Prepping for plating?

[StinkBug]

I'm thinking of having the frame for my Nighthawk project nickel plated, but I'm not sure the best way to get it ready, and how much I need to smooth out imperfections. All the new metal is already bare obviously but the original half of the frame still has the stock paint on it. I was thinking of just having my powdercoat shop sand blast it for me, but I wasn't sure if that would rough up the metal too much and leave an undesirable texture to it. I'd like this thing to be as smooth and slick as possible, without a retarded amount of work. So what say you? Here's a pic of the bike in it's current state.

 

[Seaking]

Oddly enough I was just reading up on DIY nickel plating, here's what I can share from my limited research.. (while researching zinc and copper plating)

Sandblasting will leave that undesirable finish you spoke of, you would be better off soda blasting or chem stripping it and then smooth it out with the wet dry papers. The nickel plating will show off the surface under it so the smoother / better the surface, the better the visual results. With plating, everything depends on the prep work.. smooth, super clean.. rust free etc.. You can do a whole frame in plating with a large enough tub and enough nickel plates.. As far as the electrical side of it.. dunno, still researching it. Battery charger, acquarium pump to gently agitate the water, chemicals etc etc.. but it's doable.

 

[SONICJK]

Any plating shop will do that for you. In fact they are going to do it anyway to make sure its right before they plate it.

As far as fixing bad welds etc, get a 220 grit flap wheel for your grinder and some files and smooth out what you need to smooth out before taking it to them.

 

[Finnigan]

If you're just removing paint I'd think vapor blasting would be the way to go

http://www.vaporblasting.biz/

 

[Sonreir]

I've done (electroless) nickel plating a number of times.

The parts need to be as clean as humanly possible. The plating process actually highlights flaws, rather than covering them up. Think of it a lot like that first coat of primer after body filler: It's always going to show those places you missed.

Here's a set of spokes I took through the cleaning process earlier this year...

 

[Sonreir]

And those same spokes after plating...

 

[Finnigan]

Thems some purdy spokes! How difficult is the setup/disposal of the chemical process?

 

[Sonreir]

Thems some purdy spokes! How difficult is the setup/disposal of the chemical process?

Commercially? A royal pain in the ass. I outsource the plating but do all the prep myself. The decent DIY kits cost more than just having someone else do it, too.

 

[StinkBug]

As far as fixing bad welds etc, get a 220 grit flap wheel for your grinder and some files and smooth out what you need to smooth out before taking it to them.

I'm not too worried about the welds on this one

I'm gonna give my plating shop a call tomorrow and see what they say. If they can remove the paint chemically I'd think that would be the best, but I'm not sure if that's gonna be a real pain in the ass or not.

 

[SONICJK]

I'm not too worried about the welds on this one

I'm gonna give my plating shop a call tomorrow and see what they say. If they can remove the paint chemically I'd think that would be the best, but I'm not sure if that's gonna be a real pain in the ass or not.

I was talking about welds that the retarded japanese 12 year old did on the stock frame ;D

 

[Tim]

OK I'll bite, and apologies for the offtopic comment. What's the purpose of the pillion pegs on the swinger? They look pretty far back so I'm assuming they're not for a passenger (that and there would be a lot of movement back there). Just wondering. Awesome looking welds/fabrication BTW.

 

[StinkBug]

They are there for a passenger. They are only slightly farther back than normal, and I may be putting rear sets on and dont want the passengers feet interfering with mine. Drives me nuts. As for movement, it's not like it's a dirt bike. There's only about 4" of travel total, and probably a lot less with the weight of 2 people on it.

 

[StinkBug]

I was talking about welds that the retarded japanese 12 year old did on the stock frame ;D

LOL, you have a good point. Thankfully most of the original frame on this bike is fairly covered by either the motor or the tank so those aren't too noticeable.