I did some searching and didn't find a lot, opening a new thread to discuss this and hopefully help some other owners in the process.

Cadmium plating seems to be getting hard to find vendors for, I've seen yellow zinc plating put forth as a good alternative that looks similar. Anyone with experience to share here?

Any shops in SoCal that people can recommend?

 

Thought this thread was pretty good: https://rennlist.com/forums/928-foru...ing-costs.html. I could see myself using Burbank on the next big job. But for small stuff, I use a Gateros home plating kit.

 

USED Burbank and was very pleased. It was more than estimated but as you can see from the above link, I sent them a lot of stuff. It may be some of the best money I spent on the 928.

 

If you use Burbank, make sure the parts are cleaned VERY thoroughly before sending to them as results will be inconsistent if you rely on them to do it.

 

Burbank, hands down.

 

Belmetric sells a lot of yellow zinc pieces, so some might be easier to just replace rather than re-plate. I have a half dozen or so compartment/utility boxes full of new pieces on hand, ready whenever I need them.

For pop-up requirements that may be available at your local hardware store, but in clear/silver zinc rather than yellow, all you have to do is dip them in some Sodium Dichromate and they'll turn yellow. This is particularly useful for clamps, both Norma and Oetiker, since it's very hard to find them in yellow zinc. You can get it on ebay for cheap.

 

Good call. BELMETRIC is great. I actually bought some bulk hardware in yellow zinc and sent it away with my used hardware and had it cadmium plated by Burbank.

 

Since you appear to be in Southern California, Burbank Plating would seems to be a good choice. I had a hell of a time finding someone here in the mid-atlantic who would touch a small lot of parts and spent about $200 to get plating done. I also have plated some parts myself and have found that it is pretty easy and allows you to do a part at a time or a small lot at your own pace. I did not buy a kit but found lots of resources on the internet. The only real investment I made was to purchase a constant current power supply that I got for $50 (it is pure chinesium, but it works). The chemicals I could not get locally were purchased on ebay for nominal sums. Like painting, prep work is key and can be time consuming if the base part is cruddy. On the other hand, a lightly corroded part or one where the yellow has faded, need not be replated, but can just be cleaned up and dipped in the yellow chromate for 15-25 seconds to look brand new. Also, if you have a source for good quality fasteners that are just zinc plated but not yellow, you can just hit them with a degreaser and a quick dip in an acid solution, rinse and then drop into the yellow passivate.



Some links:

http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparf...ry-look.63715/

https://rennlist.com/forums/928-foru...omponents.html

http://www.scott-yoo.com/other/electroplating.html

http://www.vintagethunderbirdclub.ne...pic.php?t=7379

 

Not in SoCal but fellow RL'r "Shaun @ Tru 6" came highly recomended by Dave C, RL: "Worf928". Shaun's project here:https://rennlist.com/forums/928-foru...7-years-6.html T

 

Great resource, didn't know they existed. I will order a bunch of standard / commonly used stuff as I need it for the 912 project as well. Thanks for the heads up!

 

So it looks like Burbank provided I clean the heck out of it before sending it and can make it a decent sized order?

Thanks for all of the responses!

 

Maybe Rob or William will chime in. They used a plater in OC for the Minerva project. Check their thread on that project for details.

 

Second the recommendation for Shaun at Tru-6. I'm a very satisfied repeat customer. Fantastic work, super customer friendly. Website is http://tru-6.com

 

We used Triumph in Santa Ana for Minerva. Outstanding quality but significantly more expensive. If you're going to be mailing hardware anyway, I'd go with Burbank, or give Shaun a try. Worth getting a rough quote 1st, based on the weight of what you have to plate.

 

Shaun is a great guy and does all the prep work. You will find that his pricing reflects that. I have heard that his work is first rate but his estimate for me was above my comfort level.