How can I strip down the color of a mask?

[sd181612]

I'm trying to decide if I should buy a black mask on eBay (due to its low price), but I don't really like the color. What do you guys/gals suggest I do in order to remove the original coating?

[Thunderheads]

7 minutes ago, sd181612 said:

I'm trying to decide if I should buy a black mask on eBay (due to its low price), but I don't really like the color. What do you guys/gals suggest I do in order to remove the original coating?

Send it to Mask-It sports!!!!

[Man_In_Black]

The easiest thing to do is to have it sandblasted. It's a 10 minute job for most shops and won't affect the metal beneath. It's usually pretty cheap, too. After that, I'd suggest powder coating it in the color of your choice although you could leave the bare metal if the mask is of titanium or aluminum, as their oxides will coat and protect the metal.

[sd181612]

Thank you @Thunderheads and @Man_In_Black. Greatly appreciate your responses, will surely check them both out.

[MadMax]

@Man_In_Black is correct, @sd181612, the best way to remove existing paint from a metal item like that is media blasting. We call it media because it may not be sand – depending on where, who, and how, it may be anything from sand and silica to nut shells and baking soda ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abrasive_blasting#Media ).

You may not like what you find once you blast that stuff off. Most vinyl-dipped masks are done this way so as to cover up some exceptionally ugly welds, butt-joints and splines. It all depends on which manufacturer you've got making that mask in your hands. So too, you'll want to note to us which mask you're getting, because if the construct material is Aluminum (Diamond uses this in their DFM-ix3's) or Titanium, it's not powder coating that's needed, but anodizing, which is a different process. Both of these metals benefit from forming their own oxidation layer (skin) naturally, often with seconds or minutes. The resulting natural color is silvery; to make it different colors, the metal is chemically bathed and then an electrical charge suspends the oxidation process while a tint is introduced in liquid form. Charge is removed and oxidation resumes, but with that tint now infused into the oxidation layer. One-off anodizing gets expensive, and is most economical when done on large batches of items and units.

Powder coating is, itself, an involving process, but everything is dry – there are no liquids involved (unless you pickle iron or steel, so as to get some really tenacious rust and corrosion off). Steel itself takes a significant amount of time to oxidize and corrode, all accelerated by water and liquids. So, powder coating is done dry, with the bared metal item given a positive charge while a special gun blows, shoots or dusts the color powder, applying a negative charge to the particles as they exit the nozzle. The two charges attract and bind. Then, the charge is removed and the item is baked for a few hours. Completed, the powder coating is fused to the metal and is the surface, much more long-lasting than paint, which is merely upon the surface.

Powder coating can be done for one-offs if you have the proper tools. Obviously, it makes sense to do several items at once, but you aren't wasting chemicals – like in anodizing – if you only do one; you're just losing time. Now, @Thunderheads gives you the guy who specializes in masks – Tony Letizio and MaskIt. His starting cost is $35, which is an absolute bargain.

[sd181612]

Thank you @MadMax for the detailed description. This is the mask I'm getting and hope to remove its coating. Seller claimed it to be aluminum, but I've never heard of a Nike aluminum.

[LittleBlue]

12 minutes ago, sd181612 said:

Thank you @MadMax for the detailed description. This is the mask I'm getting and hope to remove its coating. Seller claimed it to be aluminum, but I've never heard of a Nike aluminum.

Looks like a Nike steel to me

[sd181612]

One more question guys, do scratches wear off with sandblasting/powder coating? Because this one seems like it has some ( quite a few) scratches.

[MadMax]

39 minutes ago, sd181612 said:

Thank you @MadMax for the detailed description. This is the mask I'm getting and hope to remove its coating. Seller claimed it to be aluminum, but I've never heard of a Nike aluminum.

Indeed, @LittleBlue, that is a Nike Steel – not quite the unicorn of its Titanium cousin, but still exceedingly rare. And it looks like it's in very good shape, all things considered.

