Nickel Electroplating in the Home Shop - A Shocking Way to Prevent Rust!

Today, we're trying out nickel electroplating for the first time in the home shop. We're going to nickel plate the mild steel rack storage pins we made in a previous video so they won't rust, tarnish, or corrode in the coming years. Nickel Electroplating turns out to be a very simple process, involving vinegar, salt, nickel, and electricity. For a total amateur, it turned out great.
Tools used in this video:
*This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated
Pure Nickel Sheet for Electroplating (Amazon*): amzn.to/3AB3Zfn
Rigol DP832 Triple-Output Power Supply (Amazon*): amzn.to/2FHtSfz
Baldor 332B 3/4HP Buffer (Amazon*): amzn.to/2GqOCMZ
Banana to Alligator Test Leads (Amazon*): amzn.to/304uki5
00:00 Intro
01:18 What is electroplating?
02:18 Making the nickel acetate solution
06:29 Test plating a wire
07:58 Preparing parts for plating
08:54 Electroplating steel parts
10:11 Initial results
11:26 Buffing the plated parts
12:11 Examining the results
12:57 Conclusions
Raw Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...

[@jeffbrassard1268]

Home or shop electroplating is a bad idea and the notion that it is a simple process is ridiculous. Reliably electroplating metals (nickel, copper, zinc, tin, chromium, brass, etc) requires specialized equipment, hazardous chemicals and process knowledge that are not available to home enthusiasts. All electroplating takes place in a specific process sequence that involves multiple cleaning, rinsing, de oxidation steps before the plating step can be initiated. These process steps use strong and potentially hazardous industrial chemicals. This should only be done by people who are in the electroplating and surface finishing industry. In addition to the potential for exposing the hobbyist to hazardous chemicals most of the products used in electroplating would be considered hazardous waste by the EPA so disposing of them is a real problem for anyone not in the industry. Bottom line, do not try to electroplate at home or in a shop. Take your parts to a plating company near you. There are more than 2,000 licensed plating job shops in the USA.

[@Clough42]

All-or-nothing thinking like this is a cognitive distortion, and it is fundamentally at odds with the idea that ordinary people can be makers of things and not just consumers. My results were totally sufficient for my needs, and I did not use any of the hazardous industrial chemicals or secret industry knowledge you describe. If I ever grow tired of reusing my two quarts of contaminated vinegar, I can evaporate it or take it to my local hazardous waste collection.

[@jeffbrassard1268]

@@Clough42 and what do you do with the nickel salts that will be left after you evaporate your solution? Throw them in the trash so they can leach into the ground water at the land fill? Look certain activities are suitable for the home hobbyist and others are not. Dealing with metal based electroplating solutions at home or in workshop just is not a good idea. Additionally the chemistry used in electroplating is dynamic meaning it changes as you plate and must be monitored and maintained or the resulting nickel (in this case) deposit will not perform well. Visual appearance of the deposit is not a reliable indication of quality or performance. My background is electroplating, I am a chemist who has worked in the industry for more than 40 years having built and installed plating plants in more than 20 countries.

[@ianbottom7396]

@@jeffbrassard1268 perhaps an industrial chemist with far too much spare time to be hanging around micro scale DIY nickel plating videos on YT and do nothing but criticise based only on your assumptions

[@jeffbrassard1268]

@@ianbottom7396 perhaps Ian, perhaps indeed.

[@victoryfirst2878]

Would just using stainless steel metal make it way easier to make the part instead of plating the item ???

[@johnmcclain3887]

I began "copper plating" things when I was about eight or nine, following a recipe in a hobby book and have done it ever since. I worked in an electroplating shop for about six months in Chicago, and ended up enlisting in the Marines. I worked in electronics there and we electroplated all sorts of electronic boards in our repair process. While the chemicals can be intimidating because of the poison hazard, it is easily mitigated with responsible handling and personal education. I grew up in an America when "kids were excited to learn new skills and enter the workforce with knowledge and a plan for life". I'm disgusted with the "zero sum game" being played by so many "fear mongers". Life is dangerous, no one gets out alive.

[@aminormaximum2446]

Boy, I am trying though... (To get out alive!)

[@iancowan3527]

There's no way out of here When you come in You're in for good David Gilmore, of Pink Floyd

[@vadimbellous8313]

@@aminormaximum2446 This sh*t hole of a realm is not anything worth sticking around for longer than what was agreed upon. What you need to do, is start thinking about how you're not going to allow yourself to be guilt-tripped into coming back here again. Almost all of us have been here before and have lived many lifetimes. Most of us just can't remember because of the memory wipe, We are all stuck here, for now, feeding the Archon parasites through our constant (forced upon)wars and suffering. I don't why I was compelled to tell you that. Anyway, Cheers mate!✴🍻

[@madmanmechanic8847]

Remember Lawn Darts ? We got into bike wrecks into a pile of dirt got skinned up went home and Mom said what the hell you do now? Cleaned up went back out on our bikes and stayed out until dusk kids where tough back then .

[@johnmcclain3887]

@@madmanmechanic8847 Seems to me we played with lawn darts for a couple years and then they hid in the garage.

[@TheFeller1554]

The major thing I picked up in my nickel-plating adventures is if you want a shiny finish post plating. You need to polish or buff your part to that finish before you plate it. A very common misconception is the buildup of nickel will "hide" scratching and unpolished surface finishes. This is not the case. It seems like double unnecessary work to polish a part before you plate it but if you are after a nice polish, it is essential. I did electroless plating with old cast iron parts from a lathe. It took several rounds of trial and error to achieve the result I was after, but finally I succeeded. I also discovered if you want a really great finish to plate the parts with copper first, and then nickel plate them. The copper plating is much less fussy, and your parts don't have to be absolutely perfect like with nickel. You do need to polish the copper layer before nickel plating, but copper polishes like a dream compared to nickel or most other metals. Hope this helps, keep on making the great content. Thanks.

