The problem with nickel plating is the nickle is more noble than the steel that is plated. This means the steel becomes the sacrificial member of the pair. If you get a tiny ding in the nickel what will happen is moisture gets to the steel and a pit will grow under the nickel that you will not see until it is very large. This is a major problem with NiCad coated parts in turbines. The Cadmium depletes and leaves the nickel behind. That's when the problems begin.teazer wrote:Really nice. Did you get the nickle parts clear powder coated? Nickle absorbs moisture worse than chrome and has to be polished and protected.
I have a nickle plated TZ frame and it needs to be stripped and mechanically polished before it's replated and clear coated.
I have never heard of nickel aborbing moisture. What I think is going on is what I described above. Nickel electro-plating may have porosity and that could be the problem. Electroless nickel does not seem to have a porosity problem.
Teazer, your TZ frame probably has tiny dings all over from being hit with debris from the track. Those dings have resulted in tiny rust pits under the surface as described above. The steel has rusted underneath and this is why the frame has to be properly polished/acid cleaned to remove any rust prior to replating.
regards,
Rob
