Zinc Plating DIY

[Norm01]

Originally Posted by bsherrard

enjoying this thread and getting ready to take the plunge with DIY plating myself.
Norm - how did you prep all those small carb parts?

Brook

In a 5lb vibratory tumbler with green diamond shaped media and a little degreaser. I have a sandblast cabinet but it’s almost impossible to blast small parts. Once they come out of the tumbler, I rinse and dry them. They then get dipped in metal prep for a few minutes before a distilled water rinse and into the zinc. I use POR15 metal prep however I believe it to be just a mild sulfurique or muriatic acid. It’s just convenient to buy pre-mixed and it’s reusable. For the tumbler, forget about the HF unit, go to Eastwood, if you figure out the price of the media at HF you’ll find they cost the same and Eastwood is a better unit. You can also get extra bowls for $20 to use separate media and not need to clean the bowl every time you switch.

[piscator]

Norm, I've never used a tumbler. Do you tumble parts individually or in batches? And for how long?

I think I've got the same blast cabinet that you have. To blast small parts, I stick them on a big chunk of magnet that I found. I blast the the parts on the magnet. Re-arrange them and blast again. I can do 4-6 small parts pretty easily this way. For a single part I just hold it in my gloved fingers, using the magnet only as a parts container.

Another thing I did with the blast cabinet, is remove the bottom interior grate. That gives me a lot more room to work. Most of the time, I just use the magnet to prevent losing the part in the media. If a certain part needs a shelf to sit on, I cut one to size out of plywood.

My best blasting upgrade was getting a professional gun made out of bronze. It triggers off a foot-switch that I got through Amazon. It NEVER clogs or jams. The gun is compact, so it's easier to manuever in the cabinet. It cost as much as the entire HF cabinet set -- but was WELL worth it!

I'm about to go into the shop and make my first tests with the Caswell chemistry. Thanks for your insights!

[Norm01]

Originally Posted by piscator

Norm, I've never used a tumbler. Do you tumble parts individually or in batches? And for how long?

I think I've got the same blast cabinet that you have. To blast small parts, I stick them on a big chunk of magnet that I found. I blast the the parts on the magnet. Re-arrange them and blast again. I can do 4-6 small parts pretty easily this way. For a single part I just hold it in my gloved fingers, using the magnet only as a parts container.

Another thing I did with the blast cabinet, is remove the bottom interior grate. That gives me a lot more room to work. Most of the time, I just use the magnet to prevent losing the part in the media. If a certain part needs a shelf to sit on, I cut one to size out of plywood.

My best blasting upgrade was getting a professional gun made out of bronze. It triggers off a foot-switch that I got through Amazon. It NEVER clogs or jams. The gun is compact, so it's easier to manuever in the cabinet. It cost as much as the entire HF cabinet set -- but was WELL worth it!

I'm about to go into the shop and make my first tests with the Caswell chemistry. Thanks for your insights!

Well there’s a new one, never thought about a magnet. Don’t blast into your glove, you’ll go through it fairly quickly and they’re not cheap. I run an industrial blast cabinet with aluminum oxide. Tumbler is 8+ hrs however you just turn it on and leave. One thing for sure is blast and tumble produce very different results. Blasted parts will turn out duller and the grainy texture of the blast will come through the plating process. Tumbled parts come out like OEM.

[Norm01]

Plating set-up

Dave PM’d me asking about my plating set-up. Rather than PM back I’ll post it here in case it can benefit others. Hope Pelican doesn’t pull it down as it will link vendors but no products that Pelican sells and I believe this adds to the community.

First off Caswell.

Zinc Plating Solution.
https://www.caswellplating.com/copy-cadr-zinc-concentrate-1-5-gal.html
Brightener.
https://www.caswellplating.com/copy-cadr-zinc-brightener-4-oz.html
Yellow Chromate.
https://www.caswellplating.com/yellow-chromate.html
Black Chromate.
https://www.caswellplating.com/black-chromate-concentrate-8oz-makes-1-gal.html
Blue Chromate (really it’s clear, you’ll need two of these as it doesn’t make much)
https://www.caswellplating.com/blue-chromate-8oz-makes-1-quart.html

Power Supply.
I use a 30VDC 5A power supply with both voltage and current limiting features.
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07H95N4CT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Zinc Plates.
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00LSJ4SQ4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Copper wire to hang parts.
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B000IJU1ZW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I also use 1/4 inch copper pipe available from H-D or other to hang parts across the bins. It’s commonly known as refrigerator water pipe sold in a roll. Cut to length and flatten the ends so it doesn’t roll on the edge of the bin.

