Bicycle Mechanics - black to silver

im getting a new threadless stem and i really want it to be silver. almost all of them are black that ive seen. i am wondering what i need to look for in a black stem to know if i can turn it silver.

for example...is it just that anything that is aluminum potentially silver? i can just strip it with aircraft paint remover and then polish the bare metal right? what about that sort of blasted black look that some aluminum parts have (i see this on handlebars a lot).

is there some sort of indication in the description of the part that will let me know if it can be turned from black to silver?

my main reason for this is that i dont want to limit myself to only the silver stems and not get the one that i really want!

thanks!

have a look here:
http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/articles/polishing/

thanx for the link! i was reading it and totally happy that i found my answer...

til the last section.

he says "Maybe this stem is next....nah, looks like black powdercoat." does that mean that if its powdercoated this will be impossible? so i am to only look for anodized stuff? id think powdercoat came off easier.

great link...if i get no more responses ill be completely content and know what to look for!

thanx for the link! i was reading it and totally happy that i found my answer...

til the last section.

he says "Maybe this stem is next....nah, looks like black powdercoat." does that mean that if its powdercoated this will be impossible? so i am to only look for anodized stuff? id think powdercoat came off easier.

great link...if i get no more responses ill be completely content and know what to look for!

There's a multitude of finishes that are used. Anywhere from laquer to baked on enamel, powdercoating and anodizing. That anodizing removal process looks great... for that finish. If you have a laquer finish the acetone or laquer thinner will take it off. Paint stripper works good for enamel and urethanes and maybe powder coating which is basicaly a 'plastic' powder that is statically applied then baked to melt the powder and let it flow into a finish and cooled. So, a chemical remover might do the trick. I've never tried. If all else fails, theres always the friction method... buffing. :)

Sounds like alot of unnecessary work to me; I've seen lots of silver stems out there.

Are you set on a specific brand/model that only comes in black?

yeah, paint remover (jasco) for powdercoat, lye (oven cleaner) for anodizing, acetone (nail polish remover) for decals.

the trifecta of debadging.

What is the reason not to buy this wonderful threadless silver stem by Nitto?

http://www16.ocn.ne.jp/~nitto210/ (http://www16.ocn.ne.jp/%7Enitto210/)
Nitto ＵＩ-５ＥＸ
http://www.rivbike.com/images/catpics/16-162.jpg

There are still a few companies out there making silver stuff unfortunately their far and few between, but fortunately Nitto, as Barabaika showed, makes very high quality stuff and only in silver...at least I haven't ever seen any black Nitto stuff. But it appears that Nitto has gone from engraving their name and models to laser printing it on...something I'm not real happy with! Hopefully they haven't done that to their entire line.


But the pics and describtion of the work that was done by Ebbet is also very good and could help someone who doesn't want to buy a new stem or simply can't find a silver part to do the job.

the nitto is like...already been in my "cart" at a few OBS. so pretty. just...its gonna be one of the most expensice parts of my bike if i go with nitto! no thanx!

i am really just looking for inexpensive threadless stems. a quick look online and at LBSs will show that the arent many silver stems in comparison to black.

thanx for the responses. seems like i wont have to worry about the color. and who cares about the work. i have off 2 days a week and my roommates dont mind me doing bike tinkering in the living room. TV + beer + couch = never too much work

Yep, it's hard to get silver these days, right enough. Check this thread, it might be useful: http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=79332

I've used this technique to strip the black from a couple of stems and a seatpost. It works very well. I used metal polish and elbow grease to clean up the bare metal afterwards, and then sprayed a couple of layers of clearcoat over the end result. The parts look excellent, and you'd barely know they hadn't come from the factory in silver, and not black.