[@howardosborne8647]

Agree with you,Jarret. An old saying goes that nine tenths of the gleaming finish is due to preparation before the final plating process. The same is also true of high gloss paint finishes.....the secret to a stunning finish is nine tenths in the substrate preparation.

[@johnmcclain3887]

Almost all "chrome" is triple chrome plated. Nothing adheres in plating equal to copper, so it goes base, copper is porous to water, so nickel is plated second, thin flash coat, and the chromium is a very thin flash that merely provides the hard finish and bright shine. Plating puts molecule thick layers so it takes very little chrome in the end. In a commercial shop, polishing is by far the most labor, cost step.

[@800bigmike3]

Excellent post. Couldn't agree more. Trial & error, No Short cuts, & no quitting. Etching, electroplating, stone washing or anodizing. Gotta have the beach wheel(s) & 6000 rpm's!

[@0dbm]

I love the , “ I don’t know , let’s try “ attitude . The key to all our knowledge

[@firebird77clonefirebird89]

Super nice results. It's hilarious reading the comments from the greenies who somehow think vinegar and salt will destroy the Earth.

[@eliduttman315]

Excellent results, for so simplistic a method. IIRC, top notch work for nickle on steel requires copper 1st. So thorough surface preparation, including electro-cleaning, comes 1st. A copper "strike", which is (sic) frequently cyanide based lays some copper down. After the initial THIN layer from the "strike", a thick layer of copper is laid down. Additional surface preparation, including buffing, may follow. At long last, its time for nickle. So, a Woods nickle "strike", starts the layer off. The bulk of the nickle layer is laid down in a Watts bath. Nickle electroplating anodes are encased in "Dynel" or similar acid resistant bags, in order to trap the inevitable sludge. Even with bagging, either periodic or continuous bath filtration is necessary. Debris in the bath employed was obviously present. After honorable separation from the U.S. Army, I was hired in the 4th quarter of 1968 by Bulova Watch Co. as a chemical laboratory technician in the dial department. In that capacity, I acquired some knowledge of electroplating that has stayed with me.

[@2000freefuel]

What are your thoughts on using this process to plate the inside of a cast iron cylinder block? the intent is to build up the walls when the typical repair would have been to install a sleeve.

[@1boobtube]

@@2000freefuel Typically that's nickel silicon carbide on aluminium. The interwebs suggest that can be done on cast iron sleeves but with issues on adheasion.

[@2000freefuel]

@@1boobtube Duly noted I was looking for a way to repair a cast iron cylinder block without boring to a larger size or installing a sleeve

[@eliduttman315]

@@2000freefuel You can look into hard chromium plating, but that process is something STRICTLY reserved for professionals.

[@2000freefuel]

@@eliduttman315 I think your missing the point of my question, I'm looking for something a hobbyist can manage in their garage with some basic tools and materials.

[@AutoExpertJC]

Nice demonstration. Two comments on this (engineer here): First, it's probably better to refrain from covering a tank in which water is being electrolyzed. (The water is splitting into a perfect stoichiometric mixture of hydrogen and oxygen gasses. This is an explosion - deflagration - hazard, because all the mixture needs to go off is a tiny spark.) Secondly, steel is more active than nickel. Therefore, if a pinhole or other defect occurs in the plating, such as a scratch from abrasion with a weight plate - the steel will start sacrificing itself in a corrosive environment. This is the opposite to the protective mechanism of galvanising (where the zinc is more active than the steel). This is why galvanising is more prolific in industry (because it protects the steel in the way nickel cannot). Finally, being a pedant - disposal of the chemicals is a real problem, because nickel and other metals in the groundwater is a bit 'Erin Brockavich'. It's also very important not to ad-lib the electrodes. If stainless steel or chrome parts get in contact with the bath, this can form hexavalent chromium under electrolysis, which is exactly Erin Brockavich (it's carcinogenic).

[@Clough42]

Hydrogen is produced at the cathode, but oxygen (and chlorine) production are negligible, because erosion of the anode dominates the electrochemistry. That's why there are no bubbles forming on the anode.

[@Timbo_tango]

Hi John, Nice to see you here. When rebuilding my imported boat trailer from Florida back when the dollar was at parity I disasembled my leaf springs and had them nickle plated at Star Plating. That was back in 2014 and 8 years later (although dulled off now) my trailer springs are only showing minor spotting of rust.

[@ObservationofLimits]

Galvanizing is more prolific because: Raw material and purity processing is far easier and cheaper for zinc There is far more harvestable zinc than nickel Hot dip galvanizing is a basic as fuck process compared to nickel plating Zinc being sacrificial to iron is nowhere near being the top reason galvanizing is so much more common. It's because it's a poor man's stainless, able to be done with far simpler technology from start (mining and refining) to finish (plating process) and the material is cheaper.

[@Timbo_tango]

@@ObservationofLimits I agree with all your points however in the case of my boat trailer one can’t hot dip leaf springs.

[@ObservationofLimits]

@@Timbo_tango that's for several reasons. The nickel plating is a finer bonding because it's electroplated, whereas galvanized is basically a steel plasticoat. I'm not sure why leaf springs got brought up. My point to the other guy was he made an incorrect statement about zinc hot dip being more prolific than electroplating (nickel or chrome) because "the zinc is sacrificial" and that was so far from the truth it was laughable.

[@Oberkaptain]

Adding on to what Sad Panda said, in my home shop experience with home electroplating and anodizing. I found that once you have your solution made with the cheaper source metals. Use a coffee filter to clean the solutions of contaminates. I then use a glass pyrex container to hold the solution and put it on a chemistry heat plate as I found it works better at around 110F. I then make 3d printed stands for the parts and have only nozzle thickness point touching of the part so there isn't a chance of accidental contact with the anode. I then use 100% pure material for the anode for the final plating process.

