I posted this in the tech forums, but have had no responses, so I thought I would try my luck here.

I want black fork tubes (not sliders). I have done a search and it seems that most people say it cannot be done as powder coating or anodizing will damage seals and get scraped off and look a mess. I came across these forks by American Suspension that have black tubes. Does anyone know how this is done - presumably not powder coat or anodized, so what is the secret? Anyone seen these or know what the story is?

 

I believe the type of treatment you are looking for is called "Parkerizing". lI have attached a link that explains it and shows some examples of it. If you want to see what it looks like close up, this will be easy for you. Go to your local Land Rover dealer's parts department and look at a swivel ball housing for a Defender or a Discovery model. They have this treatment on them and it has that nice black finish.

http://www.shootersolutions.com/parkerizing.html

 

Thanks for the reply, Tom.

Thats a new one to me - I will have a look into it.

Parkerizing - sounds like something invented by a MOD! More of a rocker myself