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Macbook Pro unibody, edges' paint is wiped out
- Thread starter akcasoy
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It's called pitting. When the anodizing gets rubbed and eroded away by your hand and the oils, it leaves the aluminum exposed. Aluminum itself does not hold up well when directly exposed to air, which is why it is anodized to give it this protection. This reacts with the air and causing "pitting". Not really anything you can do about it.
I had protection on the palm rest area. However, the sweat managed to enter the area between the MBP and the film from the edge. This caused problem only near the edge of my MBP.
Exactly. This was a relatively widespread problem with the PowerBooks.
That looks like it could be caused by sweat, but the pictures the OP posted looks as if there are actual indentations in the aluminum as if something cut into it...very strange...
Is it possible to buy the anodizing to cover the exposed area?
Maybe it is better to use an external keyboard at home to reduce the risk.
The positive thing about the anodization rubbing off the edges is that the edges become less sharp after some time of using the MB. But it surely should not go as deep as experienced by the OP. I guess he either has more aggressive sweat or his skin is rather rough (construction worker taking his MB to work 
).
).Anodizing is a very complicated chemical/electric process, its not something you can just paint on. You could put some very small amounts of clear paint in those holes to stop the metal from reacting with the air.
Once the anodizing wears off you will start to get little holes like these, which looks pretty similar to what is going on with his edges. Poor design imo.
Anodizing is a very complicated chemical/electric process, its not something you can just paint on. You could put some very small amounts of clear paint in those holes to stop the metal from reacting with the air.
Once the anodizing wears off you will start to get little holes like these, which looks pretty similar to what is going on with his edges. Poor design imo.
Thanks for the info. There are sprays to protect shoes, handbags, etc from dirt and rain. Is there anything that we can spray on the MBP?
Metal polish not only shines but protects bear metals from air as well. With this being on the edge i dont think there is much you can do.
I would put clear nail polish so that it fills in the holes and then wipe the rest of it off. Hopefully it will dry and fill in the holes.
You shouldn't be too worried about rubbing off the rest of the anodizing, the edge is the weakest part.
It's silly to complain about something as trivial as this. Grow some .......... and learn to deal with stuff.
JohnG
I am starting to have the same exact issue in the same exact place after just over a year. Although it is visually unappealing, what really bothers me about it is that it hurts my hand.then aluminum is worn out.. when i touch i can feel the roughness through inside. You think this is normal? Or should i send this back to service?
This is the image
this is definitely NOT from physical damage.
Have you done anything to stop it from spreading or fixing it? I'm curious to know your results.
I think Apple have some serious issues lately with the quality and finish of their anodising. I recently returned two brand new MBP's (my main issue was actually misalignment) both had really shoddy anodising, on one of them you could actually see the shiny finish of the bare aluminium through the anodising! The 2 we had bough in the previous year were of a much higher standard of finish, I hate to admit it but I think Apple's quality has taken a real downturn with its popularity rising over the last few years.
Lol you think the unibody is painted... You must have zero experience whatsoever with machining metals. After the unibody is machined it goes through a process that gives it that matte texture. Most likely a finish sand to get rid of the machining ridges and a media blast of some sort. There is no fawking paint on the damn thing. The OP probably just has a bunch of sweaty hand cheese built up on there. Get so rubbing alcohol and clean it. That or somehow he managed to get rid of whatever surface coating (anodizing maybe) Apple is using to keep the aluminum from oxidizing... I'm guessing he wears a watch?
This.
Some kind of watch or jewelery is possibly nicking it.
The macbook pro is definitely not painted LOL.
There are different finishes of aluminum without using paint.
It is anodized like others have mentioned in this thread.
Apparently that's you, as you've never seen a piece of anodized aluminum before.
If you knew what you were talking about, you would know that anodization makes the veneer an actual part of the metal. That's why the coating isn't included in any mechanical tolerances. It makes the surface of the metal harder and does not chip as the powder coating on the unibodies (and the classic chassis that preceeded it).
And what machining process is that?
Powder coating is more of a paint than an anodization.
If it was anodized wearing a watch would not matter, as anodization does not chip.
Good game all, thanks for trying.
Ok. You seem to be 'the man'!! Why dont you post a link of some sort showing this process of how they paint the macbook pros?
Aluminum is a soft metal. it will get nics (knicks? lol) try it if you really wanna know. Buy a piece of aluminum and take a piece of metal and bang it. Itll do the same thing.
I work with aluminum and its anodized (not the 'painted kind' LOL) and does the same thing if you bump it or scratch it.
Anodizing DOES chip (not flake, but if you hit it with a harder metal... chip chip chip) and wear off eventually. And yes, jewelry will wear off anodizing... stainless is harder than anodized aluminum, duh.
Guys, ignore miles. As usual, and as has been well established, he's incorrect. The fact he has an air of patronizing superiority makes it all the more amusing for those of us with backgrounds in chemical engineering, materials engineering, chemistry, or aluminum machining.
You are wrong miles. It is you who doesn't have any idea what you are talking about. The machines are anodized, end of story. Just swallow some pride, suck it up, and admit you are wrong and clearly lack any type of technical background.
You are wrong miles. It is you who doesn't have any idea what you are talking about. The machines are anodized, end of story. Just swallow some pride, suck it up, and admit you are wrong and clearly lack any type of technical background.
I know for a fact that the aluminium on a MBP is anodized.
why because when i got scratches on the bottom of the MBP near the serial number i wanted to remove them but if i had so i would have wrecked the anodizing resulting in a nasty blue spot.
why because when i got scratches on the bottom of the MBP near the serial number i wanted to remove them but if i had so i would have wrecked the anodizing resulting in a nasty blue spot.
I recommend you buy one of those palmrest stickers that you can just stick on, even on the trackpad. They come in many textures and colors, some are rough, others are smooth. Just get one of them and you'll be more or less fine. I don't know if they sell em' in the apple store.