i'm in the middle of building my jato. i really like the blue color the chassis comes with, but i can just see the scratches that r going to go in it, and make it look like crap. so, my question is has anyone ever de-anodized they're chassis so that the scratches dont show as easily? how did it come out? is it even worth doing? thanks

ppl have done it, its been on this forum quite recently. u strip it with oven cleaner for a couple of minutes then rinse, then polish. sounds easy in theory but i no id mess it rite up.

try here. [link=http://mysite.wanadoo-members.co.uk/MaxxskunkworksU.K/new_page_2.htm]removing anodizing[/link]

I've done it to my X-Cellerator, and my old Mammoth. I wouldn't say that it helps hide the scratches, they are still visible, especially when you polish it to a mirror finish. It does look damn good though.

thanks guys. i think i'll give it a try

I believe removing the anodizing weakens the aluminum. I'm not an expert but I believe there was a discussion on this about a year ago.

Nope, not true. Anodizing doesn't add any strength to aluminum. It's hard anodizing that adds the strength, there is a difference.

valve, was it hard to get that end finish on your chassis. im thinking about doing this but i have fears that portions of my chassis will turn black or not look the same as the rest of it.

If you leave the oven cleaner on too long, it will start to turn the aluminum black. Unless you leave the oven cleaner on for over 10 minutes, the black can easily be removed with the polish. If you don't like how it turned out after using the oven cleaner, go over the whole chassis with 1000 grit sand paper, then polish. I hand polished that chassis for an hour to get it to shine that well.

here is an article about de-anodizing

thanks for all the replies guys, and thank u djv for the article.

i have one more question. i know its way off topic, but what servo do u guys recommend using in the jato? i've had experiances with the servo it comes stock with in my tmaxx, and i didn't care for it to much. i was thinking the hitec HS 645MG. thats what i replaced the stock servo in my tmaxx with, and i really like it. i just dont know if it will be overkill though since the jato is so much smaller than a maxx. if not that one, then what do u guys suggest? thanks.

Get the HiTec 625. It's the same as the 645, but geared for more speed. I still has a bunch of torque, and it is very fast. The 625 is great for the steering, as well as throttle/brake.

thanks valve. i guess thats what i'll be getting then[8D]

2.5driver, and others, I read in one of the rc mags about cleaning product called "Greased Lightning" that was actually very easy to use to remove ano from alum. parts. The person writing the article left the parts they were de-anodizing for about 40 minutes in the cleaner, then washed and wiped them off (there was a residue left). I recall him stating that the silver color was consistent of the parts but he decided to use Mother's polish to really make them shine. Just my 2 cents. It is what I am going to try on some of my parts, when the time comes.

Anodizing only add's to the corrosion resistance of the metal...it doesn't make it any stronger or weaker for that matter....anodizing is basically protecting the metal a little more. And there is no such way of making metal stronger by anodizing it either....it's fine to remove it..worst can happen is it'll corrode faster.