[@JurassicJolts]

This channel routinely blows my mind

[@curator23]

Citric acid works also, and doesn't make a stink. I had to ditch my first batch because being in the same room was unbearable. Normally parts are pickled to remove oxides before plating, and after degreasing. Current settings for commercial solutions are around 2-7 amps per square decimetre (surface area of the part being plated). Setting the current too high will make flaky deposits, especially around corners and closer to the anodes. Nickel is deposited at a maximum rate of 1.095 grams per amp hour. Some efficiency is lost by the production of hydrogen. Thickness can be approximated as 12.295 * I * t / A in microns, amps, hours and square decimetres. 20-50 microns is a typical plate thickness, and should take a couple of hours. If you have accurate scales, you can check how much mass the part has gained and infer thickness from the density of nickel and the part's surface area (although sharp corners tend to plate thicker). Large distances between electrodes, stirring and moderate heating help distribute the deposits more evenly. Anodes are usually held in a titanium basket and wrapped in synthetic fabric bags to prevent particulates from contaminating the part's surface. Bright finishes are usually achieved with chemical additives. Molasses is supposedly a traditional brightening additive, but I haven't had great results with it. You can check the performance of a plating solution by plating a strip of copper placed at an angle to the anode for a fixed amount of time and current. It's called a hull cell. It's a bit beyond me to explain it here. Admittedly, I only have experience doing this in a small jam jar with battery pack connecting straps as anodes, and an air pump for stirring. The above represents the sum total of my notes on the subject.

[@jimmurphy6095]

You really need a good soak cleaner, preferably using reverse current to clean the parts, then into a hydrochloric acid dip to activate the surface. The slower you plate, the better looking the finish. The corners and such are called high current density areas, and you're right, they are the first to flake off. Bright finishes are inherently more brittle, and will also flake off easier. The matte to satin finish James got should hold up nicely.

[@BenMitro]

Hey, thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge.

[@TheAyrCaveShop]

Great info Thanks !

[@firstmkb]

Thanks for the solid numbers! The process is so flexible, it’s hard to know what the effective limits or ideal conditions are.

[@SianaGearz]

Indeed i HATE vinegar and have used citric acid as well! I tried vinegar but noped out pretty hard early on, remade with citric. I tried adding artificial sweetener with saccharine as a brightener. I don't think i ruined the solution, but i'm not super convinced that it worked. Apropos noping out: i tried storing it in one of these jars like he's showing, similar. Somehow the stuff made its way through the lid lining and decided to eat the steel. I now only use a HDPE container with HDPE lid.

[@TheUncleRuckus]

Looks good James 👍👍 My only suggestion would be if you're looking for a really durable finish or if the parts will come in contact with moisture for any length of time would be to Copper Plate the Steel first, as Nickel doesn't bond that well to Steel and, Copper bonds well with both Steel and Nickel. Also if you're looking for a Copper Plating solution pick up some Copper Sulfate Root Killer found at any home store, it's cheap and works great.

[@ianbottom7396]

Steel cannot be reliably plated directly with copper unless you are using a pyrophosphate copper plate solution. To plate steel with acid copper solution you first need at least a strike coat of nickel

[@dekutree64]

Do you mix the root killer with water or some kind of acid?

[@ianbottom7396]

@@dekutree64 sulfuric acid, not a lot and also demin water, look for acid copper solution formula, if you can’t find it let me know and I’ll find one for you. You probably still need to buy brightener and your anodes OR you can usually use refrigeration grade copper pipe, this is important as not all copper alloys work well for plating, for instance copper bus bar generally makes for poor quality plating due to its composition which is usually about the phosphorus content

[@LBCAndrew]

Ah. So it's kinda like how properly chromed parts are first copper plated as an interface material.

[@peteabc1]

@@ianbottom7396 Isn't this just for stainless? I plated some nuts and springs laying around (in copper acetate) and they plated almost instantly. The voltage was below 1.2V.

[@KJ6EAD]

I used to electroplate nickel onto a molybdenum metallization layer on ceramics. This is a common industrial process used for making a solderable surface on a ceramic assembly. We had various agitating and tumbling devices to keep the plating even. Despite that, it was observed that the metal deposited more thickly on sharp edges and corners of the substrate.

[@opieshomeshop]

The solution needs to be agitated during the plating process. Keeping the solution flowing helps prevent burning of the plating and also imparts more even plating. You don't want bubbles forming and staying put. The flowing solution moves the bubles so there is constant fluid contact with all parts. Electroless nickel plating is also something to consider. Caswel also has nickel salt solutions so you don't have to make the solution by scratch.

[@LBCAndrew]

how do you keep the solution agitated? I was thinking placing it on top of a home made magnetic stirrer

[@opieshomeshop]

@@LBCAndrew That would be a good way. A fish pump works good. And even a motor driven propeller.

[@andron967]

Bubbles and water quality are extremely important. Solution temp also plays into it. My dad had 46 years in aircraft plating. So get that water as pure as possible. And hang those parts so that Bubbles don't hang up for starts.

[@andron967]

I almost forgot. For the best nickel plate you need a layer of copper. So first figure out how to copper plate. Cleanliness is important. So a really good rinse is mandatory with as pure of water as you can get.

[@opieshomeshop]

@@andron967 Right on the temp and water, the copper is best to use but you can nickel plate without copper. It just depends on the application and what you want out of it. People used to bring me coins to plate and often times Id forgo the copper because the finish was much brighter without it. Copper striking the coin would dull the final finish. On a tool, I'd certainly copper strike the tool prior to nickel plating.

