So much effing around with this project…
After 1½ years of thinking about everything until it hurts, they suddenly decide it will be dark grey?
I have a clear anodized Lumintop HLAAA which is very well done, so WTH “didn’t work” ??
I’m not sure what the ape means though, but that pic has one of the longest location addresses i’ve ever seen.
You bring up an excellent point. However, according to Lumintop that is nickel electroplating. I guess it still retains machining marks and adds protection but without lockout, yes? Could be a compromise…
Nickel plating?
Really?
Nickel is usually ‘warm white’ -ish.
But you’re right.
Threads look coated to but can’t lock out.
I have another very well clear coated AAA light by the way, a silver Olight i3E.
Seems different from anodizing too.
It’s on there very good though, whatever it is.
It’s not sudden; it was decided months ago based on feedback here in this thread. After two rounds of prototypes, the surface still wasn’t right so we asked people what they’d like to do — the prototype’s light grey ano with seams, a traditional dark grey ano, or completely bare unanodized aluminum. About 80% wanted dark grey, so that’s what the plan is.
I was hoping more people would be interested in bare aluminum, but maybe that can happen later sometime.
On the upside, converting an anodized aluminum light to bare aluminum is easy. Just give it a soak in Greased Lightning and you’re good to go. Want a more polished look? … no problem: pull out the fine sandpaper and metal polish.
Anodising, or otherwise finishing metals, is not a new or mysterious process. And avoiding “seams” is pretty basic. Just indicative of pushing up the current and cramming the pieces into the tank to maximise throughput at the expense of quality.
Dying them dark grey, instead of light grey or clear, is just a cosmetic way of avoiding the root cause. Make it black, and call it “HA3” and nobody would know, or care (unless they have ever encountered real HA3, actually best done un-dyed and sealed differently)
If Lumintop just don’t know how, or care, to do it properly, in several ways, well that is sad, considering that that is what they signed up for. Even if they didn’t initially know how, they could have learned on this project.
This started off as having a fine machined surface finish, with clear anodising for protection. Bare metal, no ano, would also have been good. But we are where we are.
“For a lot of us mere mortals, seeing the cool things machinists make on their lathe is just a dream.
Hence the finish of the FW3A will be clear anodizing, no sanding/beadblasting before anodization.
The idea is to give all the chance to have a light looking like it came of a lathe with the protection of anodizing.
(surface finish details are still being worked out though)”
From what I remember from the GT thread, Lumintop does not do the anodizing in-house. Their parts are sent out to a nearby company that specializes in anodizing.