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Home made chrome stripper/chrome activator

hello
I live in Cyprus, and I am finding it almost impossible to get gold plating chemicals.
I have heard that it is possible to make your own chrome stripper/ chrome activator , for use on car emblems/badges.
could anyone offer any advise as to making up a solution. shipping regulations make it really difficult for me, and a lot of my trying to explain what I need is being lost in translation.

many thanks

Peter Davenport
car emblems - Paphos, Cyprus
September 2, 2008

Lets suppose you get the right chemical and strip the emblem, now what? Do you have the nickel strike and the gold? I don't see why are you more concerned about chrome stripping chemicals. If you can get the gold into Cyprus why not the stripper? G. Marrufo-Mexico

Guillermo Marrufo
Monterrey, NL, Mexico
September 11, 2008

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hi
I am doing my best with what I have been conned into, I bought the kit in good faith via eBay , only after was I told that some of the kit,{chemicals} could not be posted over seas. most of the other chemicals were given to me in powder form for me to mix here with distilled de ionised water.
is nickel strike the same thing as nickel activator?

Anyway thanks for your reply.

Peter

Kay Davenport
- Paphos, Cyprus
September 12, 2008

Yes, a strike is a normally an activation step. For stripping chrome use hydrochloric (muriatic) acid from the nearest store. All you need is that the acid wets the chrome. Most of the time, once the chrome is gone (several minutes depending on factors such as acid concentration, temperature and chrome thickness) there will be a fresh and active nickel underplate which if not let dry or contaminated will easily receive gold from an acid gold solution. If you suspect it is contaminated or dried, or if what you see exposed is copper you have to nickel strike it and nickel plate it to avoid gold migration into copper. If you expose a different material you are in trouble. Good luck. G. Marrufo

Guillermo Marrufo
Monterrey, NL, Mexico
September 18, 2008

Hydrochloric acid is very corrosive to the ambient. Might use sulfuric acid 32% and temperature of 30-35°C. Add if necessary bit of hypophosphate.

Dominik Michalek
- Mexico City, Mexico
November 15, 2008