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Rock
Your report (see below) is a fascinating one for me. When I was a
young boy my dad (now deceased) made his own telescopes. He designed
and built such a vacuum evaporative apparatus in order to "silver" his
telescope mirrors. I recall being fascinated by it as a youngster.
Sealing the bell jar (with pitch) and drawing down the vacuum were
major big deals. Remember this was an at-home hobby, not a commercial
or industrial setting. Dad used only aluminium filaments, but when they
were fired everything turned silver. It was neat!
I still have my dad's old apparatus. It has both a mechanical vacuum
pump and an oil diffusion pump he built from scratch. Prior to your
post I was unaware this old apparatus might have application to MG
restoration. I kept it just as a memento of my dad. I shall look at it
a bit differently in future.
Thank you!
Bruce Burrows
'59 MGA basket case
'60 Daimler SP 250
'61 Daimler SP 250
'73 MGB driver
My Dart website (not my cars!):
http://community-2.webtv.net/guardian45/THEDAIMLERSP250DART/
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Message-ID: <3903CD5A.1E76DFC3@rocky-frisco.com>
Date: Sun, 23 Apr 2000 23:28:10 -0500
From: Rocky Frisco <rock@rocky-frisco.com>
Organization: The Luggage Fan Club
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To: "mgs@autox.team.net" <mgs@autox.team.net>
Subject: Re: Chrome plating plastic question
References: <200004232000.NAA44074@daffy.napanet.net>
<3903B5DF.B86B5D1F@brit.ca>
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Reply-To: Rocky Frisco <rock@rocky-frisco.com>
Trevor Boicey wrote:
>
> mga wrote:
> >
> > Hello,
> >
> > As I get down to the details on my '73 B GT, one of them is the central air
> > inlet on the dash. Originally, there was chrome finish as a highlight
> > around the vents. Now its half worn off.
> >
> > There is a firm in Texas that advertises in Hemmings to do plastic plating.
> > Does anyone have any experience with this or any suggestions?
>
> I have no experience, but Caswell Plating sells kits
> to do this:
>
> http://www.caswellplating.com/
>
> Essentially, you coat the plastic with a conductive
> powder, and then plate that.
I used to "chrome" plastic model parts in the bell-jar of the vacuum system
in the lab I worked in back in 1964. I just would pump the system way down
with the part loaded on a spindle in the middle of the jar and the source
for the metal out near the side of the jar. I would turn the part by using a
magnet outside the jar to attract another magnet on a bar hooked to the
spindle inside the jar. Then I would apply current to the filament with the
silver or gold or aluminum mounted on it. The metal would evaporate, coating
the part. I used a clear spray to protect the surface.
The system was very primitive but it did great work.
-Rock
--
Rocky, JJ Cale Band & Pratchett Books: http://www.rocky-frisco.com
Rocky's Mini Cooper Page: http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/6437/
Mini Books: http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/6437/rockboox.html
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