[@bobvines00]

James, I see that others have already mentioned placing the nickel anodes inside of "socks" to capture the (carbon, if I remember correctly) crud that comes out of the nickel anodes. The socks also prevent the "crud" from getting plated onto the surface of whatever you choose to plate -- we sometimes had problems with this where I worked where we had a couple of electroplating Shops (we had most industrial types of electroplating, brush plating, & surface treatment processes in-house) and usually the problem was a torn sock. If you decide to do much nickel plating and want to use better (physical) forms of nickel material, get a titanium basket to hold "nickel rounds" (maybe even snipped-up sheets that aren't particularly useful to you anymore?) with the sock around the basket. Use buss bars to support the anodes & cathodes if you get more into electroplating too. Yes, the plating thickness is very much affected by distance between the part & anode(s) -- the closer the two components are to each other, the faster the plated surface builds up. Electroplating, at least industrial plating where _much_ thicker layers of plated material are applied, tends to build up faster towards the ends of the cathode(s) and does not plate into perfect 90° inside corners, but plates fastest on external corners. Think of physics experiments that you may have done in school plotting constant voltages (& perpendicular flux lines) around a bar magnet where it showed how, theoretically at least, you get an infinite number of lines coming off of the (perfectly) sharp external corners of the cathode. I used this information to design conforming anodes (among other jobs) mostly for chrome since those lead/tin/antimony anodes aren't expended by the plating process, but sometimes we had to do this with expendable nickel anodes when the Electroplaters couldn't get the nickel to "throw" where needed.

[@stickyfox]

I worked for Moog in the 90s and we used anode filters that were for all intents and purposes, white gym socks. I'm sure they were very expensive fancy anode socks but they looked exactly like socks.

[@puits-de-science]

The thickness of the plating is not a function of the distance but of the quantity of electricity transported over time in "Coulombs". The quantity of Coulombs is current x time. The quantity of material depends on the atom. Silver is one mole per Coulomb

[@bobvines00]

@@puits-de-science Yes, but for the set voltage and given amperage, the distance between anode & cathode can make a big difference. When I started supporting both the Plating Shop and the Grind Shop, the Plating Shop had to grossly overplate landing gear piston barrels in order to end up with enough plating to "clean up" in the Grind Shop and avoid having to replate the parts. The straight barrels ended up with an hourglass shape from the heavy build-up at the ends of the surfaces to be plated. At the time it was taking the Grind Shop 40-60 hors of grind time to finish machine the chrome plating on a piston barrel (about 36-inches long by ~6-inches in diameter or ~0.9-m by ~0.15-m in diameter). By changing out chrome plating method from traditional "stick" anodes to conforming anodes, which kept a very short (~1/2-inch or ~12-mm) and constant distance between the anode and the parts, we not only reduced the time it took to chrome plate the parts, but drastically cut the grinding time to, on average, between 4 & 6 hours of grind time (depending on how much damage was being repaired on the piston barrels) due to not requiring the previous drastic overplating of chrome.

[@puits-de-science]

@@bobvines00 Hi Bob, well the mechanism of plating is basically an electron play. You have positive metal ions coming at the cathode (-), they capture electrons and gather at the cathode according to Faraday laws. Now the local current density plays a big role in plating quality. Above a certain current density, for a given electrolyte, plating is not good. I prefer to increase the distance to have a more homogeneous current density, and to use low current and a longer plating time. There are plenty of other factors such as temperature and bath additives of course

[@bobvines00]

@@puits-de-science Yes, you are correct. And correct about a current density that is too high can ruin the quality of the plating. When learning about conforming anodes, we found that if chrome is plated at a high enough current density to increase the thickness of chrome plated per hour by about 6-8 times, a cross-section of the chrome layer looks like Swiss cheese even if the visible surface looks good to the eye. We backed off to only increasing the plating rate by about 2, reducing the time in the chrome tank. The chrome plating was verified by our Chemists & Metallurgists as easily meeting their specifications & standards before we went into production with the new-to-us conforming anodes. Some of our conforming anodes may have had up to an inch (~25-mm) "gap" between the anode and the parts, mostly to make it easier for the Electroplaters to drop the parts down through the anodes (which we ended up installing onto the parts before the parts were placed into the tanks rather than leaving the anodes in the tanks & trying to accurately insert the parts into the anodes).

[@g.tucker8682]

Love that warm glow that nickel gives.

[@william5694]

If you want a polished look, you must polish the part before plating. It is not a self leveling type of deposition. Also, please note that though this will likely prevent corosion in your environment, electroplated nickel is not very corosion resistant. Electrless nickel is, but because of the phosphorus included in that process.

[@petkopetkov7858]

I can totally agree, the more polished the base, the more polished the final product. Also not corrosion resistant, the deposition of the nickel is not homogeneous, micro pores are left where water gets in and corosion starts. I have done quite a few experiments with electroplating and corosion testing and everytime the parts star to rust with very little rust spots.

[@firstmkb]

Can you show us the other process?

[@william5694]

@Kevin Bauer That might be the most boring KZbin video ever: Fade in, and pan from stage right. A man is standing at a workbench. A glass pan is on the bench in front of him. He takes a jar out of a paper bag. The camera zooms in tight on the label on the jar. It says "Caswell Electroless Nickel Plating Solution” Switch to camera two, a quartering shot over the man’s left shoulder. The man removes the lid from the jar and pours the contents into the glass pan. The man reached off camera and his hand returns holding a metal part. The man gently places the part in the solution in the glass pan. The man reaches out to a kitchen timer on the workbench, and presses start. The camera zooms in tight on the timer. Fade to black. Fade in. The camera is still on the timer; however, the elapsed time is now seconds before the alarm is to sound. The alarm sounds, and the camera zooms out. The man approached the workbench from out of view. He is now wearing rubber gloves. He removes the metal part from the solution in the glass pan. It is noticeably brighter colored than before. The camera pans slightly stage left revealing that a bucket of water is now next to the glass pan. The man dips the metal part in and out of the water several times, and then sets it on the workbench. The man opens the jar, and places a funnel in the open mouth. He pours the solution from the glass pan, back into the bottle. Fade to black Fin…

[@guyteigh3375]

You are absolutely right, though if platying with copper as a in intermediate stage, certain fine scratches can be "smudged out" through polishing. That's badly explained but a few microns of copper polished hard really can in my very limited experience, help to improve the appearance of a lightly scratched hard base metal. Then once the copper is buffed - the final plating will (hopefully) be awesome!

[@AdamWaffen]

@@william5694 Yeah. I suppose all those soccer moms who have secret recipes for how to boil noodles on the Chinese Communist Party spy platform TikTok is more in line with your skills.

