I have a couple of lowers that I will have professionally engraved. The problem is they are already anodized. The engraving will of course take the aluminium down to the white and will look weird. What’s the proper process - just fill in the engraved area or send off to an anodizing specialist, have the old finish removed and re-anodize?
I understand the latter can be expensive.
If marking with a laser, the lettering is white and can be just left or hit with a black sharpie pen.
Cheap option would be the Birchwood Casey super black pen or maybe aluma-hyde.
I’ve used these for small chips and scratches and it’s looked fine.
These are both a kind of “XM Gray” lowers, and the the black of the Aluma-Hyde may not be appropriate. I have used it on SBR engravings for black anodized lowers.
Aluma hyde, sharpies and even model paint from the hobby store are probably your best and least expensive options. Some anodizing shops are not ffl holders and cannot except the lowers as they are technically the firearm. Some of those that specialize in firearms refinishing will only work on class 1 weapons. If you have an nfa item you may have to look for an even more specialized shop. If you had a complete, matching finished weapon, you now run the risk of getting a mis matched one because each shop uses a different formula, prep process or times in the solution tanks. You also have to have the items totally dis-assembled for refinishing which can lead to problems during both the taking apart and putting back together phase. Just some things to think about.
The lowers in question are not NFA items, and are currently stripped. I have looked at US Anodizing as an option, but it appears @ $250 to remove current finish and re-anodize for 1 lower.
Birchwood Casey used to make (still some floating around) a dry film lubricant pen called MLP that might be a better match for the grey color. Drawing a blank on which companies (Sandstrom is one) make the dry film lube mentioned in the armorers manuals for touch up work, but running the NSN will get search hits. Either should be durable, tech correct(Sandstrom or equivalent), likely visually ok, and removable with solvent if desired.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1016783579
Aluminum black(liquid or pen) may be black or grey depending on reaction with the alloy. Works like cold blue.
https://birchwoodcasey.com/products/gun%20refinishing?category=28
The MLP by Birchwood Casey looks promising. I would apply it to the engraved areas, then have to do a quick wipe with some kind of mild solvent to remove from the non-engraved areas. What about spraying CRC Dry Moly Lube from the aerosol can? Spray it on then quickly wipe off around the engraving. I’ve seen online videos of people applying paint that way to engraved areas on the AR lower.
Just leave it. Why bother? It won’t hurt a thing.
Didn’t see any graphite listed on the CRC MSDS so worth a try.
I assume spray/wipe the excess on engraving would be fine if my assumption that the engraving is a constant depth versus some roll marks that seem to have shallow spots that get wiped out. If not, you can always wet a tooth pick or fine tip brush and fill in if that is the case.
One of the lowers is a Brownells XM177E1 slab side with dark gray anodizing. It’s already engraved with the Brownells serial # etc. prior to their anodizing. Just wanting more of a consistent look to the lower without white/bare aluminum logo/lettering standing out.
Last time I checked on getting a receiver in the white anodized it was around $160 so I would make one of the pens or paint work.
I tend to agree, but these lowers are not in the white - only the engraved areas.
You might try reaching out to Brownells, explain your predicament and see if by chance they could have them touched up for you.
You may already know this but if you want them anodized they will have to be stripped and re-anodized. There is no such thing as touching it up. They will have to chemically etch the coating away and reapply it. A shop that does it right will etch only until when checked with an ohm meter, that it’s electrically conductive again so there’s no danger of enlarging pin holes, etc. That’s for someone who knows what they are doing, which most shops will.
And FWIW, the charge should basically be a lot charge. It’s only a matter of clamping 2 lowers vs. 1 lower on the rack. After that there’s no increase in labor, cost or time to the anodizer. If you send 1 or 6 the cost should be essentially the same.
If it were me, I’d be looking at ceracoat or similar. Just easier and cheaper.
At this point, I’m looking at a color close to the lower itself to fill in the engraving, just to cut back on the brightness of the raw aluminium. I am certain Brownells would not want anything to do with one of their lowers that I have altered with my own markings. I am also talking to the engraver to see if they have a filler material to fill-in the engraving.
Taking a while to dry in the recesses, but that is the MLP pen grey shade.
I will advise against over do and wipe off excess. Harder to remove excess while leaving the fill than I thought it was going to be.
Just thought about it and gray on Gray may not be an issue in your case.
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That makes sense, and from my limited knowledge of anodizing, to remove it also removes some of the aluminum surface with it prior to re-anodizing. The problem with coating just the lower would be a coat of the upper as well. Something I hadn’t planned on doing.
The MLP pen seems like an option, but I would have to apply in little spots, then dab off excess immediately. Again, I am only looking to fill in the engrave “white bare aluminum”. I have seen people try filling in with paint to crayons. Too bad I couldn’t have found a stripped 100% lower with no anodizing. As I mentioned above, I am in touch with the engraver to see if they have some kind of filler I can use, close to the XM-Gray to color the engraving.
If color filling the script looks like the likely option take a look at your local hobby lobby. They were selling model master custom enamel paint in a color known as panzer gray FS36076. It also had 1950 on top of the lid. This is a color match to the gray that nodak had on their slab sided lowers and trigger charging handle inside of the carry handle a1 uppers.
A bit tricky to apply but comes in different colors and has lasted for years on some of my lowers.
I have an old silver stick that dirties up to gray but I don’t see that color available anymore.
Maybe black would work out? Not like you need to be able to easily read the engraving…
Lacquer-Stik Paintstick, Black - 051123 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00Y3IOFS8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_nv7TDbFNH6G3W
Dennis.