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  for Metal Finishing since 1989
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Magnesium painting options

Hello, my name is Wayne and I work for a tier one automotive supplier. With the cost of Zinc going through the roof, I'm investigating converting some of our Zinc die castings to Magnesium. Some of these castings are for exterior components which require a nice finish - we presently give them an e-coat followed by a top coat with UV protection. Can anyone suggest a comparable finish (including required pre-treatment) for Magnesium?

Wayne Burke
automotive engineer - Rochester Hills, Michigan
2006

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2006

Hydro Magnesium, soon to be sold, spun-off, or closed, has a nice summary of appropriate coatings, pre-treatments, etc.:

http://www.hydro.com/magnesium/library/attachment/services/Corrosion_brochure_en.pdf

In general, a pre-treatment followed by e-coat and then a thick powder coat produces the best results. The pre-treatment is usually a chemical-based process, but anodizing is also successfully used.

Toby Padfield
Automotive module supplier - Michigan