[@timmer9lives]

Great work. For such a simple process, it came out fantastic. I’ve toyed with nickel plating because rust is a huge issue in my workshop. So many get into precise “Woods Strike “ formulas but you just winged it and it came out fantastic. Thanks for posting.

[@HaciendoCosasRaras00]

Hi! your video is very good and the explanations are very clear! From my experience I could suggest some tips: the better the surface, the better the results, so a very good polishing of the steel is recomended; As many people has recomended, a copper plating prior to the nickel give better results (the method is very similar, just use hidrocloric acid at 10% as electrolyte); the use of a surfactant is recommended to make the bubbles detach easily from the surface (the bubbles can cause "pits" in the surface), i don´t have access to such chemicals so I use an agitation method; and finally, keep the amps LOW (0.1 - 0.3), the process will be more slower but the result will be better. The Nickel Institute has a PDF (nickel plating hadbook) with very useful information. Best regards and keep in mind that english is not my first language.

[@RaptorMachineToolCo]

James, nice work and finish ! thanks Joe

[@VliegerNL]

Super well done. Nice results and really enjoyable

[@mduvigneaud]

Awesome, James! The plating looks like it came out absolutely great! When I started getting into PCB etching I did a little research online and eventually decided to go with copper chloride instead of ferric chloride (since you can just regenerate the copper chloride etchant) and the brilliant green is just stunning. Photos online really don't do it justice.

[@billstrahan4791]

Not sure where you get your distilled water, but I've seen some supply chain problems result in it being out of stock where I am. I recommend keeping between a hogshead and a butt of it on hand in case you can't get it for a while. Don't just combine units of measure, use obsolete measurements as well!

[@VoidedWarranty]

I bought a cheap countertop distiller, one of the best purchases I've ever made

[@firstmkb]

How many cubic furlongs (or cubits) is that?

[@slowerthansound]

What's that work out to in barleycorns then?

[@MegaClaymor]

@@slowerthansound two liters would be 3295.28 cubic barleycorn.

[@mikebenstead7600]

@@firstmkb at least an acre

[@johnathonmullis4234]

I love your content. You do all the stuff I wish I could do. I got crippled up in the military and it’s difficult for me to find things to keep my brain stimulated. I get a great deal of enjoyment from watching your videos. You show everyone these things can be done and what it takes to do them. You show us your setbacks along with your successes. You show us all what men are capable of. It’s great that there’s guys like you still around.

[@ShadonHKW]

Great results, and nice power supply.

[@joesmith1574]

Two things I like about this video: A it was very informative, and two, it was in simplistic terms I could understand.

[@BrilliantDesignOnline]

Since it is so simple and gives pretty cool results, now on my to try list. Thanks James, awesome as usual.

[@johnmcclain3887]

I would suggest starting with copper plating, it's easier, more forgiving and will demonstrate the issues necessary to observe and adjust for.

[@mrtnsnp]

Whatever you do: don't be tempted to do the same with chrome. The resulting waste is _very_ toxic, you really don't want to deal with that.

[@tyrannosaurusimperator]

How to create a superfund site in 3 simple steps.

[@mrtnsnp]

@@tyrannosaurusimperator You'd probably need a bit more chrome than a few simple strips for a superfund site. But health-issues will appear much sooner.

[@spokehedz]

Chromium salts are super duper bad news.

[@WobblycogsUk]

Absolutely, don't mess with chromium. Some of the salts (Cr VI in particular) are not compatible with a long and healthy life. Source: ex-chemist.

[@guytech7310]

FWIW: Nickel is pretty toxic, just not as bad as chromium. FYI: "NICKEL ACETATE is a green, crystalline material, mildly toxic and carcinogenic" You can also get skin rashes from nickel, so handle with care.

[@jfl-mw8rp]

Well done James!

[@LChow-xq3xm]

Thank you so much for that great informative video. Loved that bicycle performance with the blowers, very impressive speed!!!!

[@rodolfocastillo8025]

Nice Job!!! To achieve even better finish its a good practice to filter (coffee filters works great) all the solution, then wrap the anodes with cotton gauze, heat solution with a small fish tank heater and recirculate solution with a small pond or fish tank pump, it help to break bubbles on part that causes pittings on finish.. Im testing with a tin solution but I used sulfuric acid instead of acetic vinegar.. For prepping the solution a rule of task its to use a lower current, so it slow cathode degradation while forms a good metal-acetate solution.

[@lolaa2200]

That gives me idea to reuse my pcb etching tank that has both eating and bubbles pump. Not using it anymore cause it's now much cheaper to have pcb made professionally and let's face it the result is just better. The the tank/heater/pump are resting in a box in the attic.

[@reverse_engineered]

Yup, it's just like PCB etching, only in reverse. Heating and agitation will help to speed up the process and keep it more even.

[@scottroland6577]

James, Outstanding electroplating video. In my prior career in the Electronic Connector industry, we did a lot of electroplating. A standard test in the industry for Plating Adhesion is called "The Tape Test" Literally, there's standards that tie to specific brands and model numbers of tapes (Mainly 3M products) that are used for adhesion testing of different surface coatings. There's a host of specific information available online. Hopefully, you find that helpful. Best, Scott

[@kwaaaa]

Wow, great results. Not as complex to do as I was thinking, thanks for sharing such detailed process and results.

[@darylcross5610]

Thanks for the demo is great to see what can be done relatively simply.

[@summerforever6736]

i would have machine the welds before plating would have look even better!!! Great work!!🙂

[@Mr_Wh1]

Perhaps nickel spools/bands/strips for spot welding batteries could be a good source for plating applications? You could run the nickel band all around the wall of the container, surrounding the parts that you want to be plated.

[@cletusberkeley9441]

It's been on my list for as long as I can remember. Think I just got a crap load of inspiration, thanks James!

[@davidjordan6587]

Great video. And thank you for making explicit the very aspects that you were unsure about. Subscribed!

[@brandonstandinger6671]

You did a great job all around and I was especially impressed with how well you narrated/spoke throughout the video. You explained what you were doing perfectly without any of the typical mundane play by play commentary many others go way over board with explaining. Stellar job and great finish!

