DIY Electroplating

I've been wanting to try zinc plating, and decided to do it on these rear axle adjusters. They are for my Suzuki wheeled XT500. These were very, very rusty. Since I didn't need them right away, I let them soak in white vinegar for a couple weeks, as it is a good, but slow rust remover. What rust that hadn't already came off in the vinegar was loosened up and came right off with a scotchbrite pad. I should have taken a before picture to show how rusty they started out. You can still see the pitting, but they'll work fine. Just like paint or powder coat, the key is prep, and making sure the part is perfectly clean.

I'm using a kit from Eastwood. It includes everything needed except for two D size batteries.

Positive hooked to the anode bar, and negative to the part being plated. I'm using a piece of 12 gauge copper wire for the negative side. This is what Eastwood recommends, since this keeps the alligator clip from being plated.

Inside the plating container.

Checking the part, recommended every 3-4 minutes. Plating time varies from 3 minutes for a bolt to 30 for a large part. I did the adjusters for about 10 minutes each.

Finished. I just gave them a quick rub with the metal polish to even out the color. With the pitting, and for what these parts do, no point in getting too fancy. They look fine, and should have good corrosion resistance.

Overall it's really fun and easy!