Both abrasion blasting and buffing have the potential to be performed unevenly.

To achieve a more consistent mechanical finish, run sheet or coil

material through a set of textured rollers, thereby producing an embossed
finish. The most common embossed pattern is called stucco, but leather-grain
and diamond patterns are also available. These textured patterns tend to hide
smudges, scratches, and other minor surface blemishes. Embossing is readily
available on material up to 48 in. [1,220 mm] wide, but finding a facility that
can handle anything wider is difficult.
3.2.5 Cladding
Some wrought aluminum products (sheet and plate, tube, and wire) may receive
a metallurgically bonded coating of high-purity aluminum (such as
1230), or corrosion-resistant aluminum alloy, (such as 7008 and 7072), to
provide improved corrosion resistance or certain finish characteristics (like
reflectivity), or to facilitate brazing. When such a coating is applied for this
purpose, the product is referred to as alclad (sometimes abbreviated ��alc��).
The thickness of the coating is expressed as a percentage of the total thickness
on a side for sheet and plate, the total wall thickness for tube, and the total
cross-sectional area for wire. Tube is clad on either the inside or the outside,
while plate and sheet may be clad on one side or both, but alclad sheet and
plate, unless designated otherwise, is clad on both sides. The only tube commonly
clad is of alloy 3003, and the only wire commonly clad is 5056.
Among sheet and plate, 2014, 2024, 2219, 3003, 3004, 6061, 7050, 7075,
7178, and 7475 are clad. Nominal cladding thicknesses range from 1.5% to
10%. More details are given in Aluminum Standards and Data, Table 6.1
(11). Alloying elements are often added to the base metal to increase its
strength, and the cladding typically has lower strength than the base alloy
being clad. This is enough to affect the overall minimum mechanical properties,
so alclad material has slightly lower design strengths than non-alclad
material of the same alloy and temper. This is accounted for in the minimum
mechanical properties for alclad sheet; some examples are given in Table 3.13.
For all tempers of the 3003 and 3004 alloys, the alclad tensile ultimate
strength is 1 ksi [5 MPa] less than the non-alclad strength.
TABLE 3.13 Alclad vs. Non-Alclad Minimum Strengths
Alloy Temper
Non-Alclad
Ftu (ksi)
Alclad Ftu
(ksi)
Non-Alclad Ftu
(MPa)
Alclad Ftu
(MPa)
3003-H12 17 16 120 115
3003-H14 20 19 140 135
3003-H16 24 23 165 160
3003-H18 27 26 185 180
3004-H32 28 27 190 185
3004-H34 32 31 220 215
3004-H36 35 34 240 235
3004-H38 38 37 260 255
The cost premium for alclad products is a function of the cladding thickness
and the product. Alclad 3004 sheet for roofing and siding costs about
6% more than the non-clad 3004 sheet.