Newly sandblasted Ti parts really light

[The Logical One]

Hi guys,

I recently got some Ti parts (pivots, screws, bolsters, and liners) sandblasted by a local company that specializes is sandblasting and black oxide finishes. I picked up the parts on Friday and the guy who worked on it wasn’t in so I wasn’t able to talk to him about it. But I noticed all the parts had a very light silver appearance to them. I figured they just needed a coat of oil. When I got home I blasted them with some balistol and it helped to darken them a bit. But compared to the typical sand blasted finish I’ve seen on my knives and other blasted Ti parts and it’s definitely a lot lighter.

I specifically told him to make the finish as dark as possible. At this point I’m kinda iffy about having them giving it another go. What I wanna know is, what method/material used during the blasting process dictates the darkness of the finish?

 

[eKretz]

Sandblasting will produce pretty much the same color no matter what you do. To alter the color, another process would need to be used after blasting - such as anodizing. There's no way to alter the color of a material during the blasting by changing parameters - you get the raw material's natural color as it's being abraded by the blasting.

 

[Biochemdawg]

I believe the blasting media/material selected will influence the outcome/appearance.

 

[The Logical One]

Appreciate the response guys.

 

[eKretz]

The grit can affect the appearance/surface roughness, won't affect the color. Virgin metal is virgin metal - it's always the same color.