I'm wondering what equipment is needed to replate razors. Has anyone here done it themselves and have the right gear? It seems like an interesting hobby.
You may be off to the races with an initial investment of about $150 This auction is not an active listing. Of course additional cost/considerations are; a) The actual replating material, b) How to best strip the existing plating, and c) Post-plating buffing/polishing equipment Dave here, was in a similar boat as you..wanted to do it himself...and for others. Invested about 2,000 pounds in his equipment.
I looked into it briefly some time ago. Apart from the initial cash outlay, the time required and potential toxicity of the residue and whatnot seemed to make having it done seem much more convenient and cheaper, which it is. But if someone has the time to invest in doing his own jobs, much less taking in work, and is prepared to deal with the upkeep and mess, it could be fun and probably profitable.
This is Dave (Ontoman) in the U.K. not Dave at West Coast Razors. Dave (Ontoman) to my knowledge is still replating while Dave at West Coast to my knowledge is not plating any more. Since sending items to the U.K. is expensive and you have to go through customs, many U.S. shavers tend to go to Chris at Razorplate.
I think Dave there and I are in very seperate boats if he invested 2000 pounds in equipment. I'm not trying to start a service, but follow something that interests me. I think you can get kits much cheaper than the $150 device you linked to. That's what I'm trying to research.
Oh I'm sure there are less expensive options. There are 'related links' on that page that shows 'mini' kits for less than $50 Cheapest one I saw was a 'complete kit' for $7.95
You need to really understand the safety, maintenance and disposal issues involving the chemicals (even the small time kits). Some municipalities even have regulations concerning platers of any kind in their jurisdiction. This is gathered what I have discussed with those who have been involved in this activity.
Yeah, the process creates some toxic waste, that I do know. I'm actually covered in that regard, which is one of the reason I've thought about pursuing it.
I worked for many years in the electronics industry selling and servicing plating process chemistries, but not the equipment used in the process. I worked primarily with printed circuit board and semiconductor manufacturers plating metals such as copper, nickel, gold, and many others. The necessary equipment is quite simple on a small, lab scale. All you need is a bench top rectifier, a couple of beakers (or even plastic tubs), a hotplate/stirrer, and the appropriate anode material for the type of metal you wish to plate. The real magic is in the chemistry. Much of the plating baths are made of generic chemicals (acids, metal salts, and such), but proprietary additives are also required to achieve a mirror quality finish. There are several companies that sell these proprietary additives in the USA. So you could easily set yourself up in a garage, but as others have said, many of the chemicals are hazardous, and proper safety and disposal procedures must be followed. I am sure that someone could get started for less than $500 to plate copper and nickel. Plating gold (or rhodium) would be far more expensive, as gold ain't cheap.
This is spot on. Someone should be able to plate basic nickel with an initial investment of $400-500. I wouldn't expect to get perfect results, but definitely doable. I would estimate that I have somewhere between 10-12k invested in multiple rectifiers, electro-strippers, reverse plating equipment, beakers, large vats, annodes(nickel, silver, gold, platonized titanium, stainless), heating elements, magnetic stirrers, additives, disposal drums, steamers, of course plating solutions, lead wires(same metals as annodes), etc. Many of the older solutions and still several today contain cyanide and other toxic alkaline minerals that require proper disposal, ventilation, and masks/gloves. 90% of the solutions I use with the exception of silver are cyanide free. This is the main reason I do not offer silver. I do plate in silver, but don't do it often. If your wanting to give plating a go, you may want to look into trying out a pen plater. These do work and require some practice and come with a built in rectifier and the pens with multiple tips. The solutions are sold by the gram and are much higher concentration and considerably less expensive. You can also buy these solutions cyanide free, which I would recommend. Good luck and wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas & Happy New Years!
It might also help to ask a local electroplating shop where to find educational and equipment resources in your area for hobby electroplating.
