Fw: [DeTomaso] Black Chrome

[Larry - Ohio Time Corp.]

Hi Fred,

Gary's shop (and work) is quite impressive too.

I was able to pick up an HP lab grade variable (amp & volts) power supply 
for under $200 on eBay for my future plating projects.

Larry (was at the Corvette plant and museum last month) - Cleveland


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "F. & D. Terry" <gt5s at bcpl.net>
To: "GW" <gow2 at rc-tech.net>
Cc: <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 22, 2006 10:48 PM
Subject: Re: Fw: [DeTomaso] Black Chrome


> Gary,
>
> Quite impressive. I am more cramped for space and must fumble around with 
> everything but achieve good results. Is it possible to get a circuit 
> diagram of your plater. I use a variable transformer with 4 diodes but I 
> feel I should have some sort of smoothing capacitors.
>
> Fred T.
>
> GW wrote:
>> Here is my setup Fred:
>>
>> http://www.rc-tech.net/per2/pla.jpg
>>
>> I think the Zinc has by far been the most useful.
>>
>> Gary
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> F. & D. Terry wrote:
>>
>>> Both aluminum and zinc can be electroplated. Aluminum oxidizes as soon 
>>> as it is exposed to air and must first be Zincated or plated with an 
>>> electroless nickel. Once treated, a layer of flash copper is then 
>>> applied. In commercial shops, this usually involves a cyanide plating 
>>> bath which is deadly if not properly handled, however, other solutions 
>>> are available to the hobbyist and small plater.
>>>
>>> Caswells provides chemicals to the hobbyist and offers a flash copper or 
>>> copper strike that will coat lead, pot metal, steel, pewter, ZINC, 
>>> brass, ZINCATED ALUMINUM, stainless steel, tin and copper. This flash 
>>> copper eliminates the use of cyanide strike coats.
>>>
>>> Once a flash copper is plated, then a soft acid copper can be plated. 
>>> This soft copper can be built to a thickness of 1/8" which can then be 
>>> sanded to level the surface and fill shallow pitting. The surfaced 
>>> copper is then polished and a bright nickel is applied over the copper. 
>>> The nickel is what provides the shine in chrome plating. A thin layer of 
>>> chrome then follows to protect the shiny nickel.
>>>
>>> I recently toured a few platers in my area to decide which company I 
>>> will use for the over $10,000 of chrome plating necessary to restore my 
>>> '54 Corvette. The process described above is a generalization of the 
>>> method most of the shops use to refinish chrome.
>>>
>>> I do my own zinc, copper and "cad" plating which is really a process 
>>> that looks like cad but really is not. True cadmium plating involves 
>>> dangerous cyanide baths I choose to leave alone.
>>>
>>> Fred T.
>>>
>>> JDeRyke at aol.com wrote:
>>>
>>>> In a message dated 10/22/06 12:17:34 PM, shawkins6 at houston.rr.com 
>>>> writes:
>>>>
>>>> << The place that did mine didn't call it black chrome although it's 
>>>> the identical look.  They polished the gills and the finish was sprayed 
>>>> on. >>
>>>>
>>>> Electroplating cannot be done directly on aluminum or zinc castings 
>>>> since they rapidly dissolve in acidic plating solutions. To chrome 
>>>> plate aluminum for instance, the part must be coated with something 
>>>> smooth that conducts electricity yet does not dissolve in the acid 
>>>> plating solution. Then the chrome is applied to that surface similar to 
>>>> how they plate plastic, except the penalty for pin-holes is more 
>>>> severe- the part disappears!  More complicated & expensive 'cause of 
>>>> the several extra necessary steps. My platers handbook says 
>>>> black-chrome is an electroplate system that can be applied over regular 
>>>> chrome, so I'd think they must somehow mask off the light alloy gills, 
>>>> then plate. I'd think you could get much the same look more simply by 
>>>> using one of the various chemical kits for applying 'black oxide' to 
>>>> gun barrels. These are normally alkaline-based so little or no damage 
>>>> should result. Or, simply polishing the things and carefully painting 
>>>> them semi-glass black.... FWIW- J DeRyke
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