[Tim Baird]

In my experience, masking is the best bet if you already have the hole to the exact dimension and location that you want it. You can sometimes mess it up through reaming.

In terms of lead time, if you're friendly with the company and they don't mind working hard for you, it can be done fast. For the central mass teams, Dav-Tech plating in Marlboro is really good. I've dropped stuff off at 8am and picked it up at 4pm. However, a typically company, depending on the color and batch size, will take 2-4 days.

Also, if you're anodizing very small parts, make some spares. Tiny parts are known for getting lost in the tanks.