[@Clough42]

Thank you for the feedback. If you look at some of my older videos, I really suffered from the slow commentary you describe, and I'm trying a new process that allows me more freedom to compress out unnecessary runtime and focus on what's important.

[@johnrhodes3350]

All-around a great job. Absolutely Nothing about your narration, presentation, video production, volume levels etc. was in any way distraction. Exactly how it should be. I would like to say you're a natural, but that probably bellies a great deal of hard work, perseverance, time and some expense. Overall a satisfying and confidence inspiring experience. Thank You.

[@HexenzirkelZuluhed]

Nice to see it worked out for you. The big restoration channels like mymechanics have some good starting points on time, voltage and so on, too. But looking at your results, you seem set..

[@1AMERICANWORKER]

I used to do a lot of small batch plating and polishing, mainly custom parts for firearms. If you ever need an even more reflective, even mirror finish, this is done while preparing the base metal. One job that sticks out is the slide and frame of a 1911 45 cal. pistol that the client wanted to re-produce as an officer's " dress sidearm ". This meant taking pitted blued steel parts and changing them to mirror finished nickel plated gems. The first part was to strip off the rust and bluing with rust and blue remover. The frame was badly pitted, but more metal can be removed from it than the slide and not alter the strength or looks. Even then I had to TIG weld a few of the deeper pits. I used a belt grinder down to 400 grit then started on the slide. This was all hand work because of the complex grooves and angles so here we started hand sanding with 320 paper on small rubber erasers. From there I would go up the grits to 2500, using oil to wet sand. Then buff the parts with Tripoli compound. From there you do exactly what you did. this is what gave this sidearm a " shaving mirror " finish.

[@frankcarter8399]

You made this process so clear, you've earned a subscriber.

[@JohannSwart_JWS]

I have done this exact same thing, also as a first timer. It works remarkably well. What I did not know was that one can plate steel directly. I was under the impression one had to copper plate them first. Which is also easy, but extra trouble. What I do know, is to keep the voltage quite low (4-5V), and plate as slow as possible, for the best finish and adhesion. Especially if you want to deposit thicker layers. Even so, they are mere microns thick, if that. Its just a few layers of atoms. The most important part is cleaning. You were lucky to have freshly machined parts, so they cleaned up easy. But, one should always combine an organic, and inorganic cleaning ritual. First acetone, then followed by a water based cleaning. There's a powder scouring detergent available in the US, for dishwashing etc, that contains bleach. Cannot remember the name, but its a bright green tin, with holes in the top. That works absolutely the best, since it activates the surface, until you get almost zero surface tension when you run water over the part. That's when its totally clean for plating. Same for making PCB's, but that's another story. ATB, and thanks as usual. PS: I think that powder is called Comet. We know it as Vim (not the editor), or Ajax.

[@MrJohnnaz]

Ajax works great for cleaning parts to be anodized too.

[@ianbottom7396]

Basic acid copper won’t plate directly onto steel without a strike plate of nickel (or zinc perhaps) It’s possible with a pyrophosphate copper solution which is usually done at around 80°C. There may well be industrial / commercial plating shops that can do it but I’d suggest that they are using bath solutions that aren’t possible or perhaps advisable for DIY at home or small plating setup

[@bikefarmtaiwan1800]

The great thing about James doing this is actually that he brings with him so much credibility from his hard-won experience experimenting and succeeding that the people who follow this channel often have serious experience and so have a huge wealth of information to share from personal and professional experience ( thank you to the many that did ) the comments section is well worth a read . Thanks for doing this fun experiment James - came out lot better than I had imagined it would . Good for you!

[@mikebenstead7600]

I was just thinking the exact same thing :)

[@stella9846]

joy you work how can you plate a top of table saw is there a way if there is that you can do it or let me know how it's dunn l will be for ever gratfull thank you

[@castellanosjaime1622]

Such a great video, lovely project and very well filmed and explained. Thank you so much for this :)

[@rod3134]

Thanks for such an amazing review 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

[@JasonTHutchinson]

When plating steel, it is highly recommended you plate with copper before adding nickel because you will wind up with a much nicer surface finish at the end. Copper is a softer metal and will polish out a lot easier than nickel will. Copper is also quite a bit cheaper. You should be able to plate a lot more parts using the same nickel anodes before they wear out if you are plating over copper instead of bare steel. The black sediment may be caused in part by having too high of a current.

[@bbrazen]

In general copper will not plate directly to steel. You would need an intermediary layer (typically nickel) before you can plate it with copper.

[@court2379]

I have an old book on playing that says zinc, copper, then nickel. The zinc protects the steel and is not porous while the others are. The nickel will let the steel underneath rust eventually.

[@firstmkb]

Should you polish the part between switching metals?

[@JasonTHutchinson]

@@firstmkb it is not necessary at every step, but it does help get rid of flaws in parts such as deep scratches and pitting. Be sure to clean the part thoroughly to get rid of any residue before plating the next layer.

[@court2379]

@@firstmkb IMO it depends on the surface finish. Electricity will always take the lowest resistance path, so generally the shortest path. That causes any imperfections to become magnified as the new material will plate more in the slightly closer spots vs everywhere else. Sanding between layers would knock those high spots off, improving the final finish. However you may need to make each layer thicker to compensate for sanding losses. Commercially they don't. But they also have the process dialed in for a good finish.

[@orange-micro-fiber9740]

Used to work in a shop that did plating. Electroplating fast gives more crags in the surface and duller appearance but speedy. Slow will give a different finish bc it plates a little more evenly.

[@Clough42]

Thanks. I had some failures on other parts since I shot this, but only when going fast. That also explains the mess on the cathode while making the solution.

[@MrMattDat]

Very cool experiment! Thank you for showing the whole process.

[@laserfloyd]

I did a plating experiment with my son for a school project. We were plating pennies. Very informative and fun to do.

