[Jewelry making - Article 00455] - [Orchid] Silver Plating or Stripping

[Don Norris]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

I need some help!

    Does anyone do Silver plating or stripping for others. I cast about
    400 solid Sterling Silver Pine Cones (actually Mountain Alder Cones
    per week) and need them stripped or plated to give them a prettier
    look. I was able to get them "bright white" clean by using
    "Divestor", for almost 30 years, but about 4 years ago, Grobet bought
    out the company making it (to my understanding). They changed the
    formula from a highly acid divestor to just some soapy junk that
    almost does nothing. Anyway I want to get back to having my pine
    cones bright white before tumbling them, any suggestions? 

    Right now I clean them with alternating solutions of pickle and then
    ammonia in an ultrasonic. I am getting them fairly white, but not
    consistently, even in the same batch. I do oxidize the darker ones,
    but they do not sell as good as the bright white ones. 

    Questions narrowed down? 

    1. Does anyone know where I can purchase "Divestor" that contains
    some acid, and it think it was hydrochloric? 

    2. Has anyone else used the old divestor and still know where to get
    something similar? 

    3. Do you do any Silver stripping for others? 

    4. Do you do any Silver plating for others? 

    5. Do you have a method of cleaning elaborate castings to get them
    "bright white"? 

    I cast another 100 to 1000 pieces each week of regular junk castings
    for the Colorado tourist trade, elk, horses, leaves and stuff for my
    classes, and I get them plenty white, and clean before tumbling, but
    these pine cones need to be perfect before tumbling. 

    As I have said, I have cast these for over 30 years, with no
    problems cleaning them with the divestor. Right now it seems like I
    could sell as many as I can cast! This part of my business was hurt
    when the process of plating natural objects was invented about 20
    years ago, but now, I could sell a 1,000 a week, I think, if I could
    get them as white as I use to. 

    Your help will be greatly appreciated, and even rewarded with a pine
    cone or two! Or three! 

Thanks,
Don
http://silverpinecones.homestead.com/PineCones.html

____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________