A Wheel Refinishing Project - Nickel Plating Heads of BBS Bolts

[BBSBolts]

Greetings - I have never done any plating before, but considering it for the following project:

I am taking apart two piece BBS wheels that are held together with 34 steel bolts. They need to be redone because of curb rash on the outer "barrels" and because of bad corrosion on the bolt heads.

I have been sanding and polishing the aluminum barrels and steel bolt heads with a great deal of success, and they look good. I have been putting them back together, and having them powdercoated to protect them.

They look great when they come back from the powdercoater. Unfortunatley, however, within a few weeks, the bolts start to rust and corrode under the powdercoat. 50% of the bolts look very rusty within a few months.

The bolts were pretty badly corroded after 10 years, but they were never rusty before. I think that they were zinc plated or coated (i'm guessing b/c of the blue-green tint they originally had.)

I am considering cleaning and polishing the BBS bolt heads like before, but then coating them in nickel for corrosion resistance. Then they would be re-installed in the barrells and re-powdercoated.

Because the size of the area to be nickel plated is small (just the small heads of the bolts) I am planning to use the Plug N Plate Nickel Kit. For five wheels, that's 170 bolt heads.

Questions:

Does this sound like it should work?

Will the nickel hinder corrosion well, particularly under a powdercoat?

Will clear powdercoat have any difficulty adhering to the nickel?

Should I use another material instead of nickel? I would even consider the black-krome or gold if need be.

Thanks in advance.

[BBSBolts]

I went with the Nickel Plug 'N Plate Kit. It seems to be working well, after a few false starts.

Here is what I am doing: I am immersion plating steel bolt heads, which appear to me to have about 2 cm square surface area. I am warminng the 8 oz nickel solution in the microwave for 30 seconds in a clean glass jar.

I prepped the steel bolt heads by sanding with 240, 400, and 800 grit sandpaper, then cleaning with soft scrub thoroughly.

I tried immersing the bolts for 5 minutes, but when they came out of the solution, they appeared to be not completely plated. There were crescent shapes of surface area where it appeared that the plating didn't start to adhere to the surface.

I started leaving the bolt heads in for 10 minutes, and I think that solved the problem. (I rigged it up so I don't have to stand there for 10 minutes) The bolts come out with a consistent muted light gray color. Then, after they come out and I dry them off, I polish them with a little mag and aluminum wheel polish and they look very good.

The appearance of the bolt after plating looks very similar to the original steel color, but just a touch darker and warmer in color.

Does this sound like I've gotten a good coat of nickel on the bolt heads?

Also, after about 8 bolt heads, the solution is starting to really foam up in the top 1/8th of the bath. Is this okay? Should I spoon this foamy solution out? Is that a sign of contamination or that I am plating too much metal in the solution too quickly?

Thanks for your time!!

[woodjames]

I don't want to sound like a jerk in this reply, but I'll answer each question line by line. I really hate it when people respond to me in this manner, but you've got a lot of questions, and don't want to miss anything...

I went with the Nickel Plug 'N Plate Kit. It seems to be working well, after a few false starts.

Here is what I am doing: I am immersion plating steel bolt heads, which appear to me to have about 2 cm square surface area. I am warminng the 8 oz nickel solution in the microwave for 30 seconds in a clean glass jar.

Microwaving to warm the solution is a good idea, I've got a bright nickel tank, and it's best to maintain at around 110 degrees, just make sure your solution is staying around that number, that may prove hard. You may want to build a little box, put a 100 watt lightbulb in it, and use the heat from the lightbulb to maintain temp, just a thought. I've seen people do it with hide glue before, should be able to make it work for yourself.

I prepped the steel bolt heads by sanding with 240, 400, and 800 grit sandpaper, then cleaning with soft scrub thoroughly.

That'll work just fine, just make sure that it passes the water break test, or don't figure on any plate remaining bonded after powder coat temps, you may want to test that. Also, a dip in battery acid, then rinsed before plating will help a lot.

