Refurbing Manfrotto Tripod Clamps

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Neil
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Hi all,

My Manfrotto tripod Clamps have suffered with excessive paint peel and what appears to be oxidisation, I believe this is mainly due to the sea water that my tripods frequently find themselves in and the surrounding sea-spray... I do rinse the tripods with freshwater after my outings but this issue has still persisted.

I was looking to spray them again but wondered if anyone else had come across this and what they did to refurb the clamps?

I was thinking of wire-wheeling them with my Dremel to get the surfaces clean, then using an etch primer, and finally a coat of black plastic-based spray paint like Plasti Dip...

Any suggestions or alternatives welcome
 

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never had to do that... however magnesium and aluminium alloys are hard to coat satisfactorily, especially so when salt water can get in and corrode from the edges that are not coated.
aluminium that has been hard anodised is far more resistant. But your plan sounds as good as any. That is short of ordering a set of spares from Manfrotto.
But at a cost of over £50 for three, including vat for most of their tripods.

A local engineering paint shop could probably powder coat them. but you still have the problem of the inside edges.
 
You could take up casting and cast and machine a bronze set.
 
That is short of ordering a set of spares from Manfrotto.
But at a cost of over £50 for three, including vat for most of their tripods.

A local engineering paint shop could probably powder coat them. but you still have the problem of the inside edges.

Yeah thats the problem, if I paint them then I'll likely get the coating and oxide problem again, if I buy new then I'll probably get the problem again.

Think I'll proceed with the etch primer and plastic dip, at least that way it's cost be around £15 to refurb and I'll have the experience and materials to do it again if needed.

Thanks for the response btw, much appreciated
 
I'd have thought Plasti Dip would be too soft. How about Hammerite?
 
I mainly went with the Plasti Dip option as thats what the original finish looks like
 
ACF50 is your friend when it comes to protecting stuff from saltwater. It is what the navy and RAF use to prevent corrossion on their aircraft (Anti Corrossion Formula 50) Anyone who is worried about their tripod, or anything else for that matter, it will creep through the metal and protect it. If your finish has an edge, then it will it work inot the unprotected metal and not harm the rubber elements or any type of coating - unlike WD40 which does not do any rubber type of seal any good whatsoever. Plenty of shock absorbers and fork seals on motorbikes ruined very quickly by the action of WD40 on them. It is OK on metal, but don't get it on your wiring or seals! ACF50 is more advanced and is safe on plastics and rubber materials.
 
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