If a plated deposit is to realize its full value on a part, it is absolutely necessary that it have the best possible adhesion to the part. The part must be scrupulously cleaned to achieve any adhesion, but to achieve maximum adhesion, each basis metal must be treated to a series of steps that remove all traces of foreign materials and leave it active enough to form metallurgical bonds as well as physical ones. The processes given here are intended to do this on a production basis. Where common production solutions can be used, i.e., solutions that can be for more than one metal, they will be specified. It will be assumed that parts reaching the plating department or shop will have been made ready for plating. All machining, grinding, polishing, straightening, and other mechanical operations should be finished; all heat-treating, thermal aging, and stress relieving should have been accomplished; and all mill scales, rolling scales, or heat treating scales should have been conditioned for easy removal. Other sections of this Guidebook (cleaning, pickling, polishing, etc.) provide complete instructions for accomplishing many of these operations.
展开▼