Bins are from Ikea, I like these as they are cheap and have a secure gasketed lid so when I’m done I can stack and store on shelves. The zinc solution one is 12litres, all others for Chromate and rinse are 6l. The markings on my bins are in litres, mark them to your preference. Nice thing about Caswell is it’s readily available in both U.S. and Canada, I’m a Canuck in case you haven’t guessed.
One of IKEA’s bins.
https://m2.ikea.com/us/en/p/ikea-365-food-container-with-lid-rectangular-plastic-s59276822/

If you run at room temp, you don’t need heaters. Also I had bought a pump but found it unnecessary and don’t use it anymore. What I do find quite necessary is once you hang the parts, never touch them. Move from bath to bath with the copper wire and hang. I find you do need to blow a fan on them for 30 min or so to blow off the water droplets. Let dry for 24hrs before touching them.

Here’s my process:
-Tumble or blast parts.
-Dip in acid solution for a few minutes (I use POR15 Metal Prep)
-Rinse in distilled water.
-Zinc plate, 20 minutes or so. I don’t calculate area, I simply turn the current on my power supply to max and voltage to zero. Dip part, turn up voltage until part slightly bubbles and back off a bit. If memory is right I’m always below 1 volt.
-Rinse in distilled water.
-Dip in Chromate of chosen colour, 30 seconds or so based on desired finish.
-Rinse gingerly in distilled water.
-Hang in front of fan for 30 minutes or so, turn off fan and let dry 24hrs.

This is all based on my experience and what has worked for me. Many use other tried and proven recipes. Hopes this helps those wanting to do this.

[Ctopher]

Wow...this has been a great thread. I’ve been contemplating into doing my own plating. To start I bought a HF 18lb tumbler and have been trying out cleaning and polishing bolts and nuts. Was planning on getting my parts cleaned and polished before taking to a plater. I appreciate the insight into what y’all use to clean parts and especially your tools and process for plating.

Before I jump into buying items needed to plate I had a question about your plating location. I thought I had read someone that you should NOT plate near the car or your tools as you’ll corrode metals nearby. Is this correct? I have a single 2.5 car garage with my 300ZXTT and Carrera next to my 1/2 car bay space that I would be using to plate. Is this an issue and or concern with doing plating at home in my garage?

Again thank you for sharing all this helpful steps and tools in this thread!


Ctopher

[Norm01]

Originally Posted by Ctopher

Wow...this has been a great thread. I’ve been contemplating into doing my own plating. To start I bought a HF 18lb tumbler and have been trying out cleaning and polishing bolts and nuts. Was planning on getting my parts cleaned and polished before taking to a plater. I appreciate the insight into what y’all use to clean parts and especially your tools and process for plating.

Before I jump into buying items needed to plate I had a question about your plating location. I thought I had read someone that you should NOT plate near the car or your tools as you’ll corrode metals nearby. Is this correct? I have a single 2.5 car garage with my 300ZXTT and Carrera next to my 1/2 car bay space that I would be using to plate. Is this an issue and or concern with doing plating at home in my garage?

Again thank you for sharing all this helpful steps and tools in this thread!


Ctopher

I do it in my garage, I don’t think it’s an issue as the amount of chemicals is small. You do require good ventilation though. I have heard of issues with people leaving muriatic acid open in a garage, rusts everything. This is one reason I use the diluted POR15 Metal Prep.

[pkabush]

Super informative thread. Thanks for taking the time to post it. I just ordered everything from your list. I’m pretty exited to try it out. I think I’ll look into a tumbler as soon as my wallet recovers.

[piscator]

Norm, thanks for your great contributions! I want to try your tumbling technique and plan to visit HF this week. Let me ask a couple of questions:

1. What media do you use in the tumbler?
2. Do you think I could tumble brake caliper pistons? Any tips on that?
3. Can I tumble multiple parts at one time, or should they be tumbled individually?

