Jason's Loaded Ti YoYos: Sovereign and Gold/Silver Tiwalker on p10+ (1/15/12)

[GRAOU]

Wow... Just wow... Speechless!

[jasonwongzero]

Thank you Matthieu!  Repasting the photos at the top for convenience.

[jrodriguez]

That came out great! I love the pink hues - I bet that looks very cool spinning.

[MattB]

Awe#%€*#K!! ... Gal$@#£!!.sp!.. ...
can't...catch..breath...

I'm OK now. I lost it for a minute there. That's incredible!

[Stewie410]

Hmmmmmmm this gives me an idea.
Now to acquire a Ti...


Great job!

[jasonwongzero]

Thanks everyone!  As with most Ti, this is one of those better in person jobs.  It's more yellow and shiny in real life.  What I have learned though is that splashing/stenciling on Ti is harder than with Aluminum.

[R-fly]

Does the Ti anodizing protect the metal like Aluminum anodizing does? (I think.)

I don't believe it does.

Aluminum is a generally soft metal.  That's why beadblasted raw aluminum yoyos scratch easily and lose their blast over time.  Anodizing actually grows a hard crystalline covering on the aluminum surface that is tougher than the underlying raw metal.  This covering protects the surface from wear and scratches.  It also takes in dye which is what provides the color.

Titanium is already a very hard material.  When you anodize titanium you are building a very thin oxide layer on top of the raw Ti, similar to Al.  However, I am not sure if the titanium oxide layer is any 'harder' than the raw titanium.  In any event, any additional protection is really negligible.  The primary purpose of anodizing Ti is to change the color.  Ti color is a function of how light wavelengths react to the base metal and oxide layer.

Jason is right about anodized titanium not protecting the metal. Titanium oxides are actually about the same or slightly softer than elemental titanium depending on which study you want to believe. It can be confusing because there are several crystal structures titanium(IV) oxides can take and they have different properties.

Also want to mention that aluminum oxide is much harder than titanium or titanium oxide so an aluminum anodized yoyo should technically hold up much better than a titanium one although i'm sure the difference isn't that noticable for yoyo purposes.

Even raw aluminum that has not been anodized has an oxide coating that forms and protects the metal but that helps more for protection against corrosion and chemical attack. It is not quite thick enough to protect against scratches but anodizing builds that layer up nice and thick. 2-3 nm vs. 2 microns, thats a thousand times thicker for anodized vs. raw aluminum

[jasonwongzero]

Thanks for chiming in and providing some much needed facts. 

I think the key point is that so far, for the purposes of yoyo play, I've pretty much found anodized Ti and anodized Al to be equivalent in durability.  I was using a rainboflaged Sovereign as my daily carry for weeks and it looks the same as the first day I ano'd it.

[R-fly]

yeah even though the oxide might be slightly softer than elemental ti it is still harder than steel and about 1000 times harder than raw aluminum so I'd say thats plenty durable.

[ratfacedudeguy]

yeah even though the oxide might be slightly softer than elemental ti it is still harder than steel and about 1000 times harder than raw aluminum so I'd say thats plenty durable.

When you say 1000 times harder than raw aluminum, are we talking 6000 or 7000 series?

[The Joshinator]

Not to mention that aluminum anodization is same mineral as sapphire and ruby, both of which are known for their hardness and durability and are the components of "jewel bearings" in fine watches. So yeah, our yoyos are pretty safe.

[R-fly]

yeah even though the oxide might be slightly softer than elemental ti it is still harder than steel and about 1000 times harder than raw aluminum so I'd say thats plenty durable.

When you say 1000 times harder than raw aluminum, are we talking 6000 or 7000 series?

Sorry that was an exaggeration on my part. The common rutile form of titanium oxide is about 8 times harder than 6000 series aluminum which is significant. 800 kg/mm*2 vs 100 kg/mm*2 on the vickers scale. Aluminum oxide is about 2700 kg/mm*2 so it blows both away. We are just talking about hardness here but things like tensile strength, fracture toughness, fatigue strength, etc....all those numbers would come into play too when talking about durability.

[MattB]

I imagine what's under the surface matters also. I would guess that a decent ding is easier to put in an aluminum yoyo than a titanium one.

[R-fly]

I imagine what's under the surface matters also. I would guess that a decent ding is easier to put in an aluminum yoyo than a titanium one.

Absolutely. Otherwise a raw aluminum would be no different than an anodized one since they both have oxide surface layers, but since anodized has a much thicker oxide layer it is more durable. Al oxide would be more scratch resistant than titanium but I'm betting ti is more ding and dent resistant.

EDIT: I didn't mean to try and turn your thread into a ti vs. Al discussion. I just wanted to add my perspective and knowledge as a chemist to the ti anodization discussion. I do research in surface chemistry so these things interest me greatly. I hope you didn't mind the interjections Jason. By the way your work is amazing.

[oldyoyoguy]

Loaded YoYo: Blue splashed Sunset TiPhiter 2

Beautiful!  The pinks remind me of an acid wash.

[attybud]

Wow!  This looks amazing on my big PC screen.  Until now, I have only been able to view it on my iphone!  Jason, my friend, you have outdone yourself!  Many thanks. 

Respectfully,
B

[jasonwongzero]

It's been awhile since I've given a Ti update... but here's one for YoYoGeezer.

Loaded YoYo: Rainbowflage Sovereign
This is probably my nicest Rainbowflage to date.  I have figured out a few techniques to provide more control over certain colors, specifically the yellow-oranges and the bright neon greens.  (Those are hard colors to reproduce because they either tend to be fleeting or have a high risk of flaws.)  This is also one of those "looks better in person" finishes.  The Ti has a metallic shine that you can't capture in a flat image.

[ratfacedudeguy]

WOW!

[moefv]

It's been awhile since I've given a Ti update... but here's one for YoYoGeezer.

Loaded YoYo: Rainbowflage Sovereign
This is probably my nicest Rainbowflage to date.  I have figured out a few techniques to provide more control over certain colors, specifically the yellow-oranges and the bright neon greens.  (Those are hard colors to reproduce because they either tend to be fleeting or have a high risk of flaws.)  This is also one of those "looks better in person" finishes.  The Ti has a metallic shine that you can't capture in a flat image.

OMGosh that is awesome!!! Great job Jason

[cubemaster21]

It's been awhile since I've given a Ti update... but here's one for YoYoGeezer.

Loaded YoYo: Rainbowflage Sovereign
This is probably my nicest Rainbowflage to date.  I have figured out a few techniques to provide more control over certain colors, specifically the yellow-oranges and the bright neon greens.  (Those are hard colors to reproduce because they either tend to be fleeting or have a high risk of flaws.)  This is also one of those "looks better in person" finishes.  The Ti has a metallic shine that you can't capture in a flat image.