Congratulations on the great results you're getting George. It really demonstrates how different methods can achieve excellent results.
I like your voltage method since it's very likely that the plating solution against any object being plated will have a consistent resistance per square inch. Based on your observation, it may be that using a voltage monitor equivalent to the "four wire method" placing a meter right at the anode and hanger wire would yield very consistent results. Is this the way you sense the voltage?
I'd be cautions about the water, which will vary geographically. Here in Texas the water is very hard--meaning it is loaded with lime (a bedrock of limestone abounds). I'm not sure I would want to transfer limestone dust into my plating tanks.
My flash copper loses its potency after about 6 months of heavy use. By heavy use, I mean a dozen large parts a week, each with perhaps 5 coats of copper. But I can usually tell it's about to misbehave because the solution eventually becomes a very dark blue. When it misbehaves, the copper gets rougher and darker--but it still plates.
I've tried filtering. While it hasn't made my solutions last longer, it makes them plate consistently well (no voids or pin holes) while they last. Some folks use filter pumps to scrub the solutions on a regular basis. Maybe that's the ticket?
Kind regards,
Ken
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