I tried immersing the bolts for 5 minutes, but when they came out of the solution, they appeared to be not completely plated. There were crescent shapes of surface area where it appeared that the plating didn't start to adhere to the surface.

Most importantly...
If you have everything, temp, surface area, correct connection (you must go into nickel live); you will have full coverage in seconds, not minutes. The plate should be as bright as it went in. If you are talking minutes, something can be better.

I started leaving the bolt heads in for 10 minutes, and I think that solved the problem. (I rigged it up so I don't have to stand there for 10 minutes)

Being creative is a big part of what makes plating work well.

The bolts come out with a consistent muted light gray color. Then, after they come out and I dry them off, I polish them with a little mag and aluminum wheel polish and they look very good.

Cool, just be careful, you've got a thin plate to begin with.

The appearance of the bolt after plating looks very similar to the original steel color, but just a touch darker and warmer in color.

Kind of. Here's a test. Find something really white, like a paper towel of piece of paper. Set the piece down on it. Look at the POLISHED piece, the paper reflected will be almost "pee" yellow, if that makes sense.

Does this sound like I've gotten a good coat of nickel on the bolt heads?

See above.

Also, after about 8 bolt heads, the solution is starting to really foam up in the top 1/8th of the bath. Is this okay? Should I spoon this foamy solution out? Is that a sign of contamination or that I am plating too much metal in the solution too quickly?


hmm...not sure here. I've got a tank that's 5 gallons. The parts should bubble a little, maybe it just collecting at the top. You are rinsing off well after the cleaning step right Not to sure on this one, It may be perfectly acceptable. The plating will tell you the most, if there's junk in your solution, it will show in plating as pits, or rough spots. You definetly aren't plating too quickly from what you described as far as coverage, etc. It may be that you are burning the parts a little. It would explain the color, and would cause a lot more hydrogen released at the cathode which may look like foam when it's released from the solution.

My own thoughts here after reading your posts... $.02
You will have the same rust through problem if the nickel plate is too thin. Do this, measure a spot on the bolt head. After plating, if you expect it to hold up outside, it will be .002 bigger. .001 on one side, .001 on the other. Much less and it will just rust through, especially when you throw acid rain and salt and everything else you may run into outside. Back to the powder coat...it everything was done correctly, they shouldn't have rusted. You should be able to bury a part that is done correctly, and not have it rust. Powder does not stick well to a sharp corner, it flows away from it, where-as plate usually builds a little higher there. There are a lot of sharp corners on a bolt head...

Send me a pm if you want help getting these plated to where they will hold up.

Thanks for your time!!

Time? what's that? Ohh I remember, used to have some before two kids in diapers. Yes, that's it.

[goldrapt]

Hi James,
each to his own but I like it when someone breaks down the question and asnwers it like you have here.
Maybe thats cos I am a nebwie.
Any way, I thought that you might like to know that in the instructions for immersion plating using a plug and plate system is says immersion should be for 2 - 5 minutes.
I am interested in the nickel PnP system as I need to nickel plate a piece of copper before I can gold plate it but wonder if it is a false economy over a proper system like the electroless?

[BBSBolts]

James - Thanks for the reply. I prefer the detail of the line-by-line comments.

After about 20 of 34 bolt heads for the first wheel, the solution looks pretty polluted. It has gotten much darker, and there is a considerable amount of yellow "mud" settling at the bottom of the bath. I am still putting them in for 10 minutes, and they still appear to be polishing up nicely. But based simply on how the bath looks, I am less confident that the nickel will remain on the bolt, and perhaps whether it is there at all!

I admit that I may not be cleaning them perfectly well. Particularly the splined shaft of the bolts, which occasionally have come into contact with the bath.

