Touching up black anodizing

[JHZR2]

There are so many used bike deals, on barely used bikes, it almost doesn’t make sense to buy new.

I got my Jamis dragon like new used, and recently got a Jamis Hudson for less than 1/4 of new price, never rode for my middle kid to use at the beach and around town.

My oldest is outgrowing their rigid 24” MTB, and my middle loves it. My oldest was riding my wife’s MTB but she got back into trail riding, youngest in a trailer and everything.

Yes we have too many bikes. But I have a decent place to store them, and they certainly don’t go unused.

So I picked up a Fuji Nevada. Not super high end, but all shimano, and with hydraulic brakes. Not too bad, certainly for the miniscule amount I paid for it. If you watch and can jump, the deals are great. It’s more or less unused, it was used once in some muddy terrain as that’s caked on a few parts.

The only issue it has is some slight scratching on the handlebars. The frame is perfect, like new, but the handle bars have two scuffs. They are more like grey, not through the anodizing, but they also won’t wipe off.

I took this photo with flash so it looks FAR worse than it is.

It isn’t white/silver in real life. It’s grayish.

I’d like to remediate it all the same, as we will be giving the bike as a present to my child, and I don’t want it to look used. Of course it is used, and it doesn’t have to be perfect, but this is an easy optical fix to make it look much more like new.

I’ve seen Birchwood Casey aluminum black, but I’m not sure if that’s really more for black phosphate finishes. I was thinking to just try to smudge some black matte paint over it, then wipe off. Or even sharpie. But I think a chemical solution would be best.

I’ll get better pictures in daylight when I have a second, but hoping for some recommendations.

Thanks!

 

[Nukeman7]

I'm thinking something like the Krylon Fusion textured matte black paint would match best. Maybe touch it up with a small camel hair artist brush or a Q-tip.

 

[ctechbob]

Could always sand it down and polish it. Or bead blast it. Not great solutions, but at least it would be consistent.

 

[JHZR2]

I'm thinking something like the Krylon Fusion textured matte black paint would match best. Maybe touch it up with a small camel hair artist brush or a Q-tip.

The texture is still there for sure. Maybe it is just surface and I need to try some wd-40 or similar stuff like when paint transfer occurs…

Could always sand it down and polish it. Or bead blast it. Not great solutions, but at least it would be consistent.

That’s more work than I care to do. It’s a used bike, I’m just trying to spruce it up since it will look like new with a bit of cleaning.

 

[Nessism1]

A bike like that is going to accumulate lots of abuse. Use a sharpie and ride on.

 

[JWC86]

I’d hit it with a sharpie and see if that is “good enough” to satisfy you. If not then just repaint the bars.

 

[Trav]

Google... Birchwood Casey Aluminum Black.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Birchwoo...l9=pla&wl11=online&gad_campaignid=22532405497

https://www.firearmstalk.com/threads/restoring-the-black-finish-on-aluminum-w-pics.105655/

 

[shortyb]

I use a fresh Sharpie on the wheels of my wife's Tiguan when she uses them to find exactly where the curb is . Stays on even after several washes and actually looks pretty good.

 

[JHZR2]

A bike like that is going to accumulate lots of abuse. Use a sharpie and ride on.

For sure it will. It will probably end up
In the school bike rack sometimes and that will probably scuff it more than anything else.

The intent is really just to make a used bike look as great as possible as a gift.

I use a fresh Sharpie on the wheels of my wife's Tiguan when she uses them to find exactly where the curb is . Stays on even after several washes and actually looks pretty good.

I wouldn’t have thought that sharpies have the staying power. Good to know!

 

[Zee09]

I use a fresh Sharpie on the wheels of my wife's Tiguan when she uses them to find exactly where the curb is . Stays on even after several washes and actually looks pretty good.

That's my trick for muzzle weights where they are clamped while being anodized but not for big areas

 

[Wheel]

for really small nicks, I've used a paint pen, that's more scratch than the paint pen will do a good job on. I think the textured paint Nukeman7 suggested is the only good option.

 

[JHZR2]

for really small nicks, I've used a paint pen, that's more scratch than the paint pen will do a good job on. I think the textured paint Nukeman7 suggested is the only good option.

It’s not actually a scratch. I took the photo in the dark and in the rain, with a flash, and it looks far worse than it is.

I think paint would require a full refinish of the entire bar, and would need a lot of scuffing and hard cure.

Hoping it works out without that!

 

[JHZR2]

Tried sharpie on the weekend. It didnt do much and looks different.

I have the Birchwood Casey pen on order for these and a few other small spots.

I’m not going to scuff to bare metal or anything. I’ll clean thoroughly but don’t want to make anything worse. It is what it is.

 

[tc1446]

Back to your first idea; smudge some black matte on, wipe lightly. See how it drys. Might have to do it again till it covers.

 

[JHZR2]

I got the Birchwood Casey aluminum black pen yesterday. Just tried it. Very promising.

From:

To:

From:

Coat it:

Wipe:

I simply wiped with a bit of 70% isopropyl because that’s what I had readily on hand. The first application didn’t show much, but a second application did great. I may do another two applications when I look at it next.

I know photos are different angles, but it’s working.

 

[JHZR2]

I used the recommendation of bike farmer on YouTube to use a bit of furniture polish.

I get the impression he’s a bit of a hack, but the reality of bike maintenance being good enough for who it’s for is reasonable. He slathers the bikes with dawn and then behold furniture polish.

I washed the bike and then dried it and used endust, not nearly as much…. On a microfiber rag. Looks great. Like new. Was great for the wheels as well…