Having problems, pics inside

[Brintiff]

Today was my second attempt to plate a Glock slide. I'm getting a very nasty looking finish with yellows and other colors. The part will look decent if I polish it on my buffer with white compound, I don't know if the part is even plating.

I removed the old finish, sandblasted because I am wanting a satin or matte finish. After sandblasting I cleaned the slide first with compressed air, then tap water to remove any sand particles the air missed. Then the part was set in Caswells cleaner/degreaser for 15 minutes, the degreaser was near boiling. I rinsed in RO water then placed the part in pickle number four for 20 seconds, rinsed again in RO water.

I came up with 35 square inches which means I need 2.5 amps or so. I had the pump running, my bath was 79 degrees F. I am using a CC/CV power supply. After 40 minutes in the bath I removed the slide and rinsed.

The pictures show the outside of the slide AFTER polishing with white compound, the other pictures shows the plating I had before polishing. Even the after finish is of no use to me because due to the polishing it is now too shiny. I guess I could beadblast it to get a satin type finish.

My question is, should the plating look like this when it's comes out of the bath? If not then what am I doing wrong?

Added: I didn't feel like changing the media in my blast cabinet, I attempted to dull the polished finish a little by blasting with playground sand at 40 psi with the gun over 1' away from the slide, in two areas the CopyChrome blasted off the slide.

[woodjames]

I can't help you too much with the copy chrome specifics. But I can help with the prep. You are spending too much time in the degrease and not enough in the pickle. I scrub everything, degreasing, rinsing, and pickling with grout sponges, one for each step. Given that you've sandblasted, degreasing should only take a few minutes, just enough to pass the water-break test. Scrub it in the the degreaser, but you'll need to insulate your gloves. Running water helps a bunch to rinse. Pickling is just as important as cleaning, as it removes the passivation that cleaning can cause. I would increase the pickling time to around a minute, but be sure to scrub away in the pickel also. The most accurate water-break will occur after pickling, as wetting agents in the cleaner that don't rinse well can mess with the waterbreak.

-Jimmy

[Brintiff]

Thanks for the reply, I varied the prep and I still have the same problems, I didn't think it was a prep problem as I have not had any problems with other processes but I'll try anything at this point. Just sent a ticket to tech support, maybe they can figure it out. Unless the parts normally have to be polished after the plating which I doubt. I have not plated enough to have to add more brighteners.

[woodjames]

Should have been a little more clear. That was more so regarding the statement about the nickel being blasted off, I read that as the sand blasting got under the plate and lifted it off, just a tiny portion of your first post - I wasn't really directing that as the cause of the discoloration. On second look, it almost looks like there are laminations in the plate in a couple areas, though not part of the color problems, double check your connections.
I'm surprised that tech didn't jump on this one the first time 'round, usually they are right there. Be sure to post solution when you find it.

-Jimmy

Originally Posted by Brintiff

Thanks for the reply, I varied the prep and I still have the same problems, I didn't think it was a prep problem as I have not had any problems with other processes but I'll try anything at this point. Just sent a ticket to tech support, maybe they can figure it out. Unless the parts normally have to be polished after the plating which I doubt. I have not plated enough to have to add more brighteners.

[Brintiff]

Connection are good, I've varied amperage, bath temp, rechecked PH. I get the colors on parts that are not facing an anode, I know the anodes are large enough, it's like I'm not getting enough out of the anodes. The other problem is the black smut I'm getting, Like I said, I hope that the black stuff is not normal.

[KCV6]

Copy chrome can be very touchy, especially a fresh tank. I always ask the following question not knowing the tanks history, so here goes.

Did you plate out a test piece of copper or steel pipe first? My first ever CC tank took quite a few plates to get it up too speed and seasoned.

Second problem. Nickel (including CC) do not throw well into intricate low cut areas, these are low current density. I am not familiar with the Slide on the Glock, but judging by the pic I'd say pic 2 is showing where the CC is not throwing.

Cheers... Mark

[Brintiff]

KCV6, I've tried to only plate the Glock slide twice and a few smaller samples 3 or 4 times.

I did not try a piece of pipe.

If it is a throwing problem what can I do? I guess I need to make sure parts with shallow recesses face an anoid?

What should the copy chrome look like when I take it out of the bath, is it normal to have black smut on the part? It seems the problem with the smut is magnified on sandblasted or beadblasted parts.

[KCV6]

I tend to move complex shaped parts around in the tank during plating to get better throw and this does help. Always remember any nickel plate you cant take it out and then put it back, it will cause peeling.

Idealy the copy chrome will come out uniform silver. What sort of voltage is showing during plating? Copy Chrome usually runs between 2.5Vdc and 3Vdc when the ASI is correct.

I would definately get some steel or copper pipe and try plating a few dummy test pieces and see what results you get.

As Jimmy said, dont be afraid to get some PVC or nitril gloves on and really scrub the parts in the de-greaser and then also scrub them in the activating tank (acid). Sand blasting/glass beading tends to drive contaminants into the metal and they require hard scrubbing to get them clean. use the same gloves in both cycles. I have had brand new nitril gloves that have had contamination on the surface that has transferred to the part being plated.

I know it sucks, but get back to us with how a test piece goes at say 3Vdc indicated voltage with the prep being blasting and scrubbing. Don't try to change too much in the process at once or you will just get lost and frustrated.

Cheers... Mark

[Brintiff]

Hmmmmmm my voltage has been below 2v on every one so far, should I set the PS to constant voltage and plate a piece at 3v and let the amps do what they will?

[woodjames]

Yes, that's exactly the way that I always do it for my copper and nickel. It'll put the piece in a current density ''range'' really close to optimal, like a shortcut. Lock down the volts, you'll see the amp gauge bounce around a little.
Take a look at a recent post titled something like ''nickel anode concern'' as to how to dummy your tank. It's easy to get a contamination for other metals due to rinsing, impurities in the crystals, hanging bars, dropped parts...
Dummy cycles are very efficient at removing the black smut you are getting.
Just to cover the basic setup, and start ruling things out - did you attach your anodes as suggested in the manual?
It's easy to get too frustrated, but it becomes very rewarding shortly thereafter when solutions are found. Keep at it...