Summary for tarnish electroless nickel plating Discussion
tarnish electroless nickel plating can be influenced by both the plating process and the base metal. Andy Bolin says the first thing to ask the plating shop is to skip any anti-tarnish post-dip, since some shops apply one routinely. He also notes that if the goal is true period authenticity, the parts should be nickel electroplated rather than electroless nickel plated, because electroless nickel did not exist in the era being copied. Bolin explains that worn nickel on brass will age differently than worn nickel on cast iron, which matches the user’s observations. He adds that the frosted, white-ish appearance is probably from bead blasting before plating, not from the nickel chemistry itself. For a slightly tarnished look, he suggests trying liver of sulfur, while cautioning that the final appearance may still differ from original vintage machines.
Q. Hello everyone. I am a professional tattoo machine builder. I have recently started collecting vintage tattoo machines and I make replicas for my customers. Many of the old tattoo machines were nickel plated before the mid 1940’s, so when I make a replica machine from this era, I send the frames and parts (screws, brass binding posts) to get nickel plated by a company who does electroless nickel plating. Some customers as well as myself like them to be “antiqued” or “aged to show wear”. I’m looking for an inexpensive way to slightly tarnish the frames and parts. Most of the photos I’ve seen and from machines of that era I have seen in person have a slightly “white-ish” almost frosted look and some have a darker tarnish or oxidized look to them. Is there a way to relatively quickly speed up the natural process? I like the look of both, and it seems that the tarnish on the brass nickel plated frames looks different than the tarnish on a cast iron frame. Any help would greatly be appreciated. Thank you for your time.
Andy Bolin
– Mary Esther, Florida, United States
January 10, 2012
Hi, Andy. The first step is to ask the shop to not apply an anti-tarnish post-dip, as some shops would do that as a matter of course. But if you want true authenticity, you would need to have the components nickel electroplated, as electroless nickel plating didn’t exist in those days. It may look a bit different. Yes, worn nickel plating on brass will look very different than worn nickel plating on cast iron. The frosted look is probably from bead blasting before plating, rather than from the plating chemistry. You might see if liver of sulfur
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eBay or
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can add the slightly tarnished look you seek. Good luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com – Pine Beach, New Jersey
Need quick confidential answers? $25
Need project assistance? $100/hr.
January 10, 2012
Thank you Ted. I will contact them and ask if they do provide an anti corrosion dip. I’ve sent some photographs of the finishes I will be trying to achieve, hoping to narrow down my search for the right methods. Thank you all for your time.
Andy Bolin
– Mary Esther, Florida, United States
January 12, 2012