The authoritative public forum
  for Metal Finishing since 1989
  

  -----

Brush plating solutions

September 3, 2008

Hello,

I'm planning combining tank plating and brush plating because of the size of my rectifier. I would like to plate bumpers and other car parts. For plating copper and nickel I would use tank plating, and for the final chrome I would like to use brush plating technique. Is it possible to use the tank plating chrome solution, or I have to find a brush plating chrome solution? If so, does anybody know the formula for making brush plating chrome solution?

Thanks,

Igor Milovcic
hobbyst - Croatia

---

Try www.uspto.gov website. There you can find some expired patents on brush plating chromium. "Electrochemical Metallizing" [on eBay, Amazon, AbeBooks affil links], Marvin Rubinstein's book on brush plating can be helpful too (German edition by E.G.Leuze verlag/Das Tampongalvanisierung/). Hope it helps and good luck!

Goran Budija
- Cerovski vrh Croatia
September 8, 2008

You can only get a thin coat of chrome with brush plating, so you will need a good polished bright nickel beneath it. Cobalt is a very white almost bluish color that is also fairly hard which is used as a substitute by some.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida
September 9, 2008