Electroplating

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

I'm considering buying one of the zinc plating kits from ebay to have a go at plating some bits and bobs, the main thing I want to do are my wheel nuts, as they are bare steel at the moment and quickly look s*itty.

 

 

Has anyone had a go at this, I've been looking on ebay and there are some basic kits for around £60 which look like they will do what I need.

 

Any experience helpful

 

Thanks

Tom

[Ryan 99]

Those kits are crap. You get a really poor finish unless you spend hours scrubbing the parts until they're cleaner than new, and you still only get a mediocre finish unless you get lucky, and it doesn't doesn't last very long either.

[CosKev 16]

Zinc plating on wheel nuts is a waste of time if you use TFR/Wonder wheels etc,soon knackers it

 

Find yourself a professional platers local to you,my local place will chrome plate 1.9 Gti wheel bolts for £1 each

 

That includes acid dip/cleaning them up

 

The finish is amazing

[Tom Fenton 1,542]

Thanks chaps.

 

I did find a local place who did chrome, but they wanted something like £5 a wheel nut!!

 

I'll keep looking.

[Redtop 14 2 Cars]

Better just to find a plating place local to yourself. Thats what I did. I clean my bolts/brackets etc with the same acid they do before plating, before I sent it to them. Sometimes the parts aren't steeped long enough to clean them right and thats why I do it. I must go and look the container, but think it's 37% hydrochloric acid I use.

 

Take all the paint/grease off the parts and polish up the parts that are abit rough and you will get a better part once plated. The parts will rust very quickly once washed off with water but it's only surface rust and they will take that off easily before it's plated. Nearly sure there are some examples of my parts in the members car works section where I have a miami blue 1.6 gti.

Edited September 12, 2010 by Redtop

[Atari Boy 11]

Better just to find a plating place local to yourself. Thats what I did. I clean my bolts/brackets etc with the same acid they do before plating, before I sent it to them. Sometimes the parts aren't steeped long enough to clean them right and thats why I do it. I must go and look the container, but think it's 37% hydrochloric acid I use.

 

Take all the paint/grease off the parts and polish up the parts that are abit rough and you will get a better part once plated. The parts will rust very quickly once washed off with water but it's only surface rust and they will take that off easily before it's plated. Nearly sure there are some examples of my parts in the members car works section where I have a miami blue 1.6 gti.

 

Sorry to hijack the thread Tom, but this sounds interesting. Exactly what acid do you use and where can one get it from?

Many thanks

[CosKev 16]

Sorry to hijack the thread Tom, but this sounds interesting. Exactly what acid do you use and where can one get it from?

Many thanks

 

This Deox C is meant to be good

 

http://www.bilthamber.com/deoxc.html

 

Not tried it myself yet,I've been using vinegar

[Redtop 14 2 Cars]

Sorry to hijack the thread Tom, but this sounds interesting. Exactly what acid do you use and where can one get it from?

Many thanks

 

 

The container I have is about 40litres. Checked tonight and it is 36% hydrochloric acid. Coincidently it's the same supplier as the crowd I use to plate gets their chemicals in N.I here. Bound to be someone on the mainland stocking it too. I keep it outside and use it in a well ventilated area with gloves and that. Have a container that I put fresh stuff into and then smaller tubs with holes in the base that the parts go into. Just submerge them in the stuff and it fizzes alot. Brings out clean bare metal. Wash it off with water and blow it off with an airline and put it in a box for the platers. You can spray it with wd40 to help control the rust but it doesn't really matter. Normally 2-3 days later it's getting plated.

 

As I said it does lift heavy oil, just clean that off with petrol and brush in a basin or paint. I just use a wire brush on an angle grinder or bench grinder to remove the paint and polish up rougher parts. It all results in a better finish when the parts come back from the platers. I know a guy close to me that has numerous concourse escorts does the same as me, so it does work. Ive done about 7 complete cars worth of components this way. Normally just hand a big bucket to the platers and it's about 30-40 quid. Ive been doing this for the past 5 years now. Think other people on here do it too like Jord [Andy]. He may be able to recommend someone to do the parts on the mainland?

