from Harbor Freight.
You could skip the Caswell stripper and use lye. With some practice, it's safe.
You'll need some degreaser. Caswell's SP degreaser works well, but will dull gloss parts a bit.

You'll also need:
Racking (I suggest skipping the aluminum wire, and go right to titanium)
Agitation (at least a fish pump)
Rinse water... you can buy gallons of distilled water, but at $1 per gallon, you'll quickly burn up the money you could be spending on a reverse osmosis system. Look on eBay.
Sprayer for rinse water... pick up a small hand-held pump-up sprayer from the garden department.
Scrub brushes... toothbrushes work well for general outside stuff, but you'll also need an assortment of inside brushes.
How about bead blasting and buffing equipment?

Yes, it is capable of 15v I believe ill have to check that.Is there any special type of plastic that the storage bin should have.I don't have a camp stove to use.Can you tell me what all exactly needs to be heated.I know the dye and sealer but from what I have read the bath heats its self I just have to control the temp correct?I'll check out the lye and try to make it work .Any other type of degreaser that you would recommended?

I had already said to myself I was gonna use ti lol.Is the reverse osmosis system really needed.Like what exactly does it do?What is the purpose of the spray pump?Brushes aswell what are they used for?

Sorry if I sound stupid lol I just wanna get what I need ahead of time instead of having to go back and buy additional ****.

[acidrain]

Originally Posted by Empire03

Yes, it is capable of 15v I believe ill have to check that.Is there any special type of plastic that the storage bin should have.I don't have a camp stove to use.Can you tell me what all exactly needs to be heated.I know the dye and sealer but from what I have read the bath heats its self I just have to control the temp correct?I'll check out the lye and try to make it work .Any other type of degreaser that you would recommended?

I had already said to myself I was gonna use ti lol.Is the reverse osmosis system really needed.Like what exactly does it do?What is the purpose of the spray pump?Brushes aswell what are they used for?

Sorry if I sound stupid lol I just wanna get what I need ahead of time instead of having to go back and buy additional ****.

No stupid questions here...
Pretty much any plastic bin or bucket will work for any of the solutions except sealer. Heat your sealer in a porcelain-coated canning pot (metal affects the sealer)
The Bath will heat slightly if you are ano'ing a larger run, but you still need to start at the correct temp (do everything the same every time for repeatable results). You'll want to control the temp at around 70F, so if you are starting colder, you'll need to heat some of the bath.
RO is a good way to get distilled-like water at home. A small unit will cost ~$70. You'll be surprised how much rinse water you'll need, and running to the store for 5 or 10 one-gallon jugs is a drag. The sprayer is used to rinse into your tanks, then dunk rinse as well. That way the tossed out dunk tank water is not too contaminated, and you'll need to replace lost water from evaporation anyway. I always do both to reduce drag-over (paying special attention to screw holes, etc.). You rinse really well after every step.
The de-smut, degreaser, dyes and sealer are all heated.
The brushes are use in stripping and degreasing.

[Empire03]

Originally Posted by acidrain

No stupid questions here...
Pretty much any plastic bin or bucket will work for any of the solutions except sealer. Heat your sealer in a porcelain-coated canning pot (metal affects the sealer)
The Bath will heat slightly if you are ano'ing a larger run, but you still need to start at the correct temp (do everything the same every time for repeatable results). You'll want to control the temp at around 70F, so if you are starting colder, you'll need to heat some of the bath.
RO is a good way to get distilled-like water at home. A small unit will cost ~$70. You'll be surprised how much rinse water you'll need, and running to the store for 5 or 10 one-gallon jugs is a drag. The sprayer is used to rinse into your tanks, then dunk rinse as well. That way the tossed out dunk tank water is not too contaminated, and you'll need to replace lost water from evaporation anyway. I always do both to reduce drag-over (paying special attention to screw holes, etc.). You rinse really well after every step.
The de-smut, degreaser, dyes and sealer are all heated.
The brushes are use in stripping and degreasing.

Ok,so how do you recommend heating the stuff?Propane and stove are out of the question.So all I can think of is heaters.I'm about to start buying containers for all the stuff right now.I reckon I should look for some heaters to .Is there any kind of brushes you would recommend?Also,I forgot to ask earlier what kind of buffing wheel and compound do I need?

