My 95 S2 Avant Project. LZ5T Coolness

[Error404]

Great info Eric
So with that unit you linked to above, I just put that inline between a power supply an the connections to the plates / parts. Then I just adjust the output voltage until I get the right reading across the electrolyte?

[irishs2]

Yep if the bench psu can swing the current to get the voltage to 0.9V then you should have no issue.

[urS6Tom]

This is all very useful information!

I was planning to use a bench power supply for my electrolysis setup, so I can just set the voltage to 0.9V and leave it. Any downsides or reasons this wouldn't work?

[irishs2]

Cool, thanks for the tips
How are you measuring the voltage - in the plating bath?

Well, the voltage between the lead going to the part, and the lead going to the plates.

This is a good guide

http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/car-restoration/188194-zinc-electroplating-guide.html

The current controller that they give you (a bit of nichrom wire afaik) is a pain to use though. You are using it like a variable resistor. So you adjust that until you get 0.9V across the electrolyte , or calculated current going through the circuit.

So I used my DC DC converter. It makes things so much easier.


Thats a ZXY6005 , Roughly £40 quid but you dont need that , this does the same thing:


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/B3603-Digi...item43ce5f6b04

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRHU2xqo7Po

Worth a watch to see operation of DC DC converters.
Relevant current control:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=cRHU2xqo7Po#t=265

[Error404]

Cool, thanks for the tips
How are you measuring the voltage - in the plating bath?

[irishs2]

My plating bucket wasn't big enough for the full hose, so I just did each end in turn.
No damage to the rubber etc. The trickiest thing is to find a spot to attach a wire to, that wont show up a shadow after plating is done.


The full lighter socket was €13+vat . I didnt know they did a torch to fit the socket until now... €26 is a little strong for a tiny torch though.


After item prep work, current control is the most important.

The prep surface greatly affects type/colour of finish, I get a nice satin finish with just sandblasting and then straight to wash/acid/plating/chromate. The bolts/pully on the pump above are just sandblasting finish.
Wirewheeling gives a nice shiny finish like the one on the hose ends.


Current should be about 70ma / sq inch. But calculating current based on area is a pain every time, and sometimes quite complex. The bigger the item the more current you need. What I do is watch the voltage, and try and aim for 0.9V +-0.05V
This had yielded me consistent results no matter what size the item is.


I had a problem with the yellow chromate not sticking, it was just washing or wiping off. Turns out my chromate solution was too strong, so adding more water to that solution fixed the problem.

[afterburner]

When plating the hoses, did you fully submerge them in the solution or only the metal hose ends? Is the solution harmful to rubber, plastic, etc?

[Error404]

Excellent work as ever Eric.
I'm going to try and plate a couple of parts today, any tips?
How much was the new fag lighter mate?

[irishs2]

OMG I hope not. Hope to have it driving by then.


Hoses were glass blasted in that cabinet, and zinc plated again with the same kit as the bolts. The yellow passivate gives it a good colour finish.
Attention had to be paid to block the hose so no media would get in, but still many flushes were done and more to go to make sure they are clean.

Of course your always welcome.

[macspring]

Just a little update to ease back into working on car stuff. Took a little break for a while but updates should be back on track.

Car not back yet.
Gona skip talking about that for a while, lest I burst a blood vessel in my temple.
For those of you counting... yep the car left in June



Had to clean the power steering hoses.

Wait until it's June 2015, and then you'll be annoyed.



How did you clean the hoses ? Amazing recovery.

Inspirational work as ever.

Will have to call down again.

[irishs2]

Just a little update to ease back into working on car stuff. Took a little break for a while but updates should be back on track.

Car not back yet.
Gona skip talking about that for a while, lest I burst a blood vessel in my temple.
For those of you counting... yep the car left in June

Anyway, back to it.


Carpet was manky, but good (apart for a little tear I put in it when removing it. might get away with it though)


After its first clean. The carpet has gone though 4 cleaning cycles. Visually it didnt get better, but I kept going until I was happy with it aromatically.

Sticking with interior bits, while I was cleaning centre console bits there were some that stood out.





After blasting. Not sure yet what I plan to do.



I also decided to swap the lighter socket for something more modern.










Hole is perfect size for the B8 A4 ligher. It just needs a tiny modification and fits perfectly.


Remove a little rib and the ring fits perfectly.









Turbo was missing its plate.


Better.



Had to clean the power steering hoses.








And then rebuild a powersteering pump, but I am not going to use this , going to copy Alex, and use an Audi A6 C4 / hybrid pump.

[Error404]

I can justify the expense as everyone I know who drives a modern car has lost way more money on depreciation & main dealer servicing than I have spent bringing my coupe back from the dead. One thing though, I now don't drive the car when there is salt on the roads, as I can't stand to see nature trying to reclaim it.

Can't wait to see it back from paint mate

[irishs2]

Just fnished to read the whole thread and...
What a nice and interesting read!
My best congratulations for your project.
Quality in everything you've done it's top!

Stefano

Thank you.

Great read so far...

How are they getting on with the paint?

I'd love to do this to a vehicle but then after I'd finished it, I'd have a conflict of interests for driving and not driving it!

I'd want to drive it everyday because it would drive so nicely but then driving over 10k a year... all of sudden the amount of money that I'd put into it would almost be wasted as the general ware and tear would eat away at it.

I'm looking forward to seeing it completed (as I'm sure that you are).

MG

Paint progress is a bit slow if I am perfectly honest but I should have the car back in a few weeks. Went to look at the shell a month ago, and while paint finish was better than factory , I was looking for better than factory. This was conveyed at the start but had to be reconvened when I saw the shell.



This is from a month ago.



There is that conflict between restored car and daily, but the only way this makes sense for me to drive as a daily. The amount if money is not that much different than buying a much newer car and dealing with deprecation etc.
That's the self justification in my head anyway.

Besides, this is something that I always wanted to do, and in a way this project is as much about me as it is about the car.

[RS2]

Great read so far...

How are they getting on with the paint?

I'd love to do this to a vehicle but then after I'd finished it, I'd have a conflict of interests for driving and not driving it!

I'd want to drive it everyday because it would drive so nicely but then driving over 10k a year... all of sudden the amount of money that I'd put into it would almost be wasted as the general ware and tear would eat away at it.

I'm looking forward to seeing it completed (as I'm sure that you are).

MG

[veneto rs2]

Just fnished to read the whole thread and...
What a nice and interesting read!
My best congratulations for your project.
Quality in everything you've done it's top!

Stefano