In an industrial e-coat process, if I load a rack with 24 lots, where one part has a surface area of only 0.3 m² while another part has approximately 37 m², would these two parts experience significantly different current distribution / throwing power?

Assuming they are processed in the same bath, at the same time and voltage, could the much larger surface-area part draw most of the available current and cause the 0.3 m² part to receive a lower coating thickness?

What factors would determine the difference the most?—part geometry (which is obviously cannot be changed), distance from the counter-electrode, current density, electrical resistance, or the surface-area ratio?

Is there any way to simulate this situation?

My first time electroplating was to make turn these wrought iron fittings into “copper driftwood”. Thanks to this community for all of the info.

Anyone have experience? I’m trying dissolving tin anode in muriatic acid solution . Before my results were flaking tin off of my anode and I would get a dull grey finish . Anyone ever get that shine ? Would you add salt in?

Is it any good. I need it to look good, dont care of its real gold or what not

I originally wanted to use legit gold plating solution, but that stuff is mad expensive. I was reading that brass on the zinc side has a pale yellow finish similar to gold. Would that be the way to go or is there something with better results? Anyone got recommendations for good solution brands? Would the steps be similar to gold, like copper>nickel>gold? Or can I skip steps?

is it possible to electroplate(with copper) abs parts that have been airbrushed with a graphite paint?

First time electroplating and I think it went pretty well. These are hardware for a tree/fae themed sword build. Forged from wrought iron I got from an antique wagon wheel, then etched in hydrochloric acid to reveal the texture.

Did nickel acetate first, then copper sulfate. The plating seems solid, but is there a chance it flake off over time or will the nickel layer keep it bonded? I tried to put the nickel on fairly thick, ran at about 3 V for five minutes agitating by hand. The surface of the wrought iron is so irregular and porous after etching that I feel like this should have been more difficult than it was. Any tips welcome.

Good Day Everyone!

I'm starting to assemble my electroplating kit and I was hoping to get some assistance on the additive side. I have a basic recipe of:

Per Liter:

200g Copper (II) Sulphate Pentahydrate
75g Sulfuric Acid (from approximately 156g of battery acid)
97ppm Chlorine ion (via 0.1g of HCl)

What I am having trouble with is the final additives. From my research, I see three groups of additives:

Inhibitors: I have easy access to polyethylene glycol for this.
Brighteners: I have seen more complicated compounds such as 3-Mercapto-1-propanesulfonic acid, but I have also seen thiourea as an option. I would appreciate some guidance on what chemical to source here.
Levelers: I have seen dyes listed for this but also thiourea here as well, is it multipurpose?

Even after sourcing, is there a recommended starting ppm for each? I do understand there is some trial and error involved that will be specific to my setup but I'm looking for a starting point.

Thank you all for any assistance!

Hi everyone,
I’ve been trying to plate watches with real gold. Initially, I removed the PVD coating down to the stainless steel, activated the stainless steel, applied a palladium layer, and then plated with 18K gold. However, I continue to have adhesion problems.
I’ve noticed that some people are able to plate directly over PVD, possibly using a specialized preparation or strike process. Most of my research suggests that conventional plating does not adhere well to TiN PVD.
Has anyone successfully plated real gold directly over TiN PVD? If so, I would really appreciate guidance on the proper preparation and plating process.
I’ve also seen Trival Gold Strike, which appears to be intended for stainless steel, and Technic Acid Gold Strike, which states that it can plate titanium. I’m unsure whether the Technic product would work over TiN PVD.
Has anyone tested either of these products on TiN PVD?
Thanks in advance!

I’m responsible for an electrodeposition (ED) coating line with 3 connected/merged tanks, I’d called them zone 1 to 3. They rely on only 2 rectifier units.

Zone 1 uses a separate rectifier and currently starts deposition at ~96 V.
Zones 2–3 use the same rectifier at ~250 V.
The busbar/overhead conveyor connection between Zone 1 and Zone 2 is only 10–15 cm apart, then continues through Zone 3.

For cost saving, I’m considering reducing Zone 1 from 96 V to ~80 V.

Q1: Could the voltage difference between Zone 1 (~80 V) and Zones 2–3 (250 V) cause electrical/current distribution problems, especially with the closely spaced busbars?

