Where the
world gathers for metal finishing
Q&As since 1989


-----

Plating with copper sulphate

I would like to copper plate some copper items which are solder together. In other words, I would like to hide the 60 - 40 tin - lead joints. My thought was to immerse the copper items in a solution of copper sulphate [on eBay or Amazon]and water or vinegar [in bulk on eBay or Amazon]. The negative lead of the battery would be attached to the copper item to be plated and the positive lead attached to a piece of copper pipe. Is this overkill or am I just spinning my wheels?

Bill Maddux
- Ridgecrest, California, USA
2002

---

It's probably under kill. There is much more to a quality plating job than just putting a leaded substrate into a jar of copper sulphate and connecting a battery. If you do a very thin application of copper (a few millionths of an inch), you may make the solder less obvious. But you won't be able to get a proper thickness of copper plating bright, nor adherent, without a lot more steps.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2002

If you would take a look at the FAQ section there is a lot of good info there that will explain electroplating and whats involved. You have the basics correct. But as with anything...there is a little more involved to getting it done correctly.

Tom Haltmeyer
- Peoria, Arizona, USA
2002