I have a plated brass steering wheel spider that I want to 'deplate' so as to leave the bare brass. Is there a method other that with a wire wheel and elbow grease to do this? It is well worn and some brass is showing already.

Ross,

Don't use a wire wheel - it will leave the brass pitted (like sandblasting). I have removed nickel plating on T brass parts by working them over on a buffing wheel and an agressive buffing compound (black stick). It takes time but it leaves you with a very nicely polished piece of brass. The other option is to take it to a plating shop and see if they will de-pate it for you. It is virtually the same process as plating except that the polarity of the electricity is reversed. Good luck.

Be_Zero_Be

Get you stainless plate as big as the spider, put it in the bottom of a tub. suspend the spider directly above it, and cover everything with a solution of...I forget. Go to caswellplating.com and it will tell you in the online manual what to use. Anyway, a 6v battery and sulphuric acid (I think) will take the nickel off and leave the brass. The nickel will be drawn to the stainless. I forget, but the polarity has to be right with the battery.

Sorry, I've done it before but it was several years ago and I honestly dont remember the polarity and the correct solution. I have their manual here somewhere but I can't find it with everyone asleep.

Hook the positive to the stainless, negative to the spider if you want to remove the plating.

I believe that is backwards, Tim. In electroplating, the part to be plated is connected to the negative of the supply. In this case of stripping the steering wheel, in effect we are trying to plate the stainless. Seth

Yep, I think you are right Seth. What I was thinking was when you use electrolisis to remove rust, then I reversed it. But in this case, it would be the same as when you remove rust. Sorry...dang dislexia-altzhimers anyway!

Tim

I'd bet that if you took it to a commercial plater they'd strip it for free. It takes only a few seconds.

Lacking the ability to do that, use a piece of stainless as Ray suggests (it doesn't have to be that large--use 2 pieces about 6 inches square, one on each side of the spider, wired together of course). You can use a bucket of distilled water with a cupful of muriatic acid thoroughly mixed in as the solution. A trickle 6V 2A charger will give plenty of current, as will a 6v lantern battery which will work fine but take a bit longer. You can even use a bunch of weak AA, or C or D batteries wired together. Heavy current and voltage ISN'T better as it will eat into the brass before the nickel is completely gone.

Ross-
What is it plated with?
-Keith

Keith, not sure what plating is. It is a Dodge Bros double slotted spider. Plan on taking it into a plating house and have them see if they can help, or??
Thanks to everyone for the input.
Ross

Ross-
Send me an e-mail and I'll send you some De-plating instructions.
-Keith

Blow me down. Some of those dumb ethnic jokes about Nords and Swedes must be true. Too often I've accomplished the task with sandpaper.

PS--Keith--In the event you didn't hear the other helpless cry from the wilderness, I'd be interested in the specifics of a method that you may have found successful.
Sanded fingertips in N. CA.

Ross, I don't think it's doable, you better send it to me for disposal.

Ahhhh, sure Ken, It's in the mail.
rb

I went to our local plating shop today and asked them to strip some nickel from a '26-7 radiator shell. They said they couldn't do it. (And this was the last plating shop in Wichita that even let a hobbiest in the door!) I asked what they recommended and they said they didn't know. His suggestion was that, when & if I did find anyone to do it, I tell them there is brass underneath so they don't eat away at it too. I read a little on caswellplating.com but could not really find anything specific to my needs. It appears there is an electroless nickel plating and one that is not. I'm assuming I have the one that is not. Anyone else have a similar experience? How about removing it by using stainless plate in the bottom of a tank with distilled water & muriatic acid and a trickle charger as was talked about in a Forum post titled "Revert to Brass?" around 1/7/08?
Thanks!!!
Verne Shirk
Wichita, KS

Why not experiment with a sample.

Then you don't have to dilute your acid solution. Make sure you have plenty of another chemical to neutralize the acid in case of an accident.

For a sample maybe some old lighting fixture that was chromed brass. That way you will know if you have a brass solvent. Then a modern lighting fixture which is stainless. Kind of a hassle but better than trashing you nice wheel.

Buy the way, how do you know that it is stainless?

Ross - If it is indeed nickle plate, you can chemically strip the nickel and the base metal will be unaffected. Go to the Caswell's link below and check out MetalX-B929. It's for nickel over brass.

Hydrochloric acid (Muriatic) won't do to much to nickle. Sulfuric will but it will take a long time and won't stop at the nickel. Sulfuric acid is used to de-smut nickel and brass before plating.

http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/metalx.html

Thanks for info. I found a "plater" who feels he can de-plate. He's abouy 120 miles away, so will pick a day to go there and see what he can do. He offers high speed polishing too. or, I may try Caswell plating kits # B-929. . sound interesting.

I found my recipe! This is for removing NICKEL from steel. It will remove nickel from brass, but be really careful.

1 part distilled water
2 parts sulfuric acid (from NAPA), allow it to cool down, then add one more part acid.

Heat solution to 110-130 degrees, connect part to positive 6VDC and negative to cathode plate(s) One or two pieces of stainless steel sheet approximately 4x4. I made my tank with a sheet that covered the bottom, but it's not necessary.

One to five minutes is all it should take.

By the way, if you aren't familiar with the right way to handle acid (pouring, etc.), just forget I posted that. I'd hate to know somebody got hurt messing with Sulfuric acid because I didn't type a 10-page "Acid Handling Safety" manual.

Always add the acid to the water; DO NOT add the water to the acid. Either way, you release heat as part of the reaction but if you add the water to the acid the reaction can be far more violent, causing the acid to splatter which can cause some problems (an understatement).

Contact Bob Ore at 800-673-2427, 4725 Iroquois Ave, Erie, PA. He has done and still does a lot of plating for me. I once took a steering gear case that needed stripping to him. He grabbed it, walked off, and handed me the stripped and still warm case less than 5 minutes later. No charge. Of course, he was doing other work for me at the time. Bob is an old car guy whom I see at Hershey every year. He has a space but loves to walk the fields which is where I usually run into him (I try not to hurt him when I do :>) )

I found my electroplating book last night. It says about the same thing as you all have said. To strip nickel...To one quart of water, add sufficient sulphuric acid to make one gallon, then add two ounces of glycerin. Use lead for the cathode. To strip chromium....To one gallon of water add one quart of hydrochloric acid. This should be used warm. The work is hung from the anode and a lead plate is used for the cathode.
Verne Shirk
Wichita, KS