The BIG weekend tweak!

[Mikeeo]

Brass & aluminum have very similar requirement protocol related to plating and base coats required and can also be a 3 or 4 plate layer foundation. However whereas 6061 aluminum has just under half the tensile strength of brass, 7075 aluminum is 30% higher tensile strength and stronger than brass. S'why its commonly referred to as 'poor man's Titanium.'

I'm still trying to figure out how my metals sample picked up a 1% bauxite content. The primary ore in aluminum in a case void of any aluminum!?! Guess that's why there's a 1% margin for error factored in or I didn't get my sample collecting tap as clean as I thought

Manoet,

How do you check the materials content? Xray fluorescence or something else? If 1 % bauxite may suggest very crappy aluminium ie badly refined bauxite (China produced).
One of the dominating minerals in bauxite is gibbsite (water complex of aluminiumoxide) which is the 'part' where aluminium is extracted from. If not done properly there may be residues. In bauxite about 85% will be aluminiumoxide (Al2O3) and the rest is iron, silicon, titanium oxides etc.
If analyzing through xray diffraction peaks from oxide may occur and should occur if plenty. Aluminium has a natural oxide that is formed up to about 40 Å (4 nm) which after then passivates the 'pure' aluminium hence the matt appearance some time after 'polishing'.

If I will have the time I will cut a piece and have it analyzed by former colleagues at the University.

/Mike