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


-----

Chrome plating plastic

Q. I want to chrome plate abs plastic. Who sells the supplies or equipment for this? What books are available?

Thank you

Jacob Van Halteren
- Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada
2004

A. Hello, Jacob. All of the major plating process suppliers including Atotech and Macdermid offer the process chemistry for plating on ABS. You haven't given us a starting point by telling us how much plating experience you have and what you know about it. That's important because plating on plastics has its special steps and its quirks that have to be addressed, but to move on to those details if you know no plating can be to focus on the inconsequential. Plating today is largely about pollution control.

"Standards and Guidelines for Electroplated Plastics" by the American Society of Electroplated Plastics is probably a good book about those special steps, as is Plating on Plastics: A Practical Handbook [affil link on Amazon] by Muller and Baudrand.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2004

A. First you need chrome etching tank (chrome 365 gr/lt and H2SO4 360 gr/lt) and then neutralization tank, then 30 percent HCl and then activator tank, then accelerator and then electroless nickel and acid copper, nickel; finally decorative chrome plating.

Dr. Halim Polat
- Istanbul, Turkey
2004

finishing.com is made possible by ...