Cadmium plating substitute?

CaceyB

CaceyB

Member
It is my understanding that cadmium plating is expensive, and as I am building a driver rather than a fine points car I am considering an alternative. If I understand correctly cadmium was used for durability so I was thinking zinc plating could be a good substitute, but I don't know what the difference is in appearance. Since it seems to be easier to find platers that do zinc, at least in my area, I would assume it is cheaper than cadmium as well.

Any thoughts?

Cacey
 
Zinc will work fine and is common today. The difference in appearance is that Cadmium has a white to grey color depending on the application. Zinc has a strong blue tint as you will see on nuts and bolts at the local hardware store. I actually hate the blue tint almost as much as I hate substituting chrome for nickel but that is a personal thing. I was thrilled when manufacturers introduced brushed (butler :)) nickel kitchen and bathroom fixtures!
 
It's dirt cheap. I get every cad plated piece on the car plated for about $50. If your looking for even cheaper, Eastwood sells a silver cad spray paint that looks pretty close. Aluminum spray paint doesnt.
 
The place that does my cad plating is the same place that does zinc. Is that not true in your area? The zinc plating will turn flat dark gray pretty quick
 
It's probably cheaper anywhere that isn't the U.S.S.C. (United Socialist State of California) I haven't found a place near here that does cadmium yet, but I haven't done a very thorough search yet. On this same note, what major parts need to be cadmium plated? I know the light switch cover, stoplight switch cover, and lug nuts as well as the choke rod, but is there anything else?
 
All the little goodies on the headlights, several of the brake parts, starter switch, head nuts, the large clamp on the steering column, a lot of people cad the oil fill pipe lid. Choke rod sleeve. I cad plate all the internal brake parts like the wedges and the little donut wheels. Control rods. All kinds of assorted nuts and bolts. I think some plated the dip stick
 
The reason cad is more expensive than zinc is because cad is plated from a cyanide based solution and zinc from a non cyanide based solution. It is the EPA pollution control that raises the costs. Zinc can be left as a natural finish, which is a whitish-grey, phosphate conversion, which gives it that bluish tinge that Marco was talking about, or chromate conversion which gives it a yellow-brown colour. The two conversions change the outer layer of the zinc to another compound, either zinc phosphate or zinc chromate, which corrodes slower than bare zinc. Bare zinc protects the underlying substrate by corroding galvanicaly, that is corroding before the substrate corrodes, and this stops the substrate corroding. Cad protects the same way, galvanicaly.
 
Arlen, can you pass along the contact info for the shop that does your cad plating? I've got some bits & pieces that need plating.

Thanks!

Gary
 
Bilmark in Fort Worth tx. 817-429-5356
They do very little metal prep so make sure your stuff is good and clean first. Also send all of it you have. Doesn't seem like 40 pieces cost more to do than 10 pieces.
 
On a Jaguar show car, I did the calipers with Dull Aluminum spray, with a quick pass of clear, and it passed off as cadnium plating! I also painted the lower white on the R/F door with spay can lacquer, and the car passed as having original paint!---I told you I was good!! Bill W.
 
It's always a good idea to take a picture of all the pieces sent to a plater and make two prints of it, one for yourself and one to send to the plater. This is especially helpful when sending a lot of small parts. I lost a mint 1928 gas cap to a plater, and had no proof of what I left with him.
 
My past experience with cad plating was that the charge was for a bulk plating which means that one part cost the same as a bucket full. All the cad parts on about 3 cars met the minimum cost. Don't have a current source as I have never found a plater who was still in business the next time I needed plating.
 
There is a Tin/Zinc process that looks pretty much like Cad, and can be done in the home shop. It is whiter than zinc alone, and if left unbuffed, is very white. I think the company is Caswell. A non toxic process
 
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