Topic: Upper front shock bracket finish

[mach1er-rob]

     I understand the finish should be natural which I assume is phospate and oil.  I refinished the ones for my 71 with manganese phosphate and they look darker than what I see in photos of other cars.  Should they be dark, light or anywhere in between? 

[J_Speegle]

     I understand the finish should be natural which I assume is phospate and oil.  I refinished the ones for my 71 with manganese phosphate and they look darker than what I see in photos of other cars.

Guessing these "other cars" are restored ones

Should they be dark, light or anywhere in between?

Hard to tell with out seeing what you ended up with since every batch can be different and Mag base Phosphate can come out very dark. Have seen plenty of redone ones in zinc phosphate that were too light IMHO

My description would be a medium tot medium dark is what I look for.

Will take some pictures of ones I just did on my 71 if I can find my camera

[mach1er-rob]

     I blasted the parts and cooked the parts in a heated solution of manganese phosphate for 7 min.  Should I be able to get a lighter finish using the same process with phosphoric acid instead of manganese phosphate? 

[J_Speegle]

Have never used acid so I can't offer an opinion on that process or its effects


Here are some shots (please ignore the hardware of how mine turned out - flash and no flash

[jwc66k]

     I blasted the parts and cooked the parts in a heated solution of manganese phosphate for 7 min.  Should I be able to get a lighter finish using the same process with phosphoric acid instead of manganese phosphate?

I "cook" my parts at 185F degrees minimum but for only 2 to 3 minutes. Apply a heavy coating of oil as a final step. The picture is what I got for a pair of 64-66 V8 non p/s center links I did last year using a magnesium phosphate bath. What I've found is that over time they will darken a bit.
Jim

[mach1er-rob]

     Thanks for the help.  I will try cooking the parts for for 2-3 min and see if they come out lighter.  Jeff, did you use zinc phosphate on your brackets?   

[J_Speegle]

......................Jeff, did you use zinc phosphate on your brackets?

Yes