Nickel plating removal / stripping

A. The large gunsmith supply companies carry a nickel stripper that works quite well. The parts that need to have the nickel removed just need to be immersed in the liquid. It's the best way I've found to remove nickel without a lot of polishing but it only comes in one gallon quantities so it's not meant for large jobs.

A. I suggest go back to the local plating shop and teach them how to strip in the above mentioned nitric acid solution. I would strongly suggest that you do [not] mess with concentrated nitric and the hazardous waste you will produce once you load it with nickel.

A. Just to let you guys know. I have successfully removed a lot of chrome and nickel with the techniques listed here. I'm lucky enough to have access to a large supply of sodium Hydroxide and Nitric acid. I have been using them for years at my Job. (with the proper training and safety gear). After buying an old motorcycle I was look into ways of removing the chrome, then nickel then polishing up the aluminum. and WOW...it worked great. That is AFTER I destroyed a small pc. trying to sand and pick it off.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

Brian

A. 50% tech grade sulfuric acid (66 degree sulfuric acid) and 50% water using electric will take off your nickel without hurting your aluminum. You can use a battery charger [on eBay or Amazon] as a rectifier. If the part has copper on it depending how much build is on the part it should remove it also. Nitric acid will do the job the same way without electric, make sure you don't put steel in nitric acid, bad* chem reaction. good luck

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Ed. note: * - by bad reaction, Mark means the solution will evolve copious clouds of toxic NOx. So, to repeat then, keep nitric acid away from steel!

A. Hi John. It is possible to plate nickel on nickel -- it requires activating the old nickel plating with a Wood's Nickel Strike process. But repairs of the sort you are describing are usually done by brush plating specialists rather than by tank plating.

While this technique can salvage mismachined parts and thus be less expensive than scrapping them (plating may cost less than starting over), the plating would not be consistent enough in thickness nor inexpensive enough to achieve what you wish -- trying to plate to finished dimension will only increase costs, not decrease them.

Regards,

A. As Ted says, it is entirely possible but since plating tends to build up at the end of shafts, you may have to grind to get the exact fit you want.
Taking a guess at your application, I would consider one of the modern anaerobic gap filling adhesives such as Loctite or Bondloc B648 as a much less expensive solution.
Refer to the manufacturer for the best grade for your application

A. Hi Jan
Yes the nickel plating must be stripped and re-done. We added your inquiry to a thread on the subject which suggests a number of different ways, but a proprietary nickel stripper is probably safest. Good luck.

Regards,

A. Dear sir if you use nickel stripping, the part will be little much eroded in microns. Again you have to polish it. After this on aluminium they are doing zincating process, then ENP or Bright nickel. If zincating solution is not well maintained this problem occurs. It's not only due to cleaning ... better to try Electroless nickel on zincated surface. You'll get better adhesion and corrosion resistance too due to phosphorous content in ENP. It has 3 grades: use high phosphorous grade.

NICKEL LAYER STRIPPING

If you have the base metal stainless steel, it's okay to strip with nitric acid without damage to the base metal.

A. Dear Jan,
One day is too long for nickel strip using nitric acid. Few minutes should be enough. Clean the part from oil, immerse in nitric acid in well ventilated area for 5 minutes and check. Continue with 5 minutes immersion cycle until the deposit will be dissolved.
Good luck!