[acidrain]

There are heaters called "bucket heaters" available at grange and tack & feed stores. They run about $30 and are pretty beefy. All of the solutions can be heated with those except your acid bath and the sealer. The sealer needs to be brought to near boiling, so stove-top works well... you'll have to figure that one out. The acid will react to most metals, and contaminate your bath, so either use a titanium or ceramic heater. The one Caswell sells is 300w I believe, and I know they heat slowly. I have no experience with those, so maybe somebody else here can chime in with their opinion.
You can pick up bottle brushes from the grocery and drug stores, but I prefer the stiffer brushes available at concrete and masonry supply where they sell epoxy kits for drop-in anchors. They have size specific brushes with long twisted wire handles that work perfect for paintball barrels and breeches. Depending on what you're doing, you may or may not need a selection of inside brushes.
Of course toothbrushes are usually free from your dentist twice a year, and since my whole family uses a sonic-care system, all the free toothbrushes head straight out to the shop.
For buffing, I recommend a spiral sewn sisal wheel with black compound for cut, and spiral sewn cotton with tan compound for color. Going any finer than that is a waste since the acid will dull the parts a bit anyway. Caswell caries a fine selection of buffing supplies. The black/sisal combo will easily buff out 320 grit scratches.
Speaking of buffing, I didn't mention one other chemical/step you should think about. I'm a huge fan of lacquer thinner. It cuts buffing compound instantly, removes oil/grease prior to stripping, and is used post-ano to clean off any masking goo that may be left after doing custom stuff. It will not dull polished aluminum, and is great as a pre-degreaser. It's not appropriate as a final degreaser, but will certainly save your degreaser solution from accumulating dirt and grime.
As for your tanks, here are some suggestions:
Stripper: 2gal of solution in a 3gal bucket. Use a 2gal bucket with lots of 1/4in holes drilled in it as a dip basket.
De-smut: Same thing.
De greaser: 2gal of solution in a 3gal bucket. Rack your parts and dip for a few seconds, then check for water break. Repeat until parts pass water break. The degreaser will dull the parts a but, so degrease sparingly.
Ano tank: Large plastic rubbermaid bin set in an insulated plywood box with leads for the cathode and racks. Make a bubbler manifold that sits in the bottom of the tank out of 1/2in CPVC pipe with 1/16in holes drilled every 3in down the lengths of the pipes. You'll need to weigh it down, or it will tend to float once it's charge with air. If you run your cathode (lead sheeting?) down the side and across the bottom, and up the other side ON TOP OF the manifold, that will hold it down.
Dye: Either keep each 2gal quantity in it's own 2gal bucket with a lid and pour into a rectangle bin for use, or use 3gal buckets with 2gal of dye in each and dye in the bucket. The round bucket is hard to get many parts in. Remember, you'll want to dye all the parts together for good color match... they can't touch the sides or each other or dark spots will occur.
Sealer: Keep this in it's own bucket with a lid until it's needed. Then heat in a ceramic coated canning pot. Return back to the bucket when cool.
Rinse tanks: 3gal buckets work OK, but it's nice to have everything racked and sitting it a rinse tank just prior to ano. You'll want to keep the parts out of the ano tank except while actually anodizing. Consider a rinse tank the same size as your ano tank, and racks that are easily moved from rinse to ano tank.
My steps:
Degrease parts in lacquer thinner.
Strip individual parts.
Dunk rinse.
De smut.
Spray and dunk Rinse.
Polish or bead blast surfaces.
If polished, clean compound with lacquer thinner & wipe dry.
Rack parts on wires.
Degrease individual parts on wires.
Spray and dunk rinse.
Mount racked parts onto bus bars while sitting in rinse tank.
Move rinsed parts to ano tank and start anodizing.
Spray and dunk rinse fresh ano'd parts.
Move all the racked parts (still on they're bus bars) to the dye tank (I use 8gal of dye in 10gal bins).
Dunk rinse.
Take some parts off the bus bars and hang them around the sides of the sealer tank, while other parts are still mounted to the bus bars, hang those in the center.
Dunk rinse and then spray down with WD-40. Wipe dry.

