new to plating and not getting good results

[audandash]

Hey guys, first off i have looked in the search box and not quite found what i am looking for. i have purchased the plug and plate kit for copper and nickel. I am doing some carb parts like screws, linkage, springs etc. i wanted to try it out with a plug in kit to test it before i invested to much. so far its not good lol. my first attempt was to put copper down and use it to mask any imperfections. very tiny imperfections, then put nickel on it to give it a nice finish. the copper goes on ok but is not very consistent. i get some black and dark spots. I have tried everything. i am barely touching it to holding it down and rubbing like all that i have read but i cannot find a happy medium. the solution on the bandage also gets kinda funky orange. is that supposed to happen? i have made sure the bandage is not on to tight as that seems to be the biggest issue but it is not and the solution goes all the way through. I got one little tiny section to actually plate nickel over the copper and thats it. it does not seem consistent and the results suck. i know its me so i need to figure out what i am doing wrong. the parts are very clean. i have used degreaser and even prep to make sure everything is off. i never touch the parts with my fingers and still no luck.

any advice or tips would be great! i really want to master this and hopefully eventually go to a tank setup.

[woodjames]

I'm not much of a brush plater, you'll have to wait 'till one of the other guys jumps in on this, what kind of copper are you using? flash or acid?

Originally Posted by audandash

Hey guys, first off i have looked in the search box and not quite found what i am looking for. i have purchased the plug and plate kit for copper and nickel. I am doing some carb parts like screws, linkage, springs etc. i wanted to try it out with a plug in kit to test it before i invested to much. so far its not good lol. my first attempt was to put copper down and use it to mask any imperfections. very tiny imperfections, then put nickel on it to give it a nice finish. the copper goes on ok but is not very consistent. i get some black and dark spots. I have tried everything. i am barely touching it to holding it down and rubbing like all that i have read but i cannot find a happy medium. the solution on the bandage also gets kinda funky orange. is that supposed to happen? i have made sure the bandage is not on to tight as that seems to be the biggest issue but it is not and the solution goes all the way through. I got one little tiny section to actually plate nickel over the copper and thats it. it does not seem consistent and the results suck. i know its me so i need to figure out what i am doing wrong. the parts are very clean. i have used degreaser and even prep to make sure everything is off. i never touch the parts with my fingers and still no luck.

any advice or tips would be great! i really want to master this and hopefully eventually go to a tank setup.

[craige]

You need to prep the parts by cleaning with a degreaser and rinse thoroughly with distilled water before you attempt to brush plate. If you have plating on them you may need to remove first before cleaning.