“Clear” anodizing is really a misnomer, as undyed anodizing is not really clear.
“Clear” anodizing varies from a very light gray for very thin coatings (.0001-.0003″) to a dark olive color for thick Type III coatings (.002 or greater). Very thin clear anodizing (sometimes called “cosmetic” clear) coatings mimic the look of bare aluminum (though the coating is actually slightly gray), hence the term “clear” anodizing. But on thick hardcoated parts, the coloring is anything but clear.
All of these parts above are examples of undyed, “clear” anodizing, the only difference is the thickness of the anodizing!
