new commer has questions

[newone2010]

Hi Everyone,

I come back to this thread.

I have been struggling with bad quality of the silvered plates.I was failed.I am thinking about the electroplating again.All the platers I found told me that,if I want to get high quality silvered plates,I must electroplate a layer of Nickel first.I have done this before,but have some problems.Please check the info from the replies above.Small spots came out during sensitive or fixing,even during exposure.My friend who was a chemistry teacher in high school said it may caused by the primary cells(galvanic cells;primary battery,I don’t know what’s the correct word in English).The primary cells were cause by the different metal silver , nickel,and the moisture in the air.According my poor experience of the nickel plates,the spots were not in each plates,some just a few,some more.

Is the silver layer too shin?If the plates have enough thick layer of silver above nickel,can I solve the problem? I think maybe the thicker silver would prevent the further chemical reaction of primary cells.

Is there someones’ plates have nickel layer too?That’s I want to know,thank you!

best,

Li

[dagist]

Li,

If your base metal is copper, then there is no need to electroplate a layer of nickel on it before electroplating it with fine silver. Nickel is used as a thin intermediary “strike layer” between some metals, but it is NOT required if you are putting silver onto copper.

A thin strike layer (such as nickel) is often put onto an item before it is introduced to the full-strength plating bath because it provides for better adhesion between the two metals and a more even/consistent plating.

When putting silver onto copper, and instead of using nickel (because it isn’t necessary), many electroplaters will put the item (a daguerreotype plate in our case) into a preliminary “sliver strike” bath (formulated differently than the full-strength electroplating bath), before the item is introduced into the full-strength silver bath.

You may want to ask your platers if they can do a “silver strike” instead of a “nickel strike” on your plates.

Good Luck,

Rob McElroy

Buffalo, NY

[newone2010]

Thank you for all your help.

I saw my problems has been on the home page.Another kind gentleman Mr.Jeff Green want to help me for get some silvered plates.I am so happy.

[newone2010]

Hi all,

 

I received one plate from my plater yesterday,and made a dag in yesterday evening. I let the plater to polish the brass,but it looked to be worse than doing it myself.It was a hard to be polished,but it works and it was better than all the plates which I made in China before.I think this plater can make the silvered plates better,if he have a look at American plates.I tried to explain the “decorative” silver bath which Rob mentioned to him,and he said he could try after I show the plates which Rob send to me.It’s another good news for me.

 

The toy bear is almost black,I found it was hard to be photoed.I polished the plates under a 80w filament lamp.It was hard to see the dusts and scratches,and I was hurry to go out for meeting my friend,so it is not a good job which I can do but I didn’t.By the way,I had no distilled water left,so I used a kind of “purified water” which was sold in supermarket.

 

Li

 

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[newone2010]

Hi all,

This is the dag I made this afternoon.

The brass was reused.There was a layer of nickle on the back side.As some of you know,the plater which I found before eletroplated a layer of nickle before silver bath.It will left some white spots on the final images. I polished the front side,the brass came out after I polished the silver layer and nickle layer,but I didn’t polish the back side.I think some nickle atoms came to the front side from back side when I re-silverd the brass.That’s maybe why there are so many white spots on this image. Nickle layer is very hard to be polished,so there are so many scratches.Anyway,I am very happy when I making dags,though I have so many problems which are waiting to be solved.

 

best,

Li

 

PS:I don’t have 9600WS flash lights,and I only have a 150mm F5.6 lens,so I use 2 800ws flash lights,flash the model 20 times.

 

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