Metal finishing Q&As since 1989

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Safe alternative to Cadmium plating on 12L14 steel

2007

Hello,
My name is Nathan Fait I was a mechanical engineering student at Oklahoma Christian. I met a friend while I was there. He manufactures inserts for Honeycomb. He has been having his parts sent out for plating. The turnaround is starting to become a problem.These are a list of thing he's after. Can you please help?
1. must not be a caustic process
2. The process should be comparable to that of CAD plating.
3. the process should provide a thickness of .0003 to 0006" This is important because threads are plated as well.
4. The process must be performed in batches (multiple parts) not individually.
5. We will need to process approx. 2000 parts per day.
6. Material to be plated will be low carbon steel such as 12L14.
7. The disposal of chemicals must not be monitored by the EPA, etc.

Please help.
Thank you

Nathan Fait
- Grand Rapids, Michigan

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Zinc plating is generally similar in performance to cadmium plating as long as lubricity is not a major issue, Nathan; if it is, an alloy plating like tin-zinc may be good. But ALL plating processes are categorically regulated regardless of how innocuous they may be, so line 7 is a non-starter. Good luck.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2007

Tell him to look into a small mechanical plating setup. It is more expensive than regular plating, but it has a lot less environmental headaches. And, proceed with caution. A better way would be to look for an additional vendor. Consider silver plating.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida
2007

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Do the plater a big favor and help the environment by choosing a non-leaded, free machining steel.

Ken Vlach [deceased]
- Goleta, California
Finishing.com honored Ken for his countless carefully researched responses. He passed away May 14, 2015.
Rest in peace, Ken. Thank you for your hard work which the finishing world, and we at finishing.com, continue to benefit from.
2007