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Procedure For Brush Plating
Stainless
Steel Items
If you determine that the surface you are plating is stainless steel,
you can achieve an excellent gold plated finish by following a few additional
steps to insure that the finish will have maximum adhesion. This procedure
is assuming you are brush plating a stainless steel item using a fully
automatic plating system such as the Gold
Star or Gold Wizard.
For other systems, you may need to consult the manufacturer for
procedures such as electro-cleaning etc.
- Polish the surface
using an abrasive metal polish, (such as Gold Plating Services'
Ultra Polish or Mother's Mag & Aluminum Polish). Polish the entire surface to be plated. There will be a
black residue on the rag or cloth you are using, part of which is the
removed oxide layer. Be sure to continue polishing (if a high luster
is desired) using clean towels until the finish has a high luster or the
luster you want on the final finish.
- Wash or degrease the polished surface with a degreaser such as Simple Green, 409
Spray Cleaner, or Ivory Liquid in hot water. Using a stiff brush is
recommended to remove all polish residues from any cracks or depressions
in the surface.
NOTE: If the surface can
be totally de-greased without electro-cleaning then the following step can be
skipped. You will know if the surface is totally degreased and clean by
looking for water breaks after rinsing. If the surface is totally clean,
then the rinse water will sheet off evenly over the entire surface and won't
bead up in isolated areas.
- Electro Clean
the part if necessary, this is done by changing the polarity of the chrome stripper wand by placing the polarity
reversing switch in the "ELECTRO CLEAN" or down position. This switch is
located to the left of the activator meter. This will give the chrome
stripper a positive charge relative to the common and will allow electro
cleaning without affecting the chrome component of the surface. Ground the surface with
the common and electro clean by wiping as if it you were trying to
remove chrome.
- Re-set
the chrome handle polarity.
When you have completed electro cleaning make sure you return the switch
to the "CHROME STRIPPING" position. We have received many calls from
people who couldn't strip chrome at a later date because they forgot to
re-set the polarity of the chrome stripper to "CHROME STRIPPING".
- Rinse thoroughly
- Woods Nickel Strike.
With the gold voltage set between 5 and 7 volts, use the nickel strike
solution and the nickel wand, (green), plate the entire surface. You
generally won't see any visible change in the finish, just make sure you
plate the entire surface by moving in slow circular motions.
- Rinse thoroughly
- Gold Plate without delay.
After treating the surface with the Woods nickel strike, the surface should be
plated before it is allowed to dry our. If the surface cannot be plated
immediately, the surface can be re-activated using the nickel activator
solution just as with a normal nickel surface.
Note: On large pieces, complete the entire piece through step 4, then
continue your work on sections of about 10 to 12 square inches.
When you apply the gold plate, leave a buffer zone of a couple of
inches between the end of your gold plating and the beginning of the
next section waiting for the nickel strike.
An alternative to treating
the surface with Woods nickel strike is to pre-plate with Gold Plating
Services' TriVal 24K
Gold Strike Solution.
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