ElectroPLATING rather than etching

[FenixFire]

I used both methods 20 years ago in several of my jewelry smithing classes for my minor. In my experimenting they tended to only produce an extremely thin and fragile coating. In most cases I was able to wipe it off. I'm sure with better voltage regulation and experimentation it might yield better results. I know I am experimenting with a salt water etching and reveresed polarity finishing step that is supped to etch brass and then when the polarity reversed, and you replace the scrap brass rod with an iron rod, pull the copper to the surface of the etched portion of the brass. Still trying to get it right though.

[Firestorm1964]

Long time no see!

After 20 or 30 tests and countless hours of research(including my high school chemistry teacher) I've made these conclusions;

Aluminum Oxide is our culprit here. Apparently, aluminum oxidizes in a matter of seconds, and in order to plate to aluminum, you must first "zincate" the surface. Now, a Zincate solution is some carefully mixed solution that will strip the oxide and plate the bare surface in zinc simultaneously, which can then be much more easily plated to. For most of our purposes, Rust-o-leum Copper Spraypaint will work just fine. If there is a tradeoff, it would be that the surface should have 2-3 coats of a primer applied to it first, then the copper spraypaint, which would not show the standard MHS finish, barring finishing work being done to the paint after application.

I'm putting the last touches on finishing a piece now, and I will post pics when I'm finished
Cheers, boys!

[TheSilverDark]

Nice to see a bew technique having been developed! Looking forward to pictures!

[Firestorm1964]

*bows awkwardly* I'm sure I'm not the first