Plating better/easier than coating?

[MGnoob]

Tell me about it, i've got $200 worth of coating stuff and 50+pounds of lube making supplies. i'll probably still shoot lubed cast boolits if i don't have time to plate or run out of my stash of plated bullets i am going to make.

I also wanted to mention copper plated bullets will polish each other assuming you have enough of them in the tumbler.
http://i1339.photobucket.com/albums/...ps73162fe8.jpg

[MrWolf]

Pretty kewl. I find it fasinating on what others can do and am also following this. Thanks.

[Idz]

I don't know why aluminum doesn't plate in standard CuSO4 solution. Its a trick told to me by a chemist. I've tried it and it is true. My setup would use screen as an electrical contact just like your dongle does. I ran across a you-tube video of a drum plater using a plastic collander rotated by a cheap drill. This technique looks promising, keep posting your results.
ps some of the cheap cameras autofocus when you push the button down halfway. Try pushing down halfway for a second then all the way to snap the photo.

[MGnoob]

you might be on to something about the camera.....i am pretty tech swavy...for some reason i know nothing about cameras, i am also incapable of operating all modern touch screens ie i pad iphone and all smartphone. i just dig and hack away and get nowhere. i am going to have to learn sooner or later.

Can you post a link of the youtube video....another great watch is this guy( not for anything informative, but for laughs.)
a couple of his "weapons" are operated via cordless drill
http://www.youtube.com/user/JoergSprave

I also notice the cathodes in my system are missing...not like fell off missing but like dissolved missing?
IDK what happened? but now you have me thinking i should use aluminium since IDK what they where originally.
maybe 60 amps was too much for them.

[Idz]

homemade barrel plater link is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IAwobxlTgQ

[MGnoob]

that would be a great setup with a 5 gallon bucket. i can't quite tell from the video but isn't he using a powersupply that he has set to a constant voltage and varing amps? the opposite of what your suppose to use?? maybe he's got it right but at well under 5 amps it would still take a long time to plate those approx 25 projectiles. he is getting a good Finnish with good consistency though.That is a probibly a better system than i was going to make only do to it being stand alone and not require a ss tumbers. my end goal would to be atleast 1000 .45 at a time.

[wrinkles]

Ok I tried a simple setup to plate one bullet 9mm all I get is a copper build up on the bullet but it doesn't seem to stick. I get a thick layer of copper on bullet that rubs off. I coated a quarter and the results where much better, doesn't rub off.

[MGnoob]

i am not an expert my guess would be you aren't using phosforized copper for the anode ..as to why it work on one item and not another may be because a quart is already copper.. i don't know what a quarter serfuce is "nickle??" but a better serface than lead. also if your just using wire for your cathode that isn't helping any.

[MGnoob]

also your acid content could be to low, or you may not have enough amerage

[Ken73]

homemade barrel plater link is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_IAwobxlTgQ

That's pretty damn clever! That's also the same power supply I bought for that project (though I have/had many other uses for it so it wasn't a loss.) It wasn't terribly expensive either - around $70 off Ebay? It can be either variable current or variable voltage.

So I see how he's got his "dangler" (cathode) as they're calling it to make contact with the boolits. I don't see a heater in his solution though. I would think a cheap aquarium heater would do the trick?

[Cmm_3940]

Question-

Where can one purchase phosphorized copper anode material online in less than industrial quantities? An online search only revealed sellers in China selling by the metric ton???

[wrinkles]

Thanks the for the help. I upped the acid a bit and it seems to have fixed the problem.

[MGnoob]

great! i read alot of trouble shooting/ problem-diagnosis-solution info before i even tried to plate so i could have a deeper understanding of what i am doing. more agitation from aquarium heater/airstone will definitively help the initial plating to the lead

cmm390, mine was given to me and not purchase online, mine was 2-3 inch wide bar .25 thick. mine are already 1/2 way dissolve. i am going to go 3/8-1/2" thick. If you do find an online source please let us know...try to stay away from online plating companies, we will pay more than we should through them and the anode it is suppose to be the only consumable item other than replenishing your solution.

[MGnoob]

Almost missed your comment ken, i like the dangler method that i was suggesting earlier.The temp really only effected me because it was in so low and it would have worked i just couldn't get high enough amperage to plate in hours instead of days.At 75f you can do up to 20 amps so if your only doing lets say less than 5 amps it will work although i bet 5 amps would plate multiple times faster at say 120-140f.(i am talking .0001 difference depending on how many projectiles)

[wrinkles]

Not sure if this has been posted. Idea for a motor would be an ice cream maker.

http://www.nulltime.com/zincplating/...ade/index.html

[MGnoob]

While i like that design that and the youtube one are too small for our use. if your not plating 100's it's hard to justify the startup cost.
www.wondermotor.com offer great high torque setups there rotisserie motors alittle pricey than i think you guys want to go but if you can find one cheap you'd be good to go.

The source of my copper is Mcmaster carr i guess any 99% pure copper has the trace element required. where as lower purity contain a variety of thing we don't want. i will confirm when i replace mine but i think i have more than a few uses left.

I bought:

750W Titanium Heater
Copper Brightener Part B 4oz
Copper Brightener Part A 1 Quart
From caswells. i didn't buy the controller for the heater. allot of the other one i looked at cost more and said "stainless guard/Titanium Shield" but i don't think the elements would give me the life expectancy i expect for there prices.I figured with the results i am getting i could justify the $100 since i hadn't bought anything yet.

LOL i just notice they refer to it as "the dangler" on that link it must be a technical term

[wrinkles]

I'm still doing something wrong. Need to sit down and read a bit more. I can plate quarters and other metal objects right and left but every bullet I try gets an orange colored coat of stuff that rubs off with my thumb. Only plated one bullet yesterday all other attempts failed. Once the orange stuff rubs off the bullet is black.
.
Figured it out. My bullets where to close to the copper plate. Moved them about 3 more inches away and they are plating pretty well now.

[MGnoob]

doesn't look like your too far off. i get that orange slightly rough texture in the lube grooves. it could be uneven deposit due to not surrounding your part evenly with anode, if you are just suspending from a wire and not tumbling. I wonder if you having the tumble lube grooves is effecting the plating, it naturally want to adhere to the edges...try plating a different style of bullet to see what happens. if not i would try purer anodes like i discussed earlier...sorry to just bombard you with suggestions, but without physically being there i'm just guessing

i just sized the 300 plated .223 projectiles very easy
i've got about 50 of the 600 water dropped 9mm and the last 2 got stuck and i bent the handle alittle bit although i prefer the handle bent like it is now.
i'm going to air cool the pistol and start water dropping the rifle and see if i have trouble sizing the rifle.
air cooled they where 12-14 and i have yet to test the water dropped ones, but if i air the pistol and water drop the rifle i think i will be where i want to be.

[MGnoob]

just noticed "black bullet" comment... i can't remember the solution might have been high amperage??if you search the web you'll find your answer.
search "copper acid plating troubleshooting" that is a common symptom..just can't remember of what

[bdecker9]

i have seen a couple videos of plating systems made from and old coffee pot and a small battery charger. didn't watch the youtube videos above because my connection is slow at the moment. one guy had to wrap each bullet and hang in the solution. there were many easily seen improvements that could be done to his setup. if i can find the video i will post a link. any way the coffee pot was used because he said the "bath" solution worked better hot. i have been thinking about doing this until i got my guns shooting w/o leading.