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How to do Gold Plating of Vinyl Records
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HI THERE. CAN ANYONE HELP, I AM TRYING TO START UP MY OWN BUSINESS SELLING GOLD AND PLATINUM ON VINYL RECORDS. DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT EQUIPMENT I NEED TO BUY TO DO THIS, PLEASE PLEASE CAN SOMEONE HELP AS I WANT TO GET MY BUSINESS UP AND RUNNING.
MANY THANKS
Mark H [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]just starting up, no name as yet - Newport, GWENT, UK
+++++There are two generic ways of doing it, one is to use vacuum metal deposition, but that is expensive to set up. The second way is to use "plating on plastics" technology. This is not so expensive, but you need to know how to do it. The basic principle is that you etch the plastic, coat it in a conducting metal layer and then thicken the metal layer with a suitable metal such as copper or nickel. This can then be coated in a decorative layer of gold, silver, platinum etc., etc.
Trevor Crichton
R&D practical scientist The Pheasantries - Chesham, U.K.
++++ -- this entry appended to this thread by editor in lieu of spawning a duplicative thread
I would be interested in buying the equipment necessary to gold plate vinyl records. Any help appreciated. Thanks
Trevor W [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]hobbyist - Belfast, Antrim, United Kingdom
++++ Hello Trevor.
As for gold plating vinyl records, yes you can do it yourself as your namesake said; but there are safety issues and environmental issues and a relatively small market. The result is that you tend to not find 'packaged solutions'. Rather, you buy an etchant from here, and a lacquer from there, and a silvering solution from a third place, and the gold process from a fourth, and the tanks and other equipment from a fifth place. Plus, in the U.S. at least, you need a host of permits because plating was the first categorically regulated industry here. In short, pretty good knowledge of plating is pretty much a prerequisite, and it's hard to gain that from a few paragraphs on a website.
There are actually a number of possible metallization techniques before plating, as described in our FAQ, "How to Plate Flowers, Leaves, and Organic Materials".
You can certainly talk to suppliers of metallizing solutions like G.J. Nikolas; then speak to precious metal specialists like Technic; and to suppliers of small hobby-level plating systems like Gold Touch. But I really don't think you'll find what you are looking for in any catalog; I think you would need to apply yourself towards learning electroplating first. Best of luck!
Ted Mooney, P.E.
finishing.com
Brick, New Jersey
Electroplating Engineering Handbook
"Standards and Guidelines for Electroplated Plastics"
A.S.E.P.
