hydrogen embrittlement and electroless nickel question

[powderhombre]

Well I successfuly electroless nickel plated my 1851 Navy reproduction black powder handgun. It looks great! Now, do I have hydrogen embrittlement issues? I'm getting conflicting opinions on the subject. some acid was used to remove the original bluing mostly on the small parts, screws and such. the larger parts were wire brushed. however, some acid was used to wipe down the parts, no soaking. then washed off in water and degreased. so I don't know if there is a problem or not. the plating is .5 mil. thick. I could just bake, but I am afraid of discoloring the nickel. any thoughts on the suject? thanks.

[KCV6]

I'd say it would be ok, how long was it left to plate?

possibly slow bake at a low temp then yes you will need to re-polish.

cheers

Mark

[engineerscott]

Electroless Nickel (EN) does in general not cause hydrogen embrittlement, which is why it is the preferred process for nickel plating in industrial applications. If you did not soak the item in an acid solution I would think that you would have very little to worry about. If you are still worried about it you can bake at a lower temperature but will have to extend the bake time. You should only get a surface discoloring which should readily polish out.