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Stripping nickel plate?

3K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  simso 
#1 ·
Hello,
I recently bought an old saxophone: it was meant to be a project horn to be made by myself and used -maybe- as a backup.
The horn arrived with very old pads that, inexplicably, closed enough to make me realize that the horn was indeed a great horn!

Now I plan to have it repaired by a tech, but it has nickel plated keys. And I hate nickel plated keys. Moreover the nickel plate is quite damaged, with a lot of oxidations throughout the sax.
The only thing I hate more than nickel plate, on a saxophone, is a bad nickel plating.

I thought about stripping the nickel plate altogether.
Doing it mechanically is just insanely impractical, so I discussed with a professional in galvanic baths and he told me that yes, it's possible, and yes, it's pretty cheap.

He also added: "but let's try it on a single key, before..."

Doing it at home it's illegal in most of the world, so any experimentation is excluded.

Do any of you have any experience with stripping of nickel plate?
Should I just learn to live with the ugliness of a poor-man finishing?
 
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#2 ·
Yes I have experience of this - I had something nickel plated recently, and when I went to collect it there was a small mark left by the electrode, as the surface was cosmetic and would be seen, I asked the platers if it could be redone. They said it was no problem. They stripped the plating by immersion of the piece in an acid bath, repolished it, then replated it. Very quick, I only had to wait about an hour or so.
 
#3 ·
I recently bought an old saxophone...

Now I plan to have it repaired by a tech, but it has nickel plated keys. And I hate nickel plated keys.

The only thing I hate more than nickel plate, on a saxophone, is a bad nickel plating.
I have much the same sense as you regarding really ugly finishes. I don't buy those horns.

Stripping the plating takes you into overhaul territory. Where does it stop? Is the horn really worth it?

I suggest you either live with it or sell it.
 
#6 ·
Vintage horns in Italy are 90% with nickel or silver plated keys and some of them are really nice instruments.
In this peculiar case we are talking about a Yanagisawa T800 and, even with old pads, it is an insanely good horn... well, at least I liked it very much. More than my current Selmer SA II,so yes: for me it's worth an overhaul.

I'm still not convinced about the stripping part (the body and bell are already unlacquered, now..)
 
#4 ·
Does the stripping remove only nickel, or does it remove some brass too? I recall a thread recently in a repairers' forum where all sorts of people reported all sorts of damage to the base metal - by a well-known plater. Perhaps a bit of a lottery.
 
#5 ·
I've done it. You can buy nickel stripper from a company called Caswell. It involves putting the keys in a solution that you have to keep warm and agitated. I used a plastic bin with an aquarium heater and one of the little air pumps from an aquarium to agitate the solution. It took a day or two for the nickel to turn black and come off.
I wouldn't bother again.
 
#8 ·
I've seen the Caswell products online. It will be more expensive than giving the keys to a professional, but I somewhat prefer to keep everything under control. What was the result? Did the brass surface remained in good condition? Why wouldn't you bother again?

And what acquarium heater did you find that was able to keep the solution between 49 and 65 degrees? Most of fishes do indeed die at that temperatures...
 
#9 ·
It's a matter of taste, but many would prefer to play the horn as-is rather than muck around with the plating. Sometimes a worn and tarnished horn actually looks really cool, like it has some character and has obviously been played. I personally prefer shiny horns, but if it plays and you really like it, why not at least try getting used to it?
 
#11 ·
JayePDX, in my case plating shops are my customers :)

I'm sure there's no lacquer over the nickel plating because the plating is flaking off in many points and there's evident corrosion.

I understand booboo5000 point, but I had different nickel plated instruments and I always hated their look to death. I will be much happier with a bare brass horn with a nasty, smelly patina :)
 
#16 ·
It plays, but pads are so old and ruined that a repad was probably due five years ago.
Stripping or not the horn will get new pads and corks...

The lower register clearly suffered from multiple leaks. I hope I've heard the real character of the instrument and that the repad won't ruin the magic :)
 
#15 ·
It's "normal" industrial waste water... if the job will be done by a professional he will take care of it. If done at home, I suppose, it should be disposed of accordingly to the law. Which means that you should give the solution to a pro, I think...
 
#23 ·
I have bulk stripped nickel and plated with it. You can cold and hot strip nickel plating.

Cold strip solution takes around 4 days to remove the finish, I find the brass is very tarnished but believe that is a result from sitting in a wet solution comprising mainly of water.

Hot solutions can remove the plating effectively and quickly with no noticeable damage to the brass

Steve
 
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