I have had to sand down a couple of the bolts that coated poorly by having it in the solution for "only" five minutes, and it did "flake" off occasionally during the resanding process. If I were electrocoating them perfectly, would it be bonding so well that it would not peel or flake off? That is, if it were done perfectly, and I tried to sand the nickel off, would there be absolutely no flaking/peeling during the sanding process?

I look for the "pee color" reflection under artificial light and I don't see it. Is there another easy way for me to check to see if the bolt head actually has nickel on it?

I still have that bubbling action that I had in the beginning, but I am beginning to wonder whether it is actually plating the parts.

[BBSBolts]

I see on the Caswell Plating websie that the fact that the bolts were originally zinc plated may very well be a significant source of my problems. While I likely have sanded off the zinc coating off the bolt heads, but not the shafts, which have been in contact with the solution.

Does Caswell sell a pickle that woudl be good for me to immerse the bolts in to clean the zinc off them?

Thanks.

[goldrapt]

This site is a bonus

I dont know if I right but it says to flash copper zinc before nickel plating.
I would add, from what I have read so far, with the number of bolts you are trying to do the plating system is not the way to go, you should be considering something like this

But having never done it myself maybe getting the caswell manual might be a good idea.

[woodjames]

As Scooby Doo would say...RUT RO.

I see on the Caswell Plating websie that the fact that the bolts were originally zinc plated may very well be a significant source of my problems. While I likely have sanded off the zinc coating off the bolt heads, but not the shafts, which have been in contact with the solution.

It's a bad idea to sand it off. The best way would be just dunk it in battery acid until it starts foaming. That explains everything!!! The foam, the precipitate in the bottom of solution, the color... Zinc and Nickel don't mix. You probably contaminated the nickel with zinc. The ph of the nickel is around 4, so it attacks zinc rapidly. You might be able to plate out the zinc, but I don't know that it will be too effective if there is too much in solution now. Set your amps very low if you can adjust them, or throw a couple dc batteries in the mix to draw away some power. Get the JUNK out of the bottom too.

Does Caswell sell a pickle that woudl be good for me to immerse the bolts in to clean the zinc off them?

Battery acid, all auto parts stores will have it. Doesn't take to long. When it stops bubbling, you're done.
Thanks.

[woodjames]

Please standby for a message from WoodJames.

James - Thanks for the reply. I prefer the detail of the line-by-line comments.

After about 20 of 34 bolt heads for the first wheel, the solution looks pretty polluted. It has gotten much darker, and there is a considerable amount of yellow "mud" settling at the bottom of the bath. I am still putting them in for 10 minutes, and they still appear to be polishing up nicely. But based simply on how the bath looks, I am less confident that the nickel will remain on the bolt, and perhaps whether it is there at all!

I admit that I may not be cleaning them perfectly well. Particularly the splined shaft of the bolts, which occasionally have come into contact with the bath.

I have had to sand down a couple of the bolts that coated poorly by having it in the solution for "only" five minutes, and it did "flake" off occasionally during the resanding process. If I were electrocoating them perfectly, would it be bonding so well that it would not peel or flake off? That is, if it were done perfectly, and I tried to sand the nickel off, would there be absolutely no flaking/peeling during the sanding process?

No, it would be a very smooth almost seamless transition from nickel to the origional metal if done correctly.

I look for the "pee color" reflection under artificial light and I don't see it. Is there another easy way for me to check to see if the bolt head actually has nickel on it?

It would be very apparent, if the heads have reflection at all, the reflection would look like you were looking through yellow saran wrap. From the zinc statement, I'm thinking you have no nickel. Hold one that you have plated next to one that you haven't and you'll see it's very yellow. If you go to my gallery, there's a pic of a cam chain tensioner. Around the holes for the bolts there was no chrome deposited, and you'll see the yellow color of the nickel I speak of. It almost looks like a halo in the picture. Can't miss it.

I still have that bubbling action that I had in the beginning, but I am beginning to wonder whether it is actually plating the parts.

Zinc, solely the zinc plating being dissolved away.