[@bluedeath996]

I would suggest strong stirring of the solution to stop bubbles forming as that leads to an uneven coating. Also electrolysis of the part to remove a small amount of the surface and remove any dirt or impurities before coating helps too. If you do both it will come out much more shiny.

[@UtubeUsername123545]

Maybe something like the magnetic stir rods I remember from chemistry lab would work ... very nice.

[@zumbazumba1]

@@UtubeUsername123545 Aquarium pump .

[@craigs5212]

The part generally needs to be polished to get a good surface, plating generally doesn't cure a bad surface finish. The part must be super clean, with no void or surface pits containing any oils. A good good aggressive alkaline cleaner followed by a a dilute acid bath rinse to neutralize the alkaline bath. I have found the the hardware store acetone is not exactly the purest stuff and those paper towels likely contain some sort of softening agent. Do the acetone clean first then the alkaline clean. Dry with a lab grade Kimwipe if you want or a well washed cotton towel that is not been around any fabric softener. You can get Ni balls for anodes that you put in a polypropylene anode bag or sock. The balls give you good surface area and the sock traps the smut that forms on the anode I have done a few items in my shop, using a Watts Ni bath; Nickel Chloride, Nickel Sulfate and Boric Adid. Then there are the magic sauce additives brighteners, levelers and wetters So far I have not tried any additives. One I heard of was high molecular weight polypropylene glycol available a the laxative MiraLAX.

[@Clough42]

I've read that table sugar makes a big difference on the brightness of the finish. Haven't tried it yet.

[@chrisj4570g]

What about bead blasting to get a matte nickel finish? (Because polishing sucks)

[@Clough42]

@@chrisj4570g yet another tool I need.

[@joemcgarry1106]

Nice Job James. I have the supplies to try a nickel plating project on some motorcycle parts. You have given me encouragement to give it a go. Thanks!

[@mhaloylotha9000]

I'm trying the same technique soon. Thanks a lot Clough.

[@mike94560]

Usually nickel plating is done before doing any other type of plating. Other plating sticks well to nickel. I did gold plating that way once. You can buy the nickel plating solutions but they are not cheap. And gold is very expensive.

[@waytospergtherebro]

You know nothing and should refrain from speaking.

[@ianviljoen9036]

Great video, thank you! If you’re looking for a much cheaper source of nickel, I used cast iron welding rods (98% Ni + Cl I think, with the flux removed) as electrodes with great success. I plated the shafts of my Vallorbe needle files to prevent rusting and it came out beautifully! I’m concerned about the environmental toxicity of the acetate though. How should one dispose of it after use?

[@Clough42]

There are lots of sources on-line that recommend various ways of disposing of it, from plating out the nickel, to evaporation, to dumping it down the drain. Every article suggestiong one of these has a chorus of people saying it's definitely wrong. I don't know what's available, legal, or recommended where you live.

[@firstmkb]

The acetate can be filtered to remove crud, and used over and over - indefinitely.

[@derbemobile]

Beautiful job, sir!

[@PowderMill]

⚠️. OUTSTANDING…. As Always! Thank you. We just tried this plating project with our fire department antenna mounting brackets that we had fabricated from mild steel stock. They are only exposed to minor stress , but are most definitely going to be exposed to salt water spray and moisture. We also have entered the 3D printing world. Your projects and instructions are awesome. Thank you!!

[@technobabble_]

Check out some papers on adding the laxative Polyethylene Glycol (PEG 3350) to your plating solution. I don't remember much from back when i was doing copper plating, but I was under the impression that as the molecules deposit they make peaks and valleys. The peaks get larger and larger over time and you end up with that matte finish. The PEG is attracted to the peaks and inhibits depositing, forcing the valleys to get plated until everything inverts and the PEG breaks off and attaches to the new peaks. No idea if it works on nickel though. Worth looking into though!

[@-1-2-1-]

I used this method quite a few years ago but found the plating did not stand up to wet conditions and flaked off with rust bubbling up beneath the coating. I remember acid etching prep helped but still not satisfactory for anything exposed to moisture.

[@yak-machining]

And what about mechanical stress or handling

[@somebodyelse6673]

Seems like that would mean that air/water was able to get through some pinholes or porous deposition? The few failures I've had were like that, under the microscope it was evident that I hadn't done enough to prepare my parts, or hadn't formed a thick enough layer to resist shop life. I've found that for tools which are handled frequently, get slid around, contact chips, etc, it pays to go overboard. Don't try to put it all on in one go, either. That 'junk' can get stuck to the part, and block plating underneath. Plate it, clean it, plate it again in a different orientation. Parts that have concave features will have less plating in those places. When I plated my favorite surface gage, I did a couple passes with the nickel electrodes positioned so they were closer to the concave surfaces than the rest. That same principle applies to electrolytic rust removal also.

[@WatchmakerErik]

That was very concise and informative!

[@yusufabdulloh]

This is exactly what I am looking for, thank you.

[@TheZzziggy]

I'd lower the current to get less porous finish. And as mentioned earlier, one doesn't have to use acetic acid (i.e. vinegar) and suffer. Other acids like citric one work just fine or better and do not stink. Try alkali (like vulgar soda solution) instead of acid and report whether high or low pH matters))

[@FrancisoDoncona]

Nickel plated UZI Micro soon

[@mordantly]

My 1911 is first to get plated.. uzi is still in the works. Pistol vs rifle laws to factor in.

[@Teklectic]

Nice! This looks even easier than anodizing, I'll have to give this a try!

[@sergiocantoli5783]

Cool job! Thanks for sharing with us!

[@FullSendPrecision]

I'm bothered you didn't turn the welded area. Otherwise, love the video... I want to plate some things!

[@jimurrata6785]

I'm surprised James didn't undercut the side of the collar facing the rack and weld it under there, where nobody would ever see it. 🤔

[@Clough42]

Only because I didn't think of it. That's a great idea. Actually, it would have been fun to just build up weld and skip the rings entirely.

