Removing nickel..

[Hedning]

I have an original S&W Russian, one of those rejected ones with English lettering on the barrel. Now, this specimen was original blued, I can see traces here and there. Somewhere in the past someone has put a nickel plating on it. It looks like garbage. I would like to have the nickel removed. I tried to use reverse electrolysis this weekend, but it went awfully slow. Does anybody know if I should use a "special" kind of metal on the negative side? Iv used this method when restoring old timers, to get rid of rust. It works great. Then the negative side is on the item you want to clean, and Iv used iron with great luck. Almost magic.

But this nickel thing bugs me... Any suggestions?

 

[shadowen]

Not that I'm recommending this exactly, but couldn't you use a copper solvent to dissolve the underlying copper base that the nickel is probably adhered to? Isn't that why Hoppe's 9 and various other solvents have the warning about nickel?

Granted, I don't really know how effective that would be in the first place, but it might just require a bit of light scuffing of the nickel surface than a soaking in a copper solvent?

 

[fletcher]

There are nickel stripping solutions available. I don't recall names, but a google search should turn some up. I would make sure that they are suitable for use on steel.

 

[owlhoot]

Brownell has the nickel stripping compound. Works fine. Won't harm the steel.

 

[Jim K]

IMHO, get a professional plating shop to remove that nickel by reverse electrolysis. They do it all the time and won't do any further harm. But disassemble the gun yourself and retain the parts that are to be left alone. Also make sure they understand just to remove the nickel, not do any polishing or replating. (If the shop is not a gun shop, check before brining a gun in; some shops welcome them, others don't.)

Jim

 

[Hedning]

Just found out there is a company that has been dealing with different kind of plating for 30 years just 30 min drive from my place. They`ll do it for me..... Thanks anyway guys..

 

[GCBurner]

That's something I'd like to do to my granddad's old Iver Johnson .32 with the nickel flaking off, but the cost would probably be prohibitive for a gun only worth about $50. It's mostly got sentimental value, since I've got a picture of him carrying it as his back up gun when he was a town marshal.

 

[Hedning]

You could try to do it the electrolysis way. Just strip a cell phone charger and find the positive end and negative end. I can send you a "plug n play" setup to do it....

 

[KCJ]

Don't bead blast it! Too great a chance of rounding edges and loosing markings which may enhance the value. (IMO)

 

[Hedning]

Indeed KCJ... One should never blast or use anything that can take away edges and lettering. Then its better to let the old timer stay the way it is.

 

[Shadow 7D]

I would let the professionals do the stripping, sorry but the 'drop it in salt water with a cell phone charger' is not the best way to have a shootable gun when you are done, there is more to it than that, and you can strip metals OUT of the Steel ALLOY if you don't know what you are doing.