What type of metal is this?

[sinabinet]

I am new to this so please be patient. I am have trouble identifing metal types. In particular on motorcycles. An example would be levers or switch covers. What is the easiest way to tell aluminum, pot metal, stainless, or metal. Please help, sorry for the silly questions.

[mcaswell]

Re: What type of metal is this?

Not silly at all.

There are several different methods. Most have been covered in detail in previous posts in these forums.

Pot Metal and Aluminum are very light, and are not magnetic.

Also, if you put a drop of acid (battery or muriatic acid) on Pot Metal, (which is another term for zinc) it will bubble vigorously.