[@scootscoot2k]

an interesting method that really has left a beautiful finish! Also, have you hacked your power supply to run your own logo? I think I see the classic Clough42 logo at 4:02

[@TheAyrCaveShop]

good one James, This has been on my list of things to try...Thanks!

[@andyOneill-hd1hm]

I'm well impressed how easy it seems I'm thinking of trying it out

[@court2379]

Just FYI. That mixture will corrode out those canning lids pretty fast and drip rust into your plating solution contaminating it with iron acetate. Ask me how I know 🙁...

[@tyrannosaurusimperator]

What blew my mind when I learned it is that EDM is basically electroplating with the electrolyte moving fast enough to prevent deposition.

[@craigs5212]

EDM is not a plating process, the water or oil is non conductive. It's a spark erosion process, the metal is vaporized by the pulse arch from the high voltage on the electrode. The fluid, DI water or oil is used to wash away the swarf and cool the part/electrode

[@N1gel]

I was going to wright what a prat! But Craig has way more tollerance of morons than me.

[@howardosborne8647]

@@craigs5212 he is likely confusing Electrical Discharge Machining(EDM) with Electro Chemical Machining (ECM)

[@stevemcevoy5628]

Nice job for home projects good video very informative 👍👍

[@astronutski]

Very cool. I bought a bunch of this stuff years ago for a motorcycle restore project. Watching your video has reignited that interest, as well as given me confidence. I’m like you, no idea what I’m doing but hell, let’s give it a go and see what happens LOL. Great video, thank you!

[@steveaylor376]

no idea how this channel doesnt have over 1 mm subs ... Great stuff James

[@Clough42]

I know...it's weird. Tell all your friends!

[@1971VoiceoftheMummy]

Awesome work. I really enjoy plating small contacts in battery operated toys. It's a fun process.

[@thomshere]

Awesome DIY video! I appreciate the hell out of this.

[@paulbadger6336]

Well done 👍

[@MisterGank]

Dude! Awesome job!

[@unclereefer37]

Thank you for adding this to the collective knowledge folk like you make the internet a better place

[@ChaosAttractor13]

Nice job man!

[@CraigLYoung]

Thanks for sharing 👍

[@huckster66]

Nice! I used that method to remove rust on steel parts as well. Cool to see the nasty rust falling off as anode and parts bubble away removing the rust. I had small rusted springs to a project. Turns them black but once polished the results are GREAT!

[@stuartkorte1642]

Great timing. I just cleaned and painted parts of a vise silver. Nickel plating would be perfect. Thanks

[@frijoli9579]

The luster on the nickel part looks so nice.

[@ac4uv]

just subscribed. Outstanding THANK YOU For sharing !!!

[@TK42138]

Good video, good result 👏👏

[@stephenross4333]

GREAT, simple explanation of the process. Can't wait to try this on some faded auto emblems. Coat plastic with graphene first, then electroplate as you describe. Thank you !

[@givreycham]

Thank you. Looks very good ans worth the effort to get it right.

[@tablatronix]

Awesome!, MORE electroplating!

[@MattysWorkshop]

Gday James, you explained this very well, the results looks great, this maybe another project on my list to have a crack at, thanks for sharing, cheers

[@barry7608]

Thanks certainly worth a look

[@erlinghagendesign]

nicely done. As a jeweler, I recommend to bring any kind of parts to the intended surface quality before plating ( even the most tiny marks and scratches remain visible ). High shine polishing or matte surface and then plating. The plating is very thin, but very durable in case of nickel. The next step is final surface treatment from matte with manual methods using dry powders or emery cloth to high polish with a cotton wheel and a little polish paste ( green for example ).

[@rogierius]

What is the best way for a beginner to get a matte finish before plating?

[@erlinghagendesign]

@@rogierius in general: quantity and size of parts: methods: manually or mechanically: think like this: depending on the metal of your parts: anything that can scratch the surface of your parts. Silver is much more softer compared to gold, titanium is much more harder compared to aluminum or mild steel. Some standard cleaning powders have abrasive particles mixed in. With a cloth and the dry powder you can get very nice even matte surfaces. Finer Emery cloth and steel wool is the next instance. Mechanically: tumblers with abrasive materials. Electrochemical methods might be not beginner level. So called Activator fluids are a mix of chemicals that are in use for cleaning parts before anodizing as well as making matte surfaces. Working of sulfuric acid and acetic acid need special preparations that certainly are not beginner level. Any method you are choosing: after surface treatment, you need to clean your parts, best is in an ultrasonic bath. Make tests, be confident in your approaches and good luck.

[@larrydugan1441]

Thanks. Much appreciated

[@RobertSeviour1]

Excellent video. I was particularly interested in this experiment since in my first job, 50 years ago I worked with copper-sheathed heating elements, which we sent to a local works for nickel plating. I never tried to buff the resultant finish as you did. Prior to your demonstration, I thought that it would be necessary to copper-plate mild steel before the nickel application - evidently, it isn't needed. As an aside, I clearly remember the smell of almonds - cyanide - at the plating company. That, I think, was for the chrome process. Subscribed.

[@gregfeneis609]

Pretty nice, James

[@RefreshingArt]

Thanks! I read some of the comments. I'll give it a shot I have some small parts that I want to nickel plate for my steampunk lamps and copper artwork icreate. I think your video was created very well and appreciate your time and effort! Even though some people can be a big pain in the butt. Keep up the good work!

[@mgrantom]

Good job. In my city, we have a hazardous waste disposal facility. It makes sense to do it yourself as long as you are not getting into the really toxic electrolytes.

[@bernardmauge8613]

Thanks for posting. Very useful. I am subscribing.

[@gordonturner8544]

very interesting great video. going to try that myself. thanks

[@justinhillpac]

I’ve been looking at hard anodizing some aluminum pieces I made but couldn’t find much info out there (for the home shop). Your results with this on steel turned out really well! Excellent as always!!

[@markdymond5352]

Mark Presling has some good home anodising videos, Im looking at doing the same myself

[@justinhillpac]

@@markdymond5352 thanks! I’ll check it out.