One of the good things about this approach is that all of the chemicals you'll need are available at your local supermarket.

thanx for the responses. seems like i wont have to worry about the color. and who cares about the work. i have off 2 days a week and my roommates dont mind me doing bike tinkering in the living room. TV + beer + couch = never too much work

seems like it doesn't need to be said, but if you use oven cleaner, do it outside. that stuff is foul.

seems like it doesn't need to be said, but if you use oven cleaner, do it outside. that stuff is foul.
+100!!!! Definitely outside, no matter what chemicals you end up using (they're all pretty nasty). Also wear good rubber gloves and eye protection.

Stripping Ano off a stem so colored will definately cause the silver you get to oxidize quickly. Possibly the same for paint.

Silver really shouldn't be hard to find, even on a budget. Check with your LBS, they might even have one about.

Stripping Ano off a stem so colored will definately cause the silver you get to oxidize quickly.

also true. even if you polish that thing up and put protection (bike lust, etc.) it'll get gray pretty fast. i like it, draws less attention. but if you want permanent shiny, best to get a real silver stem.

Ok. If you want a cheap one, Kalloy makes one for $18. It's not so bad.
http://www.wallbike.com/oddsnends/kalloystem.html

http://www.wallbike.com/content/JPG/kalloystem.jpg

also true. even if you polish that thing up and put protection (bike lust, etc.) it'll get gray pretty fast. i like it, draws less attention. but if you want permanent shiny, best to get a real silver stem.

FYI: spraying a couple of layers of clearcoat over the newly-stripped component will stop it from oxidizing. I stripped and clearcoated a few parts about a year ago, and they are still shiny today, no graying evident at all.

the nitto is like...already been in my "cart" at a few OBS. so pretty. just...its gonna be one of the most expensice parts of my bike if i go with nitto! no thanx!

i am really just looking for inexpensive threadless stems. a quick look online and at LBSs will show that the arent many silver stems in comparison to black.

You want cheap? How about that Kalloy for half a buck... in silver!

http://www.pricepoint.com/detail/11793-305_KALUN0-3-Parts-72-Stems/Kalloy-MTB-Stem.htm

Who loves ya, baby?!

Both Deda and IRD have some really nice silver stems which will work on OS bars if that is your need.

also true. even if you polish that thing up and put protection (bike lust, etc.) it'll get gray pretty fast. i like it, draws less attention. but if you want permanent shiny, best to get a real silver stem.

REAL silver stems? Since when was any bike component made of silver? Their not, their made of aluminum and then polished to either a dull or bright luster.

I have an old bike built in the mid 80's before this black craze went crazy, and none of my stuff has become "grey". Of course I do wax and polish my stuff at least twice a year; and when I'm done you would think my components were chromed!

Which leads to me to another point; if your cleaning and waxing your "silver" stuff that was once black, why would you need to spray a clearcoat over any of it? My stuff has no clearcoat on it and it looks just fine.

Aluminium with out a surface finish may be prone to scratching (an anodised surface is harder). If using a caustic soda soln to strip anodising it is advisable to soak in a nitric acid solution around 8% overnight. This softens the film and makes it easier to strip. Be aware that some of the base metal is also removed

Aluminium with out a surface finish may be prone to scratching (an anodised surface is harder). If using a caustic soda soln to strip anodising it is advisable to soak in a nitric acid solution around 8% overnight. This softens the film and makes it easier to strip. Be aware that some of the base metal is also removed

Anodizing is primarily for corrosion resistance; even silver-colored parts are usually clear-anodized.

The hardness thing is mostly marketing hype.

REAL silver stems? Since when was any bike component made of silver? Their not, their made of aluminum and then polished to either a dull or bright luster.

their not?

i think he (or she) knew what i meant ;)

their not?

i think he (or she) knew what i meant ;)

I didn't, I took you literally, you said "real silver", what you really meant was real silver color which I guess would be the same as saying real aluminum color.

Anodizing is primarily for corrosion resistance; even silver-colored parts are usually clear-anodized.

The hardness thing is mostly marketing hype.

