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Metal finishing Q&As since 1989
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Need procedure to plate antique pewter part
Hello people,
I'm in the custom chrome plating business and I've got an old antique art deco cocktail mixer that I need to replate. The bulk of the piece is just a straight forward chrome strip, buff, reactivate the nickel and copper strike, etc. Worked fine except for the handle. Copper peeled and blistered. Our polisher thinks the base metal is pewter. I reactivated in 50% HCl with reverse current. I suspect this is where I went wrong. I will strip back down, but if anyone has any advice on how to proceed, I would appreciate it. It is a family heirloom and I would feel terrible screwing it up.
Thank You in advance
![Trent Kaufman](../portraits/trent_kaufman.jpg)
Trent Kaufman
electroplater - Galva, Illinois
2006
Hello, Trent. I'd bet that the handle is leaded and requires HF to activate.
![Ted Mooney, finishing.com](../portraits/ted_mooney_beach.jpg)
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2006
Thanks Ted,
Any idea what the hydrofluoric acid concentration should be, and I'm assuming that no current is required? I don't like to have any more HF around than I absolutely need. Nasty stuff.
Thanks,
![Trent Kaufman](../portraits/trent_kaufman.jpg)
Trent Kaufman
electroplater - Galva, Illinois
2006
![left and right hands, two views, burned index fingers](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/HF_burned_hands.jpg/250px-HF_burned_hands.jpg)
Never use HF anywhere unless trained!
If you do, you MUST have the antidote gel on hand for instant use!
Calcium Gluconate
for HF acid burns
![calcium_gluconate](../awd/calcium_gluconate.jpg)
on eBay or
Amazon
(affil links)
I don't have hands-on experience in that, but the
Electroplating Engineering Handbook [on
AbeBooks or
eBay or
Amazon affil links]
suggests pumice ⇦[this on
eBay or
Amazon affil links] cleaning, followed by cathodic cleaning, followed by dip in 20% HF. Make sure you have calcium gluconate chemical burn cream.
on hand first, just in case.
![Ted Mooney, finishing.com](../portraits/ted_mooney_beach.jpg)
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2006
2006
My experience with pewter is :
Strip to base metal, polish to desired finish (bright), cyanide copper about 10 min. acid copper for an hour. bright nickel plate for
30 min. chrome flash for 1 min.
This seems to work for me quite well. Good luck.
- St. Louis, Missouri, USA
2006
Nope, not HF. For activation of lead alloys, use fluoboric acid, 10-15%, room temp, 30 seconds. Works better and much safer than HF. HCl is exactly wrong as it will form an insoluble film of lead chloride, and peeling is guaranteed.
![jeffrey holmes](../portraits/jeffrey_holmes.jpg)
Jeffrey Holmes, CEF
Spartanburg, South Carolina
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