Case and plate finishes

[DonnyD]

When plate is laser cut or case is xnc machined, i understand that it needs some kind of finish. Is it enough to just sandblast or i also need to paint it ? Whant to know more about finishes, how they feel, look or does it leave that metal smell on your hands etc.

[xondat]

Finishes are pretty much aesthetics only.

You don't need one, but it will make the plate look a lot nicer.

I would avoid things like paint, or cerakoting, as it will add thickness and may upset the fitment.

[DonnyD]

So I can just sandblast and it wont leave any marks on hands (metal partivles etc.) ?
I work in a warehouse and after touching some metal parts it leaves metal particles and smell.

[ninjadoc]

With Big Blue Saw's Basic Finish the face of the part is cleaned up with a coarse polishing wheel (like ScotchBrite). This produces an even, fairly shiny finish on stainless steel (left) and aluminum (right). The Basic Finish removes all mill identification writing. It also removes any machining marks from the face of the part, including the waterjet "frosting". Some of the deeper marks which were present in the original raw material may be deeper than we can remove with this process.
With this treatment, burrs on the outside convex corners of your part are removed, and most other burrs are reduced somewhat. Burrs can still be left in small holes and in deep inside (convex) corners.[/size][/font]