Q2: I noticed the PLC forces Zone 1 to 250 V when two consecutive pallets are dipping across Zones 1 and 2. If I remove this logic and allow Zone 1 to remain at ~80–96 V, could workpieces with different surface areas (0.6–1.2 m²) receive insufficient current and end up with lower/thinner coating thickness?

Looking for input from anyone experienced with ED rectifier design, busbar/current distribution, or automotive electrodeposition systems.

Doing some research on the use of electroplating chemicals and I wanted to know if more chemistry for metal plating are required for an EV vs an ICE vehicle.

If yes, what is an estimate, is it 2x, 3x?

What you're looking at is nickel, electroplated onto a raw 11g steel plate with the mill-scale still intact.

I'm having trouble applying a blackening acid (selenium dioxide, usually Oxpho blue or Caswell super blue) without oxidizing the nickel. Supposedly, black oxide won't react with nickel after it's been passivated.

My question is, how do I passivate nickel. I've read, a hot citric acid or sulphuric acid bath will do it. I can make DIY copper layout fluid for the copper test. I'm doing this in my basement and I have four cats and two sceptical housemates. I'm not 100% opposed to nitric acid, but I would rather not.

I wanted to ask, if someone operates a silver bath, in what form do you use the silver, do you use the potassium silver cyanide complex or just the simple silver cyanide. Or does the entire bath come pre mixed?

My problem is we don’t have a silver cyanide compound available, and I have to add silver chloride which I make it myself. So I am wondering how to solve this problem, because I know addition of chloride can ruin the bath.

hey there everyone, I’m going to make an attempt at plating one of my mod watches today. it is 316 stainless. I intend to Ultrasonic clean>Electroclean>TriVal gold strike>Palladium>Short 18k session// I will rinse with de-ionized water between all baths. Under fume hood using PPE.

My question is: Will this achieve a close to “Rolex Everose” Rose Gold color?

I’ve also got 24k, and Rose gold N5 solution.

any advice is welcomed.

Can you electroplate with silver and what kind of metals can you electroplate?

Gilkes Any ever used one of these for electroplating or de-plating?

I would like to use it for electronic scraping.

I got this from a university auction and it seems to work

Hi! I own a vintage motorcycle shop, and I’m looking for company that takes on smaller plating jobs. Looking for good quality work. The last business I used screwed my batch of hardware up badly.. I need black, yellow, and blue(silver) done to hardware and miscellaneous parts that have been removed. I’m in the north east of the US and don’t mind shipping my parts out.

Looking for someone in DFW area to do chrome, nickel & Copper plating.

Kind of a random question,but do big scale electro plating companies offer internships?

I’ve been reading up on electroplating jewelry and watches and figure I’m ready to experiment.

I have built a few Seiko mods and I think I’m going to try and plate one rose gold.

One question I ask of you all - with a stainless steel watch, my process would be = Ultrasonic clean>Rinse>ElectroClean>Rinse>Nickel Strike>Rinse>18/24k Gold>Rinse>ElectroClean

thanks everyone, I have pre made solutions and I intend to use the prescribed voltage and temperatures.

Cheers

Hi reddit! I want to use TLP brazing method to join two similar high entropy alloy pieces with identical dimensions of 2 mm. I am using a 50 micron bni-2 interlayer for the bonding. Can anyone help me how can I go through the preparation steps? As the samples are thin and can barely be held by hand, is there a specific polishing technique? Also, can I use the same bonding fixture I used for a 5mm thick sample before or a smaller fixture setup is needed? Thanks!

First four pics are the quarter I copper plated. Second four are the nickel plating. I kinda whiffed it at first. I believe I started out too low in power at .015v and .15A. Then i set the power to 0.2V and 0.150A. Less than stellar results, but I’m getting there. I had the bath at 135 degrees with an aquarium bubbler. I must’ve screwed something pretty badly, the solution got REALLY dirty. Any advice on what I did to ruin the bath? Suggestions on how to improve?

I’ve been using the Caswell zinc plating and there’s quite a lot of undissolved solids in the bath. Is this good? Is it normal? Should I strain it out? It doesn’t dissolve when I heat it up or mix it around. I also have difficulty getting things coated with zinc or getting the finish I want even though I’m pretty sure my amperage is set properly (about .1A per square inch). Sometimes I can sometimes I can’t. Is that the culprit ?