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Process for Titanium Oxidizing Knives?

I'm an amateur knifemaker working under my father-in-law whose made knives for 25 years. We were wondering about titanium oxidizing and anodizing. I have searched some articles on anodizing already but none on titanium oxidizing. We are very curious as to how these are done and what type of equipment we would need, were we to delve into such a project. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Wayne Kehler
Hobbyist - Niverville, MB. Canada
December 17, 2008

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Hi, Wayne.

There is not a lot of formality involved in titanium anodizing for decorative effect. It's a very thin film that is built by applying voltage to the knife while it is in coca-cola, trisodium phosphate ⇦ this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] , or other electrolytes. The color is a function of the thickness, and the thickness is proportional to the applied voltage. You can get multiple colors by masking and exposing different areas to different voltages, or even by slow immersion and withdrawal that builds films of varying thickness.

If you search this site for "anodizing titanium" you will find a good number of threads on the subject. Good luck.

Regards,

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
February 2, 2011