[CosKev 16]

The container I have is about 40litres. Checked tonight and it is 36% hydrochloric acid. Coincidently it's the same supplier as the crowd I use to plate gets their chemicals in N.I here. Bound to be someone on the mainland stocking it too. I keep it outside and use it in a well ventilated area with gloves and that. Have a container that I put fresh stuff into and then smaller tubs with holes in the base that the parts go into. Just submerge them in the stuff and it fizzes alot. Brings out clean bare metal. Wash it off with water and blow it off with an airline and put it in a box for the platers. You can spray it with wd40 to help control the rust but it doesn't really matter. Normally 2-3 days later it's getting plated.

 

As I said it does lift heavy oil, just clean that off with petrol and brush in a basin or paint. I just use a wire brush on an angle grinder or bench grinder to remove the paint and polish up rougher parts. It all results in a better finish when the parts come back from the platers. I know a guy close to me that has numerous concourse escorts does the same as me, so it does work. Ive done about 7 complete cars worth of components this way. Normally just hand a big bucket to the platers and it's about 30-40 quid. Ive been doing this for the past 5 years now. Think other people on here do it too like Jord [Andy]. He may be able to recommend someone to do the parts on the mainland?

 

Do you heat the acid at all??????

 

Platers I go to use hot acid dip to clean up

[Redtop 14 2 Cars]

I don't heat the acid I use coskev. Ive never seen my stuff being done at the platers though. I just drop it off and collect a few days later. Normally steep the stuff on a Sunday and drop it off on a Monday or Tuesday. The extra prep work really pays in the end results is all I can say.

[dale205mills 39 7 Cars]

This little lot cost me £35 pound to replate, I let them sit in brick cleaner for a few days and used a wire wheel to clean them up.

[Bogsye 22]

Tom - Save your money and don't buy a kit to do it yourself. I've been there and done it myself and it is much trickier than you'd imagine. It started out okay, but as the Ph balance of the tank goes off it is difficult to get it sorted. (For an amateur). More than the money, it was the sheer labour involved in cleaning each nut to a decent level, and then the plating itself.

 

In the end I sent all my fasteners to Avon Electroplating and got them to do all my engine parts, just like Dale's photos above. Cost me about the same too.

They do seem to do other types of plating that may suit what you need.

 

http://www.avonelectroplating.co.uk/

 

Brian

[Daviewonder 533 3 Cars]

This little lot cost me £35 pound to replate, I let them sit in brick cleaner for a few days and used a wire wheel to clean them up.

 

 

What was the name of the company that did these Dale, they look good and I would like to get some bits done some time.

[SurGie 54]

Are they galvanized ?

[dale205mills 39 7 Cars]

The company that did then for me is called Macro developments dont be put out by the website as they are a small company, with relly nice blokes working there, ho will help and try new things any way they can.

 

The parts are zinc plated, just like factory.

[CosKev 16]

Not trying to put a downer on your parts,they do look great,but the Zinc passivate will only last a few months if you use the car in all weathers on things like shocker bolts

Ok if its a show/summer car

I had some and they were rusty again after few months on car

There are better/harder wearing types of plating,but you don't get the gold colour then

[dale205mills 39 7 Cars]

Not trying to put a downer on your parts,they do look great,but the Zinc passivate will only last a few months if you use the car in all weathers on things like shocker bolts

Ok if its a show/summer car

I had some and they were rusty again after few months on car

There are better/harder wearing types of plating,but you don't get the gold colour then

 

No downer there mate, My 205 will be lucky if it moves once a month and I only tax it six months a year. The only distance it go's is pugfest and basingstoke festival of transport, rest of time it will only have a lap round portsmouth.

 

Spend more time cleaning the bloody thing

[Daviewonder 533 3 Cars]

Not trying to put a downer on your parts,they do look great,but the Zinc passivate will only last a few months if you use the car in all weathers on things like shocker bolts

Ok if its a show/summer car

I had some and they were rusty again after few months on car

There are better/harder wearing types of plating,but you don't get the gold colour then

 

Is it possible to use one type of plating on top of another? that way you would get the correct colour and it would last longer.

[1 FAT PUG 39]

There are better/harder wearing types of plating,but you don't get the gold colour then

 

unless you get then copper plated

 

 

tom, if you get then kit pop your bolts over and ill put them on the polisher to make them shiney