Satin nickel plating process

A. These answers are usually included in the technical data sheet for the process, Manish. If your vendor cannot supply them, the next best resource might be The Canning Handbook [on eBay, Amazon, AbeBooks], which has a chapter on satin nickel which covers most of these questions. Good luck!

A. Satin nickel is a very delicate process. It needs filtering every day, special agitation, etc. As Ted already mentioned, your vendor must have all the answers to your questions (I hope you have a vendor and you are not trying a home brewing product). If not, look for another supplier.

A. Two excellent reference books, one of which is more practical and one of which is more theoretical are:

Electroplating of Zinc Diecastings, S.K. Jalota
Nickel and Chromium Plating [affil link on Amazon], J.K. Dennis and T.E. Such.

These will start you on the beginning of understanding both Nickel Plating and Zinc Diecastings as a substrate.

A. Satin Nickel is quite a complicated plating process. Be happy if you are able to operate such a process with the help of a supplier. Don't try to do a home brewing formula.

A. Hi, Rick. Finishing.com is a website where finishers meet and discuss stuff ... we have no book or magazine (you may be confusing us with Elsevier-owned "Metal Finishing".

I think the easiest, but not the only, way would be to do acid copper plating after your cyanide copper plating, then a conventional Watts nickel, then a proprietary satin nickel that you buy from a vendor specializing in that process.

But it's very important that you and your customer agree on what you mean by "satin nickel" -- to some it apparently means a very fine brushed finish, to some others it means a "bead blast" finish, and to many platers it means a pearlescent finish. Obviously, you achieve these three different finishes by brushing, bead blasting, or special additives.

Regards,

A. Hi Rick, YOU CAN ACHIEVE SATIN NICKEL FINISH FOLLOWED BY DIRECT BRIGHT NICKEL (WITHOUT ANY COPPER) ON ZINC ALLOY DIECAST. YOU CAN FOLLOW UNDERGIVEN STEPS:
1. HIGH ALKALINE CLEANING
2. THREE RINSES
3. 2% SULFURIC DIP
4. THREE RINSES
5. DIRECT NICKEL - WITH 5.2 PH, HIGH CARRIER ADDITIVE , WITH GOOD AIR AGITATION , WITH CURRENT ON WHILE LOADING @ 40 AMPS/SQ.FT. IT WILL GIVE YOU BLISTER FREE DEPOSIT EVEN AFTER SATIN NICKEL OR ELECTROPHORETIC LACQUERING.

A. Hi cousin Ashwin. We have dozens of threads on this site on the subject of "satin nickel plating", and one of the reasons for so many threads is that the world has not agreed on what 'satin nickel plating' is or looks like :-)

To some people satin nickel plating is nickel plating on top of a fine brush finish (although actually done with scotchbrite on a Timesaver sander, not with a brush) -- it looks somewhat like the finish on most stainless steel sinks. To other people satin nickel is what you get when you bright nickel plate a bead-blasted surface -- you might see this on a firearm where some areas are bright and other areas a softer whitish tone. To still others, satin nickel means a soft low-reflection look achieved with co-deposition of microparticles (on automobile windshield wipers for example). Finally, to some, it means a 'pearlescent' look achieved with a proprietary process and microparticle chemistry, and yes, resembling a pearl with sort of a lustre to it rather than a matte look.

Once you know which of the looks you want, it tells you the technologies used to achieve it. Most substrate materials can be 'brushed'; I don't personally recall seeing bead-blasted Zamac, aluminum, or brass -- so I'm not sure if it's possible. To my knowledge, the microparticle matte and pearlescent finishes can be applied (on top of other platings) onto any substrate though.

Regards,