6061 has more of a whiteish color and 6063 is more of a shiney silver color like Mark said. 7075 is more shiney than 6063 if it is freshly machined or polished, but it will tarnish more quickly. 2024 is more of a grey color. I have had a milling machine and lathe for the past 20 years and I do a lot of metal work so I can tell by cutting, drilling, filing, or machining a piece what it most likely is, but my recommendation is that if you are not sure you should assume it is not what you think it is.
Brian Kraut Engineering Alternatives, Inc. www.engalt.com -----Original Message----- From: krnet-boun...@mylist.net [mailto:krnet-boun...@mylist.net]On Behalf Of Darren Crompton Sent: Tuesday, February 13, 2007 7:43 AM To: KRnet Subject: Re: KR> 6063 aluminum How can you visually tell the difference between 6061-T6 and 6063? Darren Crompton AUSTRALIA On 2/13/07, Mark Langford <n5...@hiwaay.net> wrote: > > Brian Kraut wrote: > > > Be leary of any metal you get from Home Depot or Lowes if you plan on > > doing > > anythng structural with it. I am not 100% sure what alloy they carry, > but > > it is pretty bright and corrosion resistant which means it is most > likely > > a > > weaker alloy than 6061. > > The aluminum that's sold at Home Depot and that kind of store is usually > 6063, which looks like polished 6061. It's also called "architectural" > grade aluminum, which means it's pretty and won't corrode, but the name is > a > little misleading. It's great for making things look nice, but > structurally > not as strong as 6061-T6, so not the one to use if you're building an > airplane. I fish a few scraps of aluminum out of the recycle bin at work > on > occasion, and although we hardly ever use 6063, I do see a piece now and > then. Like Brian said, it's clearly apparent that it's not 6061, and more > importantly it's real obvious when you drill it, as it cuts like butter > and > the chips are a completely different animal than 6061 chips (smaller and > more crumbly). > > I made a pretty huge pile of chips last night, machining a piece of 4.5" > diameter alumimum round down to 3.96" to make a plug for a Corvair > cylinder > head. This will allow me to pressure test the intake and exhaust valve > sealing capability before installing the head on the engine. It takes the > place of a 94mm cylinder, and bolts to the head to seal off the combustion > chamber. A nice tool to have, and one that nobody sells. I made a tight > fitting 94mm VW piston pin installer last week, which sure beats the old > 15mm Craftsman socket that I've used for the last 30 years for that job! > Another handy tool... > > Mark Langford, Huntsville, Alabama > see KR2S project N56ML at http://home.hiwaay.net/~langford > email to N56ML "at" hiwaay.net > > > _______________________________________ > Search the KRnet Archives at http://www.maddyhome.com/krsrch/index.jsp > to UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@mylist.net > please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html > _______________________________________ Search the KRnet Archives at http://www.maddyhome.com/krsrch/index.jsp to UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to krnet-le...@mylist.net please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html