Your right, the bead-blasting does create a duller finish, unless you polish the part before plating. I actually like the duller finish on some parts. It reminds me of pewter.

My goal has been to get the parts plated well and swiftly, so I don't have to stall the project. For that purpose, bead-blasting works fine, for me. Of course, on those 'rush jobs' I can only do the white zinc, since the chromates take time to dry.

With my new Casswell chemistry, I'm ready to work on producing brighter finishes; so I'm looking forward to using the tumbler. I don't have a buffer, but I'm not sure I want to spend a lot of time polishing bolts to a high shine.

[Dpmulvan]

Originally Posted by piscator

Norm, thanks for your great contributions! I want to try your tumbling technique and plan to visit HF this week. Let me ask a couple of questions:

1. What media do you use in the tumbler?
2. Do you think I could tumble brake caliper pistons? Any tips on that?
3. Can I tumble multiple parts at one time, or should they be tumbled individually?

Your right, the bead-blasting does create a duller finish, unless you polish the part before plating. I actually like the duller finish on some parts. It reminds me of pewter.

My goal has been to get the parts plated well and swiftly, so I don't have to stall the project. For that purpose, bead-blasting works fine, for me. Of course, on those 'rush jobs' I can only do the white zinc, since the chromates take time to dry.

With my new Casswell chemistry, I'm ready to work on producing brighter finishes; so I'm looking forward to using the tumbler. I don't have a buffer, but I'm not sure I want to spend a lot of time polishing bolts to a high shine.

Generally you would use the green resin to remove rust et followed by ceramic cylinders or balls to polish.
Yes you can put a bunch of parts in tumbler if your tumbler can handle them.
I bead blast parts before plating and they come out fine you need to use 180 grit or higher and blast parts at an angle.
Tumbling is great to close porous aluminum et sort of like shot peening but blasting is quick.
Don't waste your time trying to tumble car parts in a harbour freight tumbler it's like bringing a knife to a gun fight, and then you'll burn up the motor.

[Norm01]

Originally Posted by piscator

Norm, thanks for your great contributions! I want to try your tumbling technique and plan to visit HF this week. Let me ask a couple of questions:

1. What media do you use in the tumbler?
2. Do you think I could tumble brake caliper pistons? Any tips on that?
3. Can I tumble multiple parts at one time, or should they be tumbled individually?

Your right, the bead-blasting does create a duller finish, unless you polish the part before plating. I actually like the duller finish on some parts. It reminds me of pewter.

My goal has been to get the parts plated well and swiftly, so I don't have to stall the project. For that purpose, bead-blasting works fine, for me. Of course, on those 'rush jobs' I can only do the white zinc, since the chromates take time to dry.

With my new Casswell chemistry, I'm ready to work on producing brighter finishes; so I'm looking forward to using the tumbler. I don't have a buffer, but I'm not sure I want to spend a lot of time polishing bolts to a high shine.

As stated by DP, use the green media. The idea of the tumbler is exactly that, to load multiple parts. A 5lb tumbler will take a 5lb load, this is media and parts combined. I do not use a second polishing media. Consider the Eastwood tumbler, works out to same price as HF because you get media. No, you can’t do calipers (maybe in the 18lb model) but that was not my point with the tumbler, I bought it strictly for small parts and fairly large batches. Anything bigger and easy to handle go in the blast cabinet. Oh, just noticed you said pistons. Pistons are your sealing surface, I wouldn’t do anything to them. If they are damaged or scored, replace them. The caliper can be blasted, zinced and chromated, even the inner piston area.

[ClickClickBoom]

Originally Posted by piscator

DP, you really know your stuff! Thank-you!

I may have a container of sulphuric acid that I got from a plumbing supply house. The stuff I bought is kinda brownish and is used to un-clog drains. I'll see if I can find it.

Hydrochloric acid is, I think, muriatic acid, and that I do have. I have not been rinsing my part in anything but tap water before dunking it in the yellow chromate. And after the yellow chromate, I haven't been rinsing, at all.

My result, is as you describe -- "If you don't rinse after yellow chromate it will come out dark and uneven with runs.'

So I now know how to do it the wrong way! There's certainly room for improvement!

