Letter 36097

Cracking in Plated Plastic [Colorado] 

+++++

We have encountered failures in the form of cracking in the plating on ABS substrates. Is there a predictable maximum strain that can be tolerated before cracking in the plating arises?

Bill Lucier
Lund International - Arvada, CO

Normally when you have cracking on plastics you have stress in the moulded parts, a special test to know if your parts have stress is immerse the parts in acetic acid 100% v and you can observed the flow stress on the plastics and I think is the same zone that you had problems, is necessary that you change your gates in your molds, or kind of plastic or set ups of the machines.

Gabriel Ramirez Nuñez
- Toluca

Molded in stress is the problem and/or parting line mis-match. The key to molding plateable ABS is hot material-mold and SLOW fill rate. I am in the process of writing a guide to molding plateable AB.
Can anyone help me with a good source for information on the plating process for ABS. I understand the process but would like put a chapter in the guide so molders can also get a good understanding of the process.

Joe Phillips
Injection Molder - Hillsdale, MI, USA

ASEP published a good book on the subject, "Standards and Guidelines, Electroplated Plastics".

Ted Mooney, P.E.
finishing.com Inc. - Brick, NJ

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