HOW TO: Strip Anodized Bike Parts

This is exactly what I was looking for! Wanted to de-anodize my acera rear derailleur for a while.

Just to be double cautious, is there any caution we should take when doing this? Like any potential change in the integrity of the metal or finisher or sealant we should use?

I had no idea that you can DIY anodized parts. Very cool

Damn.. you did an excellent job. You kinda make me want to do my front chain ring from black to silver… 🤔

Do you believe it would be safe to use this method to remove the anodizing on a chainring? I would love my Wolftooth chainring to have a more "classic" appearance.

Ketchup will do the same job so will bicarbonate

Good old fashioned white vinegar works great.

I've been doing this with concentrated Zep as well. I've done a RedShift stem, disc brake adapters, derailleur hanger, thru-axle heads...I even disassembled some Shimano T8000 pedals and stripped the cages.

I similarly gave everything a good polish, and then finished it with a metal sealant. It hasn't been long enough to see how the polished finish will hold up, but it looks good for now.

The next step for me is my rear derailleur. Happy to see that you had such good results!

I do this with lye (sodium hydroxide or Potassium hydroxide) for long time.
But be careful, it can damage threads on alu, because it reacts and create hydrogen gas as by-product.

I often do some restoration projects or neo-retro stuff.
For example, i deanodise and mirror polish 33mm deep alu fratteli rims, than build wheels with polished silver hubs and tripple butted silver spokes.
It looks so nice on vintage Bianchi.

Someone in comments mentioned clearcoating it.
It will not adhere well, fall off and it also leave dull finish.
Just polish it with polishing compound from time to time.
It also can be preserved with wax, but on rim brakes.. don't apply it on brake track.

Nice! What a great lil hack!

Loving the short format as well. Great info as always!

Not bad.

Yeah, that degreaser is better than drain-o. Draino has sodium hydroxide. That crap eats aluminum. I use sodium hydroxide to remove aluminum seatposts from steal frames.

Just like project farm's recent "degreaser" test you stuck to your American ignorance and didn't even research what degreaser is. Detergent, solvent, acid or base/caustic.
What do you think those gas bubbles you were breathing were? You need to neutralise the part with salt after use

Autosol aluminum/metal polish is the one you want. It'll polish up to a mirror finish but it'll need a re-buffing with time. Spray-on clear makes the finish cloudy instead of polished in my eperience.

Oven cleaner is the best product I've found to remove the anodizing. Probably cheaper than buying the Zep too. I do this to those Campagnolo bottom brackets that come in that ugly green color. The printing on the BB cups comes off but the shiny polished silver makes up for it.

This is SICK

Once again you’ve reached into my brain and answered a question I’ve had about bikes. This time: removing ano from bike parts. Seriously considering this for a build for my wife.

How much material was removed in the process? Looks great btw

I like all polish parts, but I love parts that are black and polished liked old Suntour

I am going to embark on a similar project, so thank you!

Yeah, Drano is like 10x as harsh as that purple degreaser you used. Just sayin.

Dang dude. That looks great. Good job brother..

I’m professional polisher -1use the yellow can of oven cleaner to brake down the anodize 2 . 220/ 320 da 3 yellow disk buff with white compound .

Ooh this would be perfect. I'm planning a retroey steel bike build, and I want to use Hunt's deep section aluminum rims. This method will be perfect for getting them to match the other silver components I have planned

🎉

Your diy videos are the best!!! Keep those coming! The Ritchey build ist really something special. I would love to See some content from the Journey you are taking together, hopefully a long one!😊

I only buy industrial grade degreaser for my shop and mix it in with water myself.
It's super cheap and the best degreaser you'll ever use, I get a 5L bottle for £13 here in the UK and it lasts months.

Also being able to choose how concentrated you want it is quite useful. 1/9 degreaser to water ratio for general use, quick transition cleans on the bike and etc is plenty good, but can get it more concentrated if I'm submerging parts overnight or to tackle thick grease. Keep that stuff around!

Damn, looks great!

That's great! Thanks for sharing the method. BTW, does it alter the dimensions of critical machined surfaces? I would like to try it on a crankset and hubs. Thx

I stripped and polished my Ritchey Beacon handlebar (just the middle, left the drops alone since they’re under tape). It turned out awesome but I wish I had known Zep would do the trick, it would’ve saved me a lot of time.

Nice,super job👌🏻.Are those KCNC pulley wheel,if they are good choice.I think I've done 30000km on my pair.

Silver over black every time for bike parts!

That looks great, both brushed and polished. Thank you for the tips.

Very cool, as always. Personally i prefer silver components over the black version usually. I hope they come back in fashion.

Nice hack!

Sweeeet 😻

I would clear maybe consider to clear coat them to avoid oxidisation (guessing the cage is alu) => makes them dull (i.e. not shiny)

Good to know