[NOL4154]

dfro,
Gold is not design for constant wear. If I was asked to plate the brass rod I would do the following:
1. Clean & active brass.
2. Apply electroless nickel or electroplate nickel sulfate layer ~ 100-200 micro-inches.
3. The gold layer would be a Type II which is a acid alloy gold containg nickel, cobalt
and some iron (~0.4 % mass). Gold thickness would be 100-200 micro-inches.
Type II is recommended by Military and ASTM specifcation.
4. Copper "strike or flash" which in plating world there is a difference.
5. The layer provides a layer for the following:
a. Corrision barrier.
b. Layer to build the following plated layer.
c. Improve adhesion bewteen plated layers.
6. A nickel layer is needed because of inter-metalic formations bewteen disimiliar metals.
Inter-metallic formation will cause brittle comdition. For more information of inter-
metallic formation. Check web sites!
7. No zinc layer! Cause a serious problems with inter-metallic formation.

I have been in the plating industry for over 25 years and have plated from a-z, etc...

Nol4154

I have a project where I am making a 5 volt electronic switch out of a small, .063" diameter, 1" long, zinc plated spring and a 1/32" brass rod. The brass rod is bent like a staple and soldered to the circuit board on both ends.

One end of the spring is attached to a moving lever arm. When the lever arm is in the up position, it pulls the spring up against the horizontal part of the brass rod, thus closing the switch. When the lever arm is pushed to the down position, the spring releases contact with the brass rod, thus opening the switch.

Here are my questions:

1. Does Caswell sell a plating solution that will put a thick enough coat of gold on these parts? There will be some wear and tear from the slight rubbing of the spring against the brass rod over time. A local jewelery supply store told me that their solutions are designed only for flash plating and they did not think that it would withstand the repeated action of the switch. Any thoughts?

2. What cleaning solutions and other methods should I use to ensure a hard, thick enough coat? I have a rectified power supply.

3. Also, is there any extra plating I may need to do first over the zinc or brass before plating gold?

I would rather do the plating in-house rather than send such a small job to a plating company.

Thanks for any help,

dfro