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Plating for soldering?

I have a small brass pin with a hole drilled through it. The pin has been plated with 'bright nickel' to obtain a hard wear surface against a plated leaf spring. A copper wire passes thru the hole in the pin and that gets soldered in place. I'm having difficulty getting the solder to flow through the hole around the wire to make a strong joint. One option to fix the soldering problem is to change the plating to sulfamate nickel to improve the solderability. Should I also consider tin plate over the nickel to improve solderability?

Alan Kirkpatrick
product designer - Shelburne, Vt, USA
September 18, 2009

In the lab, carbon treat a sample to remove the brightening agents and then plate it in the lab and try to solder it. It should work and it will still be hard, just a matte or dull finish.

James Watts
- Navarre, Florida
September 21, 2009

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September 24, 2009

James has given you a good plater's answer but there is a simpler approach if you have already plated your pins.
The reason nickel is difficult to solder is that the oxide layer on the surface is not removed by the soldering fluxes normally used. Special fluxes are available from solder suppliers or stocked by hardware stores for use on stainless steel plumbing fittings. Remember that these fluxes may leave a corrosive residue and may need to be rinsed off after use. (water is usually sufficient)

Geoff Smith
Hampshire, England