Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

[Alan Drake]

Want to do some plating of same parts, bolts, 6"X6" plates, . . .
Looking at Caswell and Eastwood. First vendor is 2X the cost, however appears to be a better option. What is everyone using? Other vendors? Like to keep the cost of main kit below $300.
Thanks for your help Alan

[Donald T.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

I've used the caswell zinc plating kit with good results. They also have a 3 amp rectifier for $100 that makes controlling the current much more precise and easier.

[Alan Drake]

Need to do those! Thanks *NM*

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

Allen:
I have been using the Caswell systems to do cad, zink, black oxide, yellow cad, acid copper and copy chrome. I have been getting fantastic results after learning the nuances of the systems. I also bought the $100 rectifier and it is really good. The best thing about Caswell is if you have a question or problem there is always someone there to help you. I can't say enough about the company and the product. Hope this helps.
Jeff

[Patrick H.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

Jeff,

What Caswell kits did you buy as well as other accessories, in addition to the rectifier?

And how about a Chapter event showing us how to do at-home plating?

Patrick

[Donald T.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

I realize the question was asked of Jeff, but I'll throw my 2 cents in as well. I have the 3 gallon kit, 3 amp rectifier, yellow dichromate, and blackener. The manual that comes with the Caswell kit is excellent, and provides all the info needed to get started. It takes a little practice, and you'll probably want to trial and error with some scrap material. Copper pipe from the hardware store works very well and it provides a contrasting color while learning. Try different finishes on the copper and compare the results (natural, bead blast, steel wool, polished, etc.)

Here are a few things I've learned that aren't in the manual. The kit comes with a degreaser, and it works fine. However, I've found that an ammonia cleaner like Mr. Clean diluted with hot water works just as well. The preparation is very important and your final finish will be determined by the finish prior to plating. The best results to duplicate a factory finish I've found is achieved by bead blasting the parts. All paint, dirt, and rust must be removed, however it is not necessary to remove all of the original plating. Even with the brightner, the end result can be somewhat dull and uneven especially if left in the tank longer to provide thicker plating. 00 steel wool works well to polish the parts after plating for a bright and even finish. Don't worry about mistakes, as you can just bead blast the part and start over. If you don't have a bead blast cabinet, you will be a little limited. The kit comes with a wheel you can mount on a drill that will work for metal prep, but I don't think the result is nearly as good as bead blasting.

I will also say that it is a lot more work and more time consuming than you might think. If anyone thinks they can just clean the part, dunk it in the plating tank for 10 minutes, and it's done; you will be disappointed. There is a lot of prep work required on the part and there can be a lot of hand polishing afterwards to achieve an original appearance.

Also, you hear about cad and gold cad, which is something that cannot be done at home. GM specs called for zinc or cad. All of the original parts I've plated were oringally zinc plated and I don't know that cad was ever used. What is often called gold cad is actually zinc dichromate, which can be done with Caswell materials as well.

Happy plating!

[Gerard F.]

Caswell-No comparison

Alan,

Here's my original setup with a battery charger:

(the crock pot on the left is for SP degreaser)

Then you need to add a power supply to replace the battery charger and jury rigged amp controller:

(Kikusui Lab Power Supply but there are others)

And then add bead blasting outfit, and you can do stuff like this:

(Pot metal doesn't really need to be plated, just beadblasted and dipped in dichromate.)

Here's a combination of zinc plating, dichromate, and black oxide with a Caswell kit:


And you get a great manual for all types of plating with the Caswell kit.
Not too cost effective but a lot of fun. I've got jugs of chemicals all over the corner of the garage now.

Jerry Fuccillo
#42179

[Gerard F.]

Agree, it's all in the prep and a lot of trial

and error. There are parts on my carb that I've redone 3 or 4 times. Although I use beadblasting now for prep, I found that if you want the part to be shiny with zinc plating, use a hardware store 4" blue Nylok wheel (on a drill in a vise) prior to and after the zinc plating, instead of the one Caswell sends with the kit.

I originally got a 3 gallon Caswell Kit also. Beautiful job on that hood latch.
Also, real Cad also works with the same chemistry of their Copy Cad Kit.

Jerry Fuccillo

[Mike B.]

Re: Agree, it's all in the prep and a lot of trial

Jerry,

It looks like your garage may become a future Superfund site!

Seriously, what does one do with the left over chemicals once they are no longer needed? I presume many are considered hazardous with heavy metals residuals.

[Gerard F.]

Re: Agree, it's all in the prep and a lot of trial

Mike,

There is a section in the Caswell Manual on disposal. None of the Zinc products are considered hazardous especially at the quantities used for home plating. Maybe not true for Chrome and other heavier stuff.

I'm sure commercial platers have a disposal problem, but at the quantities and frequency of disposal for the home plater it is not a problem. Acids and bases are neutralized and brought down to the level of other household products. You can even use the muriatic for cleaning concrete around the yard.

Jerry

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

Patrick, Don, Gerald, Alan, et al:
I have quite a few kits that I purchased from Caswell. All are the smallest kits avaible which are the 1 1/2 gallon size. I use the following: Copy Cad (with the zink brightener for shiny zink look), Yellow DiChromate wash, Black Oxide, Copy Chrome, SilvaSpray for plating on plastic, Acid Copper (for underplating prior to using Copy Chrome on plastic), Complete Plating Manual, 3 amp power supply. Don gave some excellent observations on the process and I agree with everything he has done. I do use a sand blast cabinet with regular sand for clean up. I also soak rusty parts in phosphoric acid overnight to remove rust. If this gets all the rust off then I will use a wire wheel to shine the part if a zink look is desired. If a cad look is desired, I will lightly sand blast to give a matted texture and not use brigtener. I have 2 Copy Cad set-ups- one for cad and one for zink. If I am DiChromating, I use the brightening technique and then lightly wire wheel the part to get really good shine. An additional part to the learning curve- adjustments to temperature and agitation are critical. I also was dissapointed in the de-greaser supplied by Caswell and found that grease and wax remover by PPG or 3M purchased from an auto paint supply store worked much better. Over the last few years I have learned a great deal about the process and could go on for pages but I think this enough for now.
Patrick- I would love to do a workshop at a Chapter meet sometime if I could figure out how to get all my supplies to the meet and have the ability to do it right. The problem is that there would be a lot of "dead time" while things are in the "cooker" and the prep needs supplies and time. I would hate to rush something or not do it properly and get bad results.
Jeff

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

I forgot to add:
the nice thing about the Caswell power supply is that it is digital. You can adjust as close as 1/10 amp. It is much more accurate (in my opinion) than a comparably priced analog unit.
Jeff

[Patrick H.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

Thanks Jeff.

Maybe we'll have to talk about my own private plating tutorial.
Actually, I've been e-mailing with Brandon about plating, so an event may be in order.

Patrick

[Jeffrey S.]

Re: Plating zinc,cadmium,yel cd - which vendor

Patrick:
I would be happy to "tutor" you at my shop in Royal Oak. Actually it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a seminar there where all the supplies and equipment are. I have plenty of room for chairs etc. and lots of table space. Let's see if we can get something together.
Jeff