Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

[Stephen L.]

have searched and seen a lot of posts about refinishing nuts and bolts - what type of finish they are and how to achieve that at home are the majority of them - if you send them out however, how do you retain your bag and tag work? - that is, most professional refinishing services quote by the pound with high minimums - if you were to drop off 50 baggies with a half dozen bits in each, I suspect they would just laugh - so who would do this and keep your bagging/tagging in tact? - thanks! stephen

[Martin N.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

STEPHEN-

Most of your nuts and bolts can be refinished by yourself at home. If you research the archives you'll see alot of info. about kits you can buy from Eastwood or Caswell. Check them both out on the web. I have an Eastwood kit and have done most all of my under hood stuff this past winter. Time consuming but well worth the effort.

Marty

[Edward L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

In my opinion, forget the home plating systems. I've used the Caswell and Eastwood zinc plating kits and have had no luck with them. The finish that is produced looks OK, but does not hold up for length of time.

I'm currently restoring a '57 and will send out all the fastener to a plater. No, you can't take the hardware in little plastic bags and get them back that way. What I am doing is cataloging everthing as to size, head markings, etc. If I'm lucky enough to get everything back, I'll sort and bag.

Good luck!

[Stephen L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

thanks Marty - indeed i have seen a lot of articles on home refinishing - perhaps this is the only real alternative for small batch work?

[Stephen L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

Edward - thanks - so yes, that is certainly one way - combining it all and resorting later - i guess you would have to have really, really good notes! - and i guess you would have to combine apples with apples, etc.

[Martin N.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

A buddy of mine did like Ed is doing except he went one step further. He'd lay out bolts and nuts on paper, make notes next to each one and then take digital photo's and store them on his computor. I think I plated all my stuff in the time he took to do just his cataloging. VERY time consuming. That was about 2 years ago. But now when he needs some stuff done he comes to see me with his parts and of course the "bribing" beers.

Marty

[David K.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

I took everything to a plater. You will not get them back in the nice little bags you hoped you would though. I took pictures of each grp. of bolts for an assy. Use graph paper to help you size them and picture the heads as well. On the picture you can make notes on details that will help you put the fasteners where they go. Even bolts or screws that have messed up heads can probably be salvaged. The metal is not missing, just missplaced. Taking a punch, you can many times place the metal back where it belongs, then lightly dress the area, polish it and send it to the platers. It has been awhile since I had to do this, but you can get a TON of parts re-finished for $100.

I have learned the hard way, that fasteners that you buy from the parts suppliers, may fasten the parts, but they are not very often correct fasteners.

[Alan S.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

Hi Stephen,
My experience with home plating seems to be somewhat between Edward's and Martin's views. I have resorted to using some 'protection' on the plated parts with some success. I've had the most success and best results on the few parts on the car that have the gray and black phosphate finishes.
Regards,
Alan

[Stephen L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

thanks all

alan - is the method you used for the black and grey phosphate finishes also known as "parkerizing?" - thanks, sl

[Alan S.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

Stephen
Yes it is. I have the materials from Palmetto Enterprises. I got them at the Knoxville Corvette Expo about 15 years ago and am still using them. I have the gray which THEY noted as Zinc and the black which THEY noted as manganese. I've found it very easy to do successfully.
Regards,
Alan

[Stephen L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

many thanks alan!

[Jim S.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

Steven,

Here is how I did it .I traced out and labeled everything before I sent it to the plater.

Once you get the nuts and bolts back ,you just insert them back into their proper site. It is like doing a Jig Saw puzzle. Then it is back to the little individual baggies you originaly took them from.

Jim

[Stephen L.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

wow Jim - that is a pretty amazing schematic - hard to make out the notes and tracing, but it looks incredibly detailed - i hear you on the jigsaw puzzle analogy - so ok...that answers my question and thanks to all - in sum, you either do it yourself at home...or you aggregate and come up with a good system to get it all bag to the baggies they came from!! - thanks, sl

[David K.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

That is why I photographed mine on a peice of paper. The took that paper and enlarged it life size to the fasteners I am making a schematic for. Of course, you can make notes all over the paper.

[Robert C.]

Re: Nut Bolt Refinish - Small Batches

I took ALL my parts to be plated and had the whole batch cad plated. Everything, all cad! Therefore from that point on, there wouldn't be any rust to deal with. I did the black oxide (easy) black paint(very easy), zinc etc. as I put the car together. I sent out my few phosphate pieces to a pro and had them double plated. That was about it. It was all very simple.