Silver colored parts are not always clear anodized or coated, mostly their just polished aluminum. This can easily be seen when a silver component gets scratched or gouged and nothing happens to the scratch or gouge, it still maintains a shiny look if you polish it. Silver colored rims would dull and look like crap if they had a clear anodized coating on them and the brakes were ever applied! Coated ceramic rims is an example of what happens to coatings after X many brakings.

Silver colored parts are not always clear anodized or coated, mostly their just polished aluminum. This can easily be seen when a silver component gets scratched or gouged and nothing happens to the scratch or gouge, it still maintains a shiny look if you polish it. Silver colored rims would dull and look like crap if they had a clear anodized coating on them and the brakes were ever applied! Coated ceramic rims is an example of what happens to coatings after X many brakings.

No.

Aluminum products are rarely available without some type of anti-corrosion coating, be it clear anodizing or even some sort of clear "wet" coating (polyurethane, acrylic, etc.).

Uncoated aluminum will corrode fairly quickly; it is a white powdery coating that is hard to remove and really looks like crap.

Cheaper silver colored rims are often coated (anodized or wet) all over; the friction of the brake pads wears the coating off the braking surfaces and the continued braking keeps them shiny. Better quality rims will have machined surfaces, making moot whatever is coating the rest of the rim; again, the continued braking action keeps the surfaces corrosion-free.

I'm in the habit of buying used vintage parts, stripping them with oven cleaner and then polishing them to a mirror finish. Keeping the parts polished is not a problem and I have eight bikes. The parts on my '70s French bikes never had any kind of protective finish on them and they still shine after 35 years.
http://thumb9.webshots.net/t/42/42/5/42/23/315654223LpNOlK_th.jpg (http://sports.webshots.com/photo/1315654223068014369LpNOlK)

I'm in the habit of buying used vintage parts, stripping them with oven cleaner and then polishing them to a mirror finish. Keeping the parts polished is not a problem and I have eight bikes. The parts on my '70s French bikes never had any kind of protective finish on them and they still shine after 35 years.
http://thumb9.webshots.net/t/42/42/5/42/23/315654223LpNOlK_th.jpg (http://sports.webshots.com/photo/1315654223068014369LpNOlK)

Don't tell me; you're a UNIX guy, right? :)

No.

Aluminum products are rarely available without some type of anti-corrosion coating, be it clear anodizing or even some sort of clear "wet" coating (polyurethane, acrylic, etc.).

Uncoated aluminum will corrode fairly quickly; it is a white powdery coating that is hard to remove and really looks like crap.

Cheaper silver colored rims are often coated (anodized or wet) all over; the friction of the brake pads wears the coating off the braking surfaces and the continued braking keeps them shiny. Better quality rims will have machined surfaces, making moot whatever is coating the rest of the rim; again, the continued braking action keeps the surfaces corrosion-free.

Machined rims DO NOT make for better rims...it's just hype; see: http://sheldonbrown.com/brandt/machined-rims.html

Just as the fad for fewer spokes makes lighter rims which is wrong because the fewer the spokes the heavier the rim needs to be so it's a mute point with the only advantage having the ability to be more aero especially when using bladed spokes; see: http://sheldonbrown.com/wheelbuild.html

And on aluminum rims they were not coated except for some had a ceramic coating which did wear off. Bare aluminum frames were coated to protect the frame from corrosion as you stated but not many components were, and even most high end components were not coated, so price had nothing to do with it. In fact aluminum resistence to corrosion had MORE TO DO with what alloy was mixed into the aluminum not some coating. Copper, Manganese, Silicon, Magnesium, Magnesium and silicon, Zinc and other elements; proper mixture of these alloys were what made aluminum stronger and more corrosion resistent.