DP, if you have a moment, are there any special instructions on using black chromate? I ordered some with my zinc replacement chemistry and look forward to trying it.

Robert

Nerd alert!

Plumbing store sulpheric acid is full of impurities: Nile Red on you tube shows how to purify:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DUGRWjdNLI

Or Doug:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMOrK7cysqY

I like chemistry, hate the smells, so watching on youtube is an alternative, plus I dont have to handle/store toxic chemicals.

One of my favorite reactions:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=legoRGAXNP8

The key to successful chemistry is purity of reagents. Using tap water for H2O is a common theme for failure, steam distilled water is a simple solution(no pun intended). Lab grade reagents is another.

[bsherrard]

Any recommendations on using black chromate?
My parts plated great with zinc but the black chromate parts turned mostly green when dried
Brook

[mepstein]

I use a bead blast cabinet, tumbler filled with steel shot and a wire wheel. Depends on the part and some parts get more than one treatment. Then I send it off to a pro for plating. It’s pretty cheap if I do the prep but guys like Shawn earn their money.

[Dpmulvan]

Originally Posted by bsherrard

Any recommendations on using black chromate?
My parts plated great with zinc but the black chromate parts turned mostly green when dried
Brook

There is a green chromate perhaps you got them mixed up or they sent one that was labeled wrong.

[piscator]

Mepstein, I agree, Shaun’s work is beautiful and if you’re doing a batch of parts it makes sense to ship them out. I don’t believe, for a moment, that I can duplicate a pro level finish in my home shop. That said, I still think a DIY setup is perfect for those random, single or multiple parts that crop up in the course of a restoration. Particularly where rust protection and expediency trump ‘pretty.’

Here are some notes on my recent plating experiments. Just FYI stuff.

I continue having great success with the white (silver) zinc application. I’ve learned to better regulate the voltage/amperage to get good coverage, based on part size and/or batch size. I’ve also settled on doing at least three ‘strikes’ on every part. That is, the part goes into the electrolyte bath three times, with rinsing and polishing in between each dunk. Sometimes I do four strikes, but there seems to be a point of diminishing returns. Still, it takes at least three to get enough zinc on the part to give it a deep, ‘buttery,’ finish.

Zinc solution – No difference between the Caswell kit and DIY chemistry posted here:

Zinc Plating with Common Materials

This may be controversial, but I’ve made mutiple batches of electrolyte using the Caswell kit and the home brew ‘grocery store’ recipe outlined in the link. Truth be told, I get better results with the ‘home brew’ but the Caswell kit works fine as well. YMMD.

Chromates – No Joy!

I have not been successful with the chromates -- black or yellow. I’ve had some success getting full coverage with the black; but my yellow is consistently splotchy and partial. I’ve used the proper Caswell chemistry (including brighteners) kept everything as clean as I can make it, adjusted temperatures, and followed the instructions correctly.

There must be something I’m doing wrong, but discussing this with Eric at PMB, we can’t figure out what it is. I put this up here, so if others are having trouble with the chromates, they’ll know their not alone. Maybe good chromate application is a little beyond the average DIY guy, like myself.

I don’t see my lack of success in the chromate step to be a major drawback. The electrolytically driven silver zinc adheres really well and provides most of the rust protection. Many Porsche parts, including the oil lines I just purchased, came zinc plated; but without the yellow chromate.

My interest in plating is focused on ‘quick and easy’ – what to do with those random, rusty, incidental parts that crop up in the course of a project. In those cases, most of the time, the black or yellow chromate, final coat is not critical.

[Norm01]

Originally Posted by piscator

Mepstein, I agree, Shaun’s work is beautiful and if you’re doing a batch of parts it makes sense to ship them out. I don’t believe, for a moment, that I can duplicate a pro level finish in my home shop. That said, I still think a DIY setup is perfect for those random, single or multiple parts that crop up in the course of a restoration. Particularly where rust protection and expediency trump ‘pretty.’

Here are some notes on my recent plating experiments. Just FYI stuff.

