[rx7carl]

Hi all. I'm really needing some advice here. First the background info. I rebuild and modify carbs as a sideline. The linkages are cad plated steel and after 20 years need refinishing as many of the ones I get are rusted. I have the caswell zinc plating kit which does a great job of plating the linkages. Heres my dilemas. I have tried both alum oxide, and glass bead blasting before plating. The satin finish ends up a very dull gray after plating (surface too coarse). I have a vibratory tumbler, in which I tried alum oxide with the same results. I cant be spending the time to hand finish each piece of linkage before and/or after plating. I'm shooting for a nice silvery zinc finish, doesnt have to be chrome looking. My hope is to media blast the linkages en masse, then drop them into the tumbler, then plate and be done. Or tumble them after plating, doesnt matter. I really need to achieve this finish in a single automated step. Can someone reccomend a media to use in the tumbler that will work well for this application?