Now some aluminum products were anodized which is a electroplating process, which puts a thin protective lustrous film on the surface of the metal. Sometimes they mix a color dye into the process to give it color you see some aluminum products have like green, gold, blue etc, which included a silver color which would make one think that all aluminum is anodized which isn't true. But rims are not anodized because it compromises the braking performance of the rim, THUS NO ALUMINUM RIM IS COATED OR ANODIZED!!! Neither are most other aluminum components on a bike. In fact most cheaper bikes have their aluminum components colored anodized to get the kids at Wallyworld to look and make their dads look too. Thus non anodized or coated aluminum components have a duller finish, the shinier finish of anodized parts is more of a fishing lure type of appeal-or to catch your eye to make you look and hopefully buy it (the same reason that cheap mini systems at Wallyworlds have flashing lights...they don't do a damm thing except make you look just as a fish looks at a lure).

They do have anodized alloy spoke nipples so you can select whatever color including silver you want. But the anodized process for this application is actually beneficial because it makes the nipple stronger then just bare aluminum.

And bare aluminum does not rapidly develop a white powdery coating, My rims are 8 years old, my bar and stem is about 5 years old, the seat post is 22 or 23 years old and none of this stuff has done this...but I do wax them (not the sides of the rims else stopping may not happen!). The seat post was actually stored for about 15 of those years and when pulled out of the box about 8 years ago it to wasn't not corroded and it had never been waxed. And none of this stuff had any coatings!

Machined rims DO NOT make for better rims...it's just hype; see: [url]
Now some aluminum products were anodized which is a electroplating process, which puts a thin protective lustrous film on the surface of the metal. Sometimes they mix a color dye into the process to give it color you see some aluminum products have like green, gold, blue etc, which included a silver color which would make one think that all aluminum is anodized which isn't true. But rims are not anodized because it compromises the braking performance of the rim, THUS NO ALUMINUM RIM IS COATED OR ANODIZED!!! Neither are most other aluminum components on a bike. In fact most cheaper bikes have their aluminum components colored anodized to get the kids at Wallyworld to look and make their dads look too.

Not to be a total spoilsport... Odyssey makes an Anodized rim:
http://www.odysseybmx.com/catalog/index.php?image=4_duralectra_rim.jpg&list=Rims&page=1

And it's a hell of a lot more than their normal one.... Not saying it works better or worse than the normal rim brakewise but they are out there... just the quickest example I found.

Not to be a total spoilsport... Odyssey makes an Anodized rim:
http://www.odysseybmx.com/catalog/index.php?image=4_duralectra_rim.jpg&list=Rims&page=1

And it's a hell of a lot more than their normal one.... Not saying it works better or worse than the normal rim brakewise but they are out there... just the quickest example I found.

Your not a total spoilsport. There use to be a lot of companies that made anodized rims, my understanding was that this practiced stopped when they figured out braking performance suffered. Obviously there may be a couple of companies left if Odyssey is still making them; but looking in any cycling catalogue or walking into any LBS and I haven't seen any for awhile.

Your not a total spoilsport. There use to be a lot of companies that made anodized rims, my understanding was that this practiced stopped when they figured out braking performance suffered. Obviously there may be a couple of companies left if Odyssey is still making them; but looking in any cycling catalogue or walking into any LBS and I haven't seen any for awhile.

Yeah... BMX Freestyle isn't exactly the most brake-intensive thing either... It does make me wonder, if they're claiming extra durability, why don't we see some fancy Disc-brake-only rim for mountain bikes Anodized for durability reasons? I ask this because I think there's some BMX stuff that's pretty close to snake oil in terms of benefit.