You can tell, color aside (Titaniums are usually left natural), by the ends of the wire itself and the welds. Titanium (and aluminum, for that matter) wire is solid, thus the ends would be blunt. The welds will be much much cleaner, as it takes a precision welding torch to execute. Steel, in this case hollow, tubing will show clipped & tapered or plugged ends and the welds will be less refined – chunkier, in a way. You may or may not, but often do, hear "burring balls" rolling around inside these masks, leftover from cut and weld residue trapped inside the tubes when they were closed.

That Nike has a dipped-on paint job. It's not the gloppy, pathetic crap that Wilson and Rawlings used to put on their masks, but it is still thicker than it need be. That needs to be media blasted off... or burned off! Ask Johnny Storm ( @Majordave ) about that sometime. The scratches you are seeing are in that paint jacketing and will be removed when the jacketing is blasted or burned off. 

What color would you like to put it to? @JoHart10 sent a Nike Steel off to MaskIt to be done in a supersexy pewter-gunmetal metallic... and then sold it to me. It's gorgeous. Jo also sent another one to MaskIt and it came back bright silver, and now @Stk004 has that one. 

[sd181612]

@MadMax I would like to leave its natural silvery steely color. Thank you all guys. Really appreciate it.

[Stk004]

1 hour ago, MadMax said:

Indeed, @LittleBlue, that is a Nike Steel – not quite the unicorn of its Titanium cousin, but still exceedingly rare. And it looks like it's in very good shape, all things considered.

You can tell, color aside (Titaniums are usually left natural), by the ends of the wire itself and the welds. Titanium (and aluminum, for that matter) wire is solid, thus the ends would be blunt. The welds will be much much cleaner, as it takes a precision welding torch to execute. Steel, in this case hollow, tubing will show clipped & tapered or plugged ends and the welds will be less refined – chunkier, in a way. You may or may not, but often do, hear "burring balls" rolling around inside these masks, leftover from cut and weld residue trapped inside the tubes when they were closed.

That Nike has a dipped-on paint job. It's not the gloppy, pathetic crap that Wilson and Rawlings used to put on their masks, but it is still thicker than it need be. That needs to be media blasted off... or burned off! Ask Johnny Storm ( @Majordave ) about that sometime. The scratches you are seeing are in that paint jacketing and will be removed when the jacketing is blasted or burned off. 

What color would you like to put it to? @JoHart10 sent a Nike Steel off to MaskIt to be done in a supersexy pewter-gunmetal metallic... and then sold it to me. It's gorgeous. Jo also sent another one to MaskIt and it came back bright silver, and now @Stk004 has that one. 

I can confirm that it is quite beautiful. Oh hey I can hear the burning balls rolling around too! 

Edited August 2, 2016 by Stk004
Burning balls.

[sd181612]

Thanks for all the help guys. Like I said greatly appreciated. 

[Thunderheads]

Send it to Tony @ Mask-It Sports ....... can't beat the price and the product! Tony does one hell of a job!

[Aging_Arbiter]

14 hours ago, sd181612 said:

One more question guys, do scratches wear off with sandblasting/powder coating? Because this one seems like it has some ( quite a few) scratches.

Once powder coated, it is ALMOST indestructible (in regards to scratches and such)

[Thunderheads]

@sd181612 .... this used to look like yours!  I sent this to Tony @ Mask-it ...

[sd181612]

Thank you all, but I guess the mask just wasn't meant to be. Seller backed out after final offer was accepted. But thank you anyways guys.

[gnhbua93]

Link to the eBay auction. What was the final offer?

[sd181612]

Seller had it at 99 I threw 80 just to see if I could get it, counteroffer was 85 by seller, I accepted.

[gnhbua93]

You might have a case.

[codizzle]

@sd181612 .... this used to look like yours!  I sent this to Tony @ Mask-it ...

That looks great! Is it any unique color? Or is it just silver?

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