Nickel Replate: acid etch still needed after mechanical stri

[xiphmont]

Hi,

I\'m about to start in on nickel-replating some antique bassoon keywork. The base metal is a bronze/brass of some variety, plated over with... nickel? I\'m uncertain going only from the metal itself, but given the period of manufacture, it would almost certainly have to be nickel (as it isn\'t silver).

I\'ve used a vibratory tumbler to smooth and polish the keys, all of which were worn down to the base metal in at least a few spots. Despite the great wear, what nickel plate remains is surprisingly tough. The tumbling was unable to strip it all through a full day of \'medium\' ceramic triangles in a Minisonic MV-14 set just short of maximum.

Despite failing to strip all the old plate, the resulting surface after fine triangles is quite smooth and polished, so that should be all that\'s really needed judging from other posts on the subject. My question is this: Should I acid-etch the polished but not completely unplated keys before beginning replating? Or was the mechanical process sufficient surface preparation?

Answers to other questions I should have asked are also quite welcome of course!

Thanks in advance,

Monty

[mcaswell]

In order for new nickel to adhere to old nickel, you need to acid etch the parts using the Nickel Activator Pickle described in the manual.

[xiphmont]

The \'Nickel Activator\' Pickle (#3) described in the manual is a sulfuric acid solution while here in the forum, you\'ve recommended people just use muriatic acid. Muriatic acid is easier to come by. Will either work? What is the rinsing procedure after dipping? (Descriptions here in the forum have also been simpler than the manual describes).

Thanks!
Monty

[mcaswell]

If we did recommend muriatic acid to activate nickel, that was an error. It\'s better to use sulfuric. It should be very easy to find battery acid....any automotive store should carry it.

Rinse in distilled water before immersing the part in your plating tank.

[dadkar2]

There is a nice product made by a company called Metalx. It is called B929 and it is a miracle product for removal of nickel. It's actually safe to handle etc. and non toxic, but does the job on nickel plate. It will remove it right down to the brass without doing any harm to the brass. It leaves behind a dark smut which is easily removed with an SOS pad in a few seconds. It's awesome stuff. They can be reached at 828-758-4997. The stuff is reasonably priced ($3/lb plus shipping). You might have to buy a minimum of 20 lbs. Call and see.---Ken