1) the shop wishes that I send it to them and I quote buffed and ready
In the research I think I understand that they do not mean buffed as in buffed by a wheel buffer, but by sandpaper or the likes. So could someone explain to me or direct myself to where I can understand what condition these items should arrive at the plating company?
It sounds like the shop does not do any buffing or polishing of the parts they receive. Generally, in metal finishing, the quality of the final deposit is directly a result of the initial part quality. If you plate on top of a rough part, the chrome will be rough. If you plate on top of a bright and shiny part, it should be bright and shiny. I would assume that the shop wants you to give them a part that is ready to be plated without any further polishing or buffing work. If the parts are steel, be sure to apply a good rust preventative after you have them buffed or they could develop rust.
2) I will assume that I will be finding pits and such taking off the old chrome, so what is the best way to take the old finish off, some pieces have huge pieces of chrome in which I can peel off, and other pieces are in pretty good shape, so what is it supposed to look like.
Again, I'm not sure of the base metal, but I'll assume steel. One of the frequently used processes for stripping chrome is to use hydrochloric acid at around 50%/v. This will only remove the chrome and not the underlying nickel or copper. There are several ways to strip the nickel and copper, but most of them require more than a simple immersion in acid. I'd recommend you take your parts to be stripped to a local shop that can handle the work. Once the parts are stripped, they should look like plain steel. Ideally, the parts would not have ANY plating on them, but it may be possible to plate on top of copper or nickel.
2a) Now for the pits, what is the best items to use for filling of the pits, its an old bike and a 2-stroke so it vibrates alot, I am being told to use lead-type fills, and one person said i could use old-school lead solder for pipes, I have doubts using it, so I assume when in doubt, do not use it, so what to use then?
Personally, plating on top of lead has always been problematic. It CAN be done, but the adhesion has generally been poor unless a high-fluoride acid is used and a cyanide copper strike goes over that. Most places that want to fill in pits just plate a heavy layer of copper and then polish the surface smooth. Just check to see what your plating shop can do.
3) Now I understand the process of chroming, first copper, then nickle, then chrome, I however have seen older bikes and older cars with only nickle plating, so I would like to do this bike in nickle, so could someone explain to me what to ask for in terms of thickness or other issues, and also what is the care required for nickle plates?
In general, each layer of the copper/nickel/chrome deposit has its own purpose. The copper is a (relatively) cheap way to get a bright, leveled surface with great adhesion and some measure of corrosion protection. The nickel provides the vast majority of the corrosion protection, as well as the brightness, leveling, and "depth". The chrome layer provides abrasion resistance, color, and it tends to spread the sites of potential corrosion over the entire surface of the part. Nickel metal by itself is more yellow than the traditional blue tint of chrome. And it tends to oxidize pretty quickly, which causes it to haze over. Unless you put a protective clearcoat over the nickel, it will become dull and hazy within a few months. Typical clearcoats include lacquers and powdercoatings.
When discussing nickel thickness, it can quickly become confusing. Many older specs call for a minimum thickness of nickel to meet corrosion requirements. Typically 0.2 to 0.3 mils was called for in many residential/commercial applications. However, plating different types of nickel layers can drastically reduce the required thickness to get the same corrosion results. Generally, the more nickel, the longer the parts should last without rusting.
Care for a nickel-only deposit can be easy or difficult. If it is clearcoated, you just need to clean it with soap and water, or as the clearcoat specifies. If the nickel is exposed, it may require frequent polishing to keep the haze away.
-Dustin Gebhardt,
CEF
Plating Engineer
Danaher Tool Group
Gastonia, NC