I continue having great success with the white (silver) zinc application. I’ve learned to better regulate the voltage/amperage to get good coverage, based on part size and/or batch size. I’ve also settled on doing at least three ‘strikes’ on every part. That is, the part goes into the electrolyte bath three times, with rinsing and polishing in between each dunk. Sometimes I do four strikes, but there seems to be a point of diminishing returns. Still, it takes at least three to get enough zinc on the part to give it a deep, ‘buttery,’ finish.

Zinc solution – No difference between the Caswell kit and DIY chemistry posted here:

Zinc Plating with Common Materials

This may be controversial, but I’ve made mutiple batches of electrolyte using the Caswell kit and the home brew ‘grocery store’ recipe outlined in the link. Truth be told, I get better results with the ‘home brew’ but the Caswell kit works fine as well. YMMD.

Chromates – No Joy!

I have not been successful with the chromates -- black or yellow. I’ve had some success getting full coverage with the black; but my yellow is consistently splotchy and partial. I’ve used the proper Caswell chemistry (including brighteners) kept everything as clean as I can make it, adjusted temperatures, and followed the instructions correctly.

There must be something I’m doing wrong, but discussing this with Eric at PMB, we can’t figure out what it is. I put this up here, so if others are having trouble with the chromates, they’ll know their not alone. Maybe good chromate application is a little beyond the average DIY guy, like myself.

I don’t see my lack of success in the chromate step to be a major drawback. The electrolytically driven silver zinc adheres really well and provides most of the rust protection. Many Porsche parts, including the oil lines I just purchased, came zinc plated; but without the yellow chromate.

My interest in plating is focused on ‘quick and easy’ – what to do with those random, rusty, incidental parts that crop up in the course of a project. In those cases, most of the time, the black or yellow chromate, final coat is not critical.

I had so so results with the chromates and home brew. All those issue went away when I used the Caswell electrolyte. I also think you need to stay wet, by that I mean don’t let the parts dry, go from zinc to rinse to Chromate. I also believe your multiple strikes may be part of your Chromate issues. Whenever I touch a part after zinc I cannot seem to get a good Chromate.

[mepstein]

Originally Posted by piscator

Mepstein, I agree, Shaun’s work is beautiful and if you’re doing a batch of parts it makes sense to ship them out. I don’t believe, for a moment, that I can duplicate a pro level finish in my home shop. That said, I still think a DIY setup is perfect for those random, single or multiple parts that crop up in the course of a restoration. Particularly where rust protection and expediency trump ‘pretty.’

Here are some notes on my recent plating experiments. Just FYI stuff.

I continue having great success with the white (silver) zinc application. I’ve learned to better regulate the voltage/amperage to get good coverage, based on part size and/or batch size. I’ve also settled on doing at least three ‘strikes’ on every part. That is, the part goes into the electrolyte bath three times, with rinsing and polishing in between each dunk. Sometimes I do four strikes, but there seems to be a point of diminishing returns. Still, it takes at least three to get enough zinc on the part to give it a deep, ‘buttery,’ finish.

Zinc solution – No difference between the Caswell kit and DIY chemistry posted here:

Zinc Plating with Common Materials

This may be controversial, but I’ve made mutiple batches of electrolyte using the Caswell kit and the home brew ‘grocery store’ recipe outlined in the link. Truth be told, I get better results with the ‘home brew’ but the Caswell kit works fine as well. YMMD.

Chromates – No Joy!

I have not been successful with the chromates -- black or yellow. I’ve had some success getting full coverage with the black; but my yellow is consistently splotchy and partial. I’ve used the proper Caswell chemistry (including brighteners) kept everything as clean as I can make it, adjusted temperatures, and followed the instructions correctly.

There must be something I’m doing wrong, but discussing this with Eric at PMB, we can’t figure out what it is. I put this up here, so if others are having trouble with the chromates, they’ll know their not alone. Maybe good chromate application is a little beyond the average DIY guy, like myself.

I don’t see my lack of success in the chromate step to be a major drawback. The electrolytically driven silver zinc adheres really well and provides most of the rust protection. Many Porsche parts, including the oil lines I just purchased, came zinc plated; but without the yellow chromate.

My interest in plating is focused on ‘quick and easy’ – what to do with those random, rusty, incidental parts that crop up in the course of a project. In those cases, most of the time, the black or yellow chromate, final coat is not critical.