Machined rims DO NOT make for better rims...it's just hype; see: http://sheldonbrown.com/brandt/machined-rims.html

Now some aluminum products were anodized which is a electroplating process, which puts a thin protective lustrous film on the surface of the metal. Sometimes they mix a color dye into the process to give it color you see some aluminum products have like green, gold, blue etc, which included a silver color which would make one think that all aluminum is anodized which isn't true. But rims are not anodized because it compromises the braking performance of the rim, THUS NO ALUMINUM RIM IS COATED OR ANODIZED!!! Neither are most other aluminum components on a bike. In fact most cheaper bikes have their aluminum components colored anodized to get the kids at Wallyworld to look and make their dads look too. Thus non anodized or coated aluminum components have a duller finish, the shinier finish of anodized parts is more of a fishing lure type of appeal-or to catch your eye to make you look and hopefully buy it (the same reason that cheap mini systems at Wallyworlds have flashing lights...they don't do a damm thing except make you look just as a fish looks at a lure).

And bare aluminum does not rapidly develop a white powdery coating, My rims are 8 years old, my bar and stem is about 5 years old, the seat post is 22 or 23 years old and none of this stuff has done this...but I do wax them (not the sides of the rims else stopping may not happen!). The seat post was actually stored for about 15 of those years and when pulled out of the box about 8 years ago it to wasn't not corroded and it had never been waxed. And none of this stuff had any coatings!

My point was not that machining makes for a better rim, but that machining removes any coating that has been applied to it.

And, your comment about waxed rims and stored seatposts is well taken; minimal care will prohibit aluminum corrosion, but once it starts it is ugly and difficult to remove.

However, when you say "NO ALUMINUM RIM IS COATED OR ANODIZED!!!" I must assume you mean on the braking surfaces, but anodizing is hardly limited to cheapie bikes; just look at Rolf, Easton and Bontrager wheels, to mention a few.

Stripping Ano off a stem so colored will definately cause the silver you get to oxidize quickly. Possibly the same for paint.

Silver really shouldn't be hard to find, even on a budget. Check with your LBS, they might even have one about.

Most of the LBS I go into have piles of stems. Sometimes its good to let go of the 'net.

Most of the LBS I go into have piles of stems. Sometimes its good to let go of the 'net.

'Specially for fit items like stems or Seats... any halfway decent shop should let you try out a stem/seat to see how it feels.

My point was not that machining makes for a better rim, but that machining removes any coating that has been applied to it.

And, your comment about waxed rims and stored seatposts is well taken; minimal care will prohibit aluminum corrosion, but once it starts it is ugly and difficult to remove.

However, when you say "NO ALUMINUM RIM IS COATED OR ANODIZED!!!" I must assume you mean on the braking surfaces, but anodizing is hardly limited to cheapie bikes; just look at Rolf, Easton and Bontrager wheels, to mention a few.

First off why would a rim company put a coating on the rim only to machine it off? They wouldn't unless they wanted a black color to show.

Second thing is that if you take care of your bike then aluminum corrosion won't start.

Third I'm not familiar with what Rolf, Easton and Bontrager are doing to put the black on the Aluminum; it could be a coating or it could be anodized on, but you are correct their putting something on it, and you were correct to notice that the black is not where the brake pad touches the rim. Some years ago wheel manufactures were anodizing the entire wheel so they could make blue or gold or whatever rims, and most of those where sold the Wallyworlds of this world.

Some wheel makers use carbon fibre instead of anodized or coated rim to their black color but they also use just bare aluminum where the brake contacts the rim

As an owner of bikes with anodized Mavic MA-40 and Ambrosio Montreal rims, I can attest to the fact that anodized rim sides make for lousy braking. Koolstop brake pads help, but don't solve the problem.

First off why would a rim company put a coating on the rim only to machine it off? They wouldn't unless they wanted a black color to show.

They coat the entire rim because that is easier than masking part of it; then they machine the braking surface to make it uniform (and remove the coating where it's not wanted).

They coat the entire rim because that is easier than masking part of it; then they machine the braking surface to make it uniform (and remove the coating where it's not wanted).

Uniform? They couldn't make uniform rims before they started machining rims about 10 years ago? So for the last at least 50 years all rims were not uniform? You need to read this: http://sheldonbrown.com/brandt/machined-rims.html