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I have been preparing for this first plate for a long time. My first two pieces came out worse then I could have imagined. The first one I tried to use the copper pipe. That piece came out dark grey, and it had little spots that weren't plated. I could see little spots everywhere. I think I mis-calculated by adding the area on the inside of the pipe. So the second piece to test, I tried a piece of aluminum that I could risk loosing. This piece came out really spotty, and it looks like the zincate didn't come all the way off. You can kind of see it in the pictures. The edges have plate on them, but the flat surfaces look like they have streaks of plating, or like molten lava. I will list everything I did, and everything I used below so you can know what I am using. One thing I can tell you is I keep my area perfectly clean, to the point where I am anal about not contaminating my plating solution.
I bought the 3 gallon copy chrome kit, with the zincate to plate aluminum. I put the distilled water, the two bags of crystals, and the two bottles of brightner in the bucket together and let it set. for 30 hours. I first put the heater in (the one with the plastic guard) so the solution can heat up. I hung my anodes by copper wire by cutting the top two corners and running the wires through the cuts, then bending the corner over the wire, and hung the wire over the side to hold the anode up. I didn't let this copper wire touch the solution. I then stuck my agitator in with the top of motor case just outside the solution and everything else submersed.(wasn't sure how to put that thing in, but it seemed to work)
I made my copper bar from 1/2 inch copper pipe with the end beat down and bent over the sides, with two small holes drilled in the middle to run the wire through. For a power source, I used a lawnmower 6V batter, and bought (
6V, .250 light bulbs and sockets, and ran them in parrallel to draw around 2 amps. I verified my current and voltage with a multimeter. I wired everything up (I promise I did this right) and hung my part using copper wire. The part that you see below is around 31 square inches. I waited about an hour, and out comes this **** below. It looks like the zincate is still on there. I thought the bath stripped that stuff off to plate. I left the part in the zincate solution for less then 30 seconds, and I got a uniform gray shine.
I got the impression afterwards that I shouldn't have put both of the bottles of brighter in when I made my plating solution, not sure though. I also don't know if I should have used 12V instead of 6V. I thought I read that 6V would be better for my situation. I figured the first part was "burnt" because I used too much current by counting the area inside the tubing. It was dark grey, milky looking, and you could see spots where it did not bond. I am pretty sure I didn't contaminate my solution. I keep it sealed, and I wear non-latex gloves if my hands need to go into the solution, and I take the cleaning seriously. If you can help me, I come over and mow your lawn, wash your clothes, paint the house, whatever. I am worried I have screwed up my solution some how.
Also, does anyone know a good way to handle your part from rinsing it to the bath. I use lint-free, non-abrasive cloth painter rags. You can send me an email, or even call me if you want to, or I can call you and save the charge. I can't let all this money invested go to waste.
I bought the 3 gallon copy chrome kit, with the zincate to plate aluminum. I put the distilled water, the two bags of crystals, and the two bottles of brightner in the bucket together and let it set. for 30 hours. I first put the heater in (the one with the plastic guard) so the solution can heat up. I hung my anodes by copper wire by cutting the top two corners and running the wires through the cuts, then bending the corner over the wire, and hung the wire over the side to hold the anode up. I didn't let this copper wire touch the solution. I then stuck my agitator in with the top of motor case just outside the solution and everything else submersed.(wasn't sure how to put that thing in, but it seemed to work)
I made my copper bar from 1/2 inch copper pipe with the end beat down and bent over the sides, with two small holes drilled in the middle to run the wire through. For a power source, I used a lawnmower 6V batter, and bought (
6V, .250 light bulbs and sockets, and ran them in parrallel to draw around 2 amps. I verified my current and voltage with a multimeter. I wired everything up (I promise I did this right) and hung my part using copper wire. The part that you see below is around 31 square inches. I waited about an hour, and out comes this **** below. It looks like the zincate is still on there. I thought the bath stripped that stuff off to plate. I left the part in the zincate solution for less then 30 seconds, and I got a uniform gray shine.I got the impression afterwards that I shouldn't have put both of the bottles of brighter in when I made my plating solution, not sure though. I also don't know if I should have used 12V instead of 6V. I thought I read that 6V would be better for my situation. I figured the first part was "burnt" because I used too much current by counting the area inside the tubing. It was dark grey, milky looking, and you could see spots where it did not bond. I am pretty sure I didn't contaminate my solution. I keep it sealed, and I wear non-latex gloves if my hands need to go into the solution, and I take the cleaning seriously. If you can help me, I come over and mow your lawn, wash your clothes, paint the house, whatever. I am worried I have screwed up my solution some how.
Also, does anyone know a good way to handle your part from rinsing it to the bath. I use lint-free, non-abrasive cloth painter rags. You can send me an email, or even call me if you want to, or I can call you and save the charge. I can't let all this money invested go to waste.
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