[Jewelry making - Article 00455] - Re: [Orchid] Rhodium plating two tone jewellery

[Mark Parkinson]

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Hi Phillip,

>     Is there a better way to define an edge then painting with a brush?
>     I have experimented with ways to remove enamel, but the cleaned up
>     area is too dirty and it affects the plating. It is better to start
>     again. I dont use a rhodium pen because I don't do repairs and I
>     need a good coating. You see, I have to stop off the piece, and in
>     doing so I have to keep exact edges and get into hard to reach
>     places without touching the white metal. It is not essentially
>     hard, but tricky if your work is going to be inspected under a
>     loupe. Sometimes I need to isolate a few areas inbetween gold etc
>     and in these cases I may have to let it dry, move to another part,
>     do a bit, and so fourth. I am able to charge for it, but I can't
>     help wondering/hoping somebody knows a better way. 

    We mask for rhodium plating white gold portions of two tone pieces a
    couple of ways. Usually we use a 'UNI' paint pen, they come in a
    couple of different sizes. They have felt-like tips that you pump to
    charge them up with paint. We use a surgical knife to cut the tips
    to a 45 degree angle to help us get into tight spots. When you pump
    the tip up it can get pretty juicy, so you can cover a large area
    pretty quickly. The advantage of this particular pen is that it
    dries immediately, you can rhodium the moment you finish applying
    it. In our area we purchase these in an art supply store, they keep
    them under the counter because they are favorites of graffiti
    'artists' so you may need to ask for it. 

    We also use a 'Stop-off' pen from Gesswien. It operates the same
    way, by pumping the felt tip, and we trim this to a sharp edge as
    well. One difference is that it has a much smaller tip (helpful). We
    will pool this up on a little baggie and use a saw blade to get in
    hard to reach areas (can't do that with the other one because it
    dries too darn fast). Another difference is that it takes longer to
    dry, so we only use it when the other one won't work. 

    We remove both with liquid paint stripper, sometimes putting the
    bottle in the ultrasonic to speed the process up. Usually comes off
    instantly. 

    We always electro-clean the item before masking and plating. The hot
    electro-cleaning solution can remove masking materials. 

Hope that helps a little.
Mark
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