anodized aluminum not gold

[joem]

I read a thread a number of months back about a newbie wanting to know if an item is plated gold or anodized aluminum. A quick water in a lye water solution will tell the tale
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQq5XhTH46E&feature=digest_sat
thanks to samuel-a

 

[Lino1406]

Right, but it may be not so quick...