[Empire03]

Originally Posted by acidrain

There are heaters called "bucket heaters" available at grange and tack & feed stores. They run about $30 and are pretty beefy. All of the solutions can be heated with those except your acid bath and the sealer. The sealer needs to be brought to near boiling, so stove-top works well... you'll have to figure that one out. The acid will react to most metals, and contaminate your bath, so either use a titanium or ceramic heater. The one Caswell sells is 300w I believe, and I know they heat slowly. I have no experience with those, so maybe somebody else here can chime in with their opinion.
You can pick up bottle brushes from the grocery and drug stores, but I prefer the stiffer brushes available at concrete and masonry supply where they sell epoxy kits for drop-in anchors. They have size specific brushes with long twisted wire handles that work perfect for paintball barrels and breeches. Depending on what you're doing, you may or may not need a selection of inside brushes.
Of course toothbrushes are usually free from your dentist twice a year, and since my whole family uses a sonic-care system, all the free toothbrushes head straight out to the shop.
For buffing, I recommend a spiral sewn sisal wheel with black compound for cut, and spiral sewn cotton with tan compound for color. Going any finer than that is a waste since the acid will dull the parts a bit anyway. Caswell caries a fine selection of buffing supplies. The black/sisal combo will easily buff out 320 grit scratches.
Speaking of buffing, I didn't mention one other chemical/step you should think about. I'm a huge fan of lacquer thinner. It cuts buffing compound instantly, removes oil/grease prior to stripping, and is used post-ano to clean off any masking goo that may be left after doing custom stuff. It will not dull polished aluminum, and is great as a pre-degreaser. It's not appropriate as a final degreaser, but will certainly save your degreaser solution from accumulating dirt and grime.
As for your tanks, here are some suggestions:
Stripper: 2gal of solution in a 3gal bucket. Use a 2gal bucket with lots of 1/4in holes drilled in it as a dip basket.
De-smut: Same thing.
De greaser: 2gal of solution in a 3gal bucket. Rack your parts and dip for a few seconds, then check for water break. Repeat until parts pass water break. The degreaser will dull the parts a but, so degrease sparingly.
Ano tank: Large plastic rubbermaid bin set in an insulated plywood box with leads for the cathode and racks. Make a bubbler manifold that sits in the bottom of the tank out of 1/2in CPVC pipe with 1/16in holes drilled every 3in down the lengths of the pipes. You'll need to weigh it down, or it will tend to float once it's charge with air. If you run your cathode (lead sheeting?) down the side and across the bottom, and up the other side ON TOP OF the manifold, that will hold it down.
Dye: Either keep each 2gal quantity in it's own 2gal bucket with a lid and pour into a rectangle bin for use, or use 3gal buckets with 2gal of dye in each and dye in the bucket. The round bucket is hard to get many parts in. Remember, you'll want to dye all the parts together for good color match... they can't touch the sides or each other or dark spots will occur.
Sealer: Keep this in it's own bucket with a lid until it's needed. Then heat in a ceramic coated canning pot. Return back to the bucket when cool.
Rinse tanks: 3gal buckets work OK, but it's nice to have everything racked and sitting it a rinse tank just prior to ano. You'll want to keep the parts out of the ano tank except while actually anodizing. Consider a rinse tank the same size as your ano tank, and racks that are easily moved from rinse to ano tank.
My steps:
Degrease parts in lacquer thinner.
Strip individual parts.
Dunk rinse.
De smut.
Spray and dunk Rinse.
Polish or bead blast surfaces.
If polished, clean compound with lacquer thinner & wipe dry.
Rack parts on wires.
Degrease individual parts on wires.
Spray and dunk rinse.
Mount racked parts onto bus bars while sitting in rinse tank.
Move rinsed parts to ano tank and start anodizing.
Spray and dunk rinse fresh ano'd parts.
Move all the racked parts (still on they're bus bars) to the dye tank (I use 8gal of dye in 10gal bins).
Dunk rinse.
Take some parts off the bus bars and hang them around the sides of the sealer tank, while other parts are still mounted to the bus bars, hang those in the center.
Dunk rinse and then spray down with WD-40. Wipe dry.

wow thx a ton!!!!I'll start shopping now lol.But I really do have to find a alternative for the sealer and bath heating.Anything would work really as long as there is not flame.They are afraid ill blow up the shop so can't use a flame and cant get a stove in there.

[sswee]

Electric hot plates work fine with 8,10, and 12 qt. stainless pots.
SS

[Empire03]

75 bux for 1 heater is a little steep.Do you know if there is higher watt ceramic heaters?

[sswee]

1 300W Ti heater on a thermostat for dye in a 2 gal bucket and 2 300w TI heater in a 5 gal bucket for sealer works good.
SS

http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/ceramic_heaters.html