Anyone ever tried electroless nickel plating?

[JesseL]

I've been looking at these kits:
http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/electroless.htm

I'm wondering if anyone here has any experience with this type of plating. What kind of surface prep you did, how well the finish held up, how your results looked, etc.

 

[BullsEye10x]

I had a Springfield's custom shop refinish one of my 1911 slides in nickel teflon. It turned out OK and has held up well, but I've heard that if you don't prep the surface correctly it can come off very easily.

 

[dfariswheel]

The Do-it-yourself plating kits DO NOT have a very good reputation.

How a finial finish looks is very much dependent on the skills of the operator, his equipment, and how well he preps and cleans the metal.

Bottom line, in 30 years I never saw a home-done finish of this type that looked even close to a pro job.
I've heard people brag on how well done it was, but in fact the job looked awful to anyone who knows what it should look like.