I’m not knocking what you are doing in the least. I’m just not ready to take on another project. The downside about sending it out is not being able to do a couple parts when I need it. I like reading these threads so I can decide what I want to do and what I’ll let others do and I usually learn something new.

[piscator]

Mepstein, I'm sorry if I came across offended. I'm not, at all! I was trying to take advantage of your post to compliment Shaun and present my experience that DIY plating is really great for one or several pieces; but large numbers and large parts are probably best left to the professionals. BTW, I've corresponded with Shaun and he's an awfully nice guy!

I've couched my words with 'maybe' and 'possibly' because there are guys like DP and Norm who do achieve professional results. My message is that the silver zinc, which provides most of the protection, is well within the capabilities of a DIY guy, like myself. Another way to put it is,.. even I haven't been able to screw it up! ;-)

I really would encourage you to give the home-brew zinc link a try. It costs very little to create an easily stored, single bucket kit, that's quick to deploy for single pieces or small runs. It's one of those things that, after you have it, you'll wonder why you didn't do this twenty years ago,.. or thirty.

[piscator]

Originally Posted by Norm01

I had so so results with the chromates and home brew. All those issue went away when I used the Caswell electrolyte. I also think you need to stay wet, by that I mean don’t let the parts dry, go from zinc to rinse to Chromate. I also believe your multiple strikes may be part of your Chromate issues. Whenever I touch a part after zinc I cannot seem to get a good Chromate.

Norm, thanks, I really appreciate your input! You may very well be right about 'staying wet' and not touching the part. I wear gloves, so I'm not transferring oil from my fingers, but the wire wheel I use between strikes may be transferring crud to the part. After polishing on the wire wheel, I do rinse or wipe the part down with denatured alcohol, but maybe that's not sufficient.

Let me ask, in 'staying wet' are you transferring the part from the electrolyte bath, to the distilled water rinse, and then to the chromate without polishing the silver zinc buildup that's deposited by the electrolyte?

Doing it this way, I would think that the chromate would come off when you eventually polish the part. But I'll try it.

By the way, I did try sulfuric acid for my initial acid bath, but I didn't get any better result than I did with the hydrochloric. This is something that Eric at PMB also suggested.

Here's some photos of the E-brake tubes I plated yesterday. As you can see, the silver zinc came out quite well. The chromate photo, I'm embarassed to even post. When these parts came out of the chromate bath they had a consistent, albeit weak, overall yellow cast. In the process of drying, without my ever touching the part, it turned into a splotchy mess.

Before chromate:



After chromate dunk and dry:

[Dpmulvan]

Originally Posted by piscator

Norm, thanks, I really appreciate your input! You may very well be right about 'staying wet' and not touching the part. I wear gloves, so I'm not transferring oil from my fingers, but the wire wheel I use between strikes may be transferring crud to the part. After polishing on the wire wheel, I do rinse or wipe the part down with denatured alcohol, but maybe that's not sufficient.

Let me ask, in 'staying wet' are you transferring the part from the electrolyte bath, to the distilled water rinse, and then to the chromate without polishing the silver zinc buildup that's deposited by the electrolyte?

Doing it this way, I would think that the chromate would come off when you eventually polish the part. But I'll try it.

By the way, I did try sulfuric acid for my initial acid bath, but I didn't get any better result than I did with the hydrochloric. This is something that Eric at PMB also suggested.

Here's some photos of the E-brake tubes I plated yesterday. As you can see, the silver zinc came out quite well. The chromate photo, I'm embarassed to even post. When these parts came out of the chromate bath they had a consistent, albeit weak, overall yellow cast. In the process of drying, without my ever touching the part, it turned into a splotchy mess.

Before chromate:



After chromate dunk and dry:

Robert,
The zinc plating needs to be bright when you remove it from electrolyte otherwise nothing will stick to it. The whole purpose is corrosion protection.
Home brew does not cut it, you can watch every YouTube video, every claim of how easy it is but until your parts come out brite, evenly plated, your wasting your time and money.
While many home brews will work for plating other metals such as copper, brite zinc plating solution is a carefully guarded secret, I spent hours reading old patents and came to the conclusion that myself and everyone on YouTube claiming it's easy as 7 th grade science was is clueless. Spend the $70 and get the right chemistry.