Zinc Plating
- Thread starter Buddy
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Gary
Well-Known Member
Does not CHP have them- https://www.chpmotorsports.com/honda/years/views/vintage-fasteners-2/ On a side note what is Parkers prices on zinc plating? I have a bunch of stuff that needs to be done
That's actually a very good price, far less than the minimum charge I have to pay...and that's without the two 100-mile roundtrips, drop-off & pickup. It's best if you know what you're doing with the prep, and have a face-to-face consult with the plater.
If you opt for reproduction fasteners, everything will be minty-new but slightly different than OEM. If you restore OEM fasteners, they can only be as good as the base metal...any erosion/pitting will remain. As long as you have non-pitted parts, they can turn out as good as, if not better than, new.
I'm looking to replace 14 - 6 mm x 12 mm and 2 - 6 mm x 20 mm hex head bolts, they have the small "8" on the head these are from an HK1 CT70. I can post a picture a little later after I get home from work. Thanks Kirrbby. The parts that I am sending to the plater are in really good shape, I learned the hard way that plating not only doesn't hide pits but highlights them. Thanks Racerx.
I may be able to help you out as well. I have about ten M6 x 12mm that vary from good to fair, and 2 M6 x 20mm that are good. Of course, this is based on my not so calibrated eye ball. I can take a pic if you like.
My first experience getting something plated was a disaster. I was green as a gourd, called up a local plater, $100 batch fee, so I grabbed up everything and off I went. When I got there, learned there was another fee for for "prep"
. I guess they felt sorry for me and did it all for $100. I wished they had turned me away. Again, I was green as could be. In my "batch", I had Z50 soft tail air cleaner housings, brake rods, springs, M8 bolts, nuts etc. Went back a few months later and picked up my order. Nothing fit because the plating was too think. Could not screw on a nut to any of the M8 bolts. The air cleaner housings would not fit. They re-plated the housings for free and I wrote it off as a learning experience. I was thrilled with the plating I had done a few years later.
I'll take a close up pic of what I have. No harm if they are not the condition you need.
Do you have a surplus of M6 x 10mm? That's the one that I always need.
My first experience getting something plated was a disaster. I was green as a gourd, called up a local plater, $100 batch fee, so I grabbed up everything and off I went. When I got there, learned there was another fee for for "prep"
. I guess they felt sorry for me and did it all for $100. I wished they had turned me away. Again, I was green as could be. In my "batch", I had Z50 soft tail air cleaner housings, brake rods, springs, M8 bolts, nuts etc. Went back a few months later and picked up my order. Nothing fit because the plating was too think. Could not screw on a nut to any of the M8 bolts. The air cleaner housings would not fit. They re-plated the housings for free and I wrote it off as a learning experience. I was thrilled with the plating I had done a few years later. I'll take a close up pic of what I have. No harm if they are not the condition you need.
Do you have a surplus of M6 x 10mm? That's the one that I always need.
I may be able to help you out as well. I have about ten M6 x 12mm that vary from good to fair, and 2 M6 x 20mm that are good. Of course, this is based on my not so calibrated eye ball. I can take a pic if you like.
My first experience getting something plated was a disaster. I was green as a gourd, called up a local plater, $100 batch fee, so I grabbed up everything and off I went. When I got there, learned there was another fee for for "prep"
I'll take a close up pic of what I have. No harm if they are not the condition you need.
Do you have a surplus of M6 x 10mm? That's the one that I always need.
Boy howdy...all types of plating come with a learning curve. All-in, it now costs me $250 minimum (better than double what it cost circa 2005) to pay the batch charge and the transportation...and that's after the prep, which takes anywhere from 2 days up to a week and typically burns at least another $20 worth of supplies. There are always a few stubborn pieces which end needing individual attention along with those that can only be done by hand. The "growth" problem is real, and one reason (among many) why I've used the same plater for the last 20+ years. Never had an issue with threaded parts getting too fat. The only parts where plating thickness is an issue are axles. They're a precision fit inside the bearings; those have to be lathe-sanded post-zinc plating. There's another caveat with plating shops, most tend to lose a few small bits...they're geared for tonnage, not small batch/custom work. IMO, it's worthwhile but, anyone who believes the myth of the "magic vat" is in for an education.
Gary
Well-Known Member
Back in the good old days in the 90's when we didn't care what we did to the environment I used to get cadmium plating done a dollar a pound - 50 pound minimum and they did everything from start to finish.Just to get up to the minimum to get my moneys worth I would throw in new lock washers and regular washers as well. Here is a picture of the job done on an MGA from gauge housings to bowden cable jackets. The hardest part was keeping account of the all bolt lengths,thread size and head markings and where they went on the car.
All this time I have been referring to these bolt markings as "8", but I think it does look just like a hog nose, so okay then I need some 6 mm hog nose bolts. Speaking of plating disasters, I've had this hardware zinc plated once already and the zinc on most of the parts was chipped exposing bare steel, some of the parts the zinc was flaking off. Some of the bolts never made it back to me and a few were pitted and actually looked worse. So, in summary my 6 mm hog nose bolt shortage is because most that I'm missing never made it back and a few that were pitted looked really bad after plating.
allenp42 I wish I had a surplus of any of the 6 mm bolts, unfortunately I do not, sorry. More than a few of your 6 mm bolts look like they may plate well and a few not so much, thank you for offering. I will get back in touch with you once I see what kirrbby has. Here is an example of some of the bolts I have.
allenp42 I wish I had a surplus of any of the 6 mm bolts, unfortunately I do not, sorry. More than a few of your 6 mm bolts look like they may plate well and a few not so much, thank you for offering. I will get back in touch with you once I see what kirrbby has. Here is an example of some of the bolts I have.
I ordered 10 ea. M6 x 10mm and out of the 10, there were only about 3-4 that I would use. Maybe I'm too picky, but don't think so in this case. Here's a few pics of what I received.
The bolt on the left is an OEM M6. These are the worst but only 3-4 had a clean "8". I'll look to see if have a pic of the good ones.
Not trying to throw stones because I try to support, and very appreciative of all the vendors that support our hobby. However, my first taste with aftermarket bolts was not pleasant.
The bolt on the left is an OEM M6. These are the worst but only 3-4 had a clean "8". I'll look to see if have a pic of the good ones.
Not trying to throw stones because I try to support, and very appreciative of all the vendors that support our hobby. However, my first taste with aftermarket bolts was not pleasant.
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That's what I thought as well. Or maybe I received the the remnants of what's left in the coffee pot
. I don't get too worked up when an $8 item does not turn out as expected. I usually drop the company a note as a heads up and move on. New bolts are very similar to what I use most often. The basic difference is the "8", if you call it that, has an underscore.
Here's a pic of an original M6, new version OEM Honda M6, and the best M6 from my order of 10.
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Oh yeah, the cost of plating has gone batshit crazy. Circa 2000, I had all the chromed pieces from a K1, including the diecast fork rings, triple-plated $350 for the lot...not prepped, not even cleaned. Zinc plating started out with a $25 minimum batch charge. Cadmium is another story altogether; it's quite toxic and was virtually regulated out of use in 2006. What happened to paints that used cadmium-based pigments was criminal...with orange & red taking the brunt of the price extortion.
As for the "8" markings on Honda bolt heads, there were at least 4 different versions used between 1969-94. To the strict purists, it matters. The earliest K0s got a mix of large & small "8"-marked bolts. K1-K3 used the small "8". K4 got some bolts with captive flat washers...and some parts got zinc chromate plating; the "8" markings saw subtle revisions and there was a mix of "old" and "new". The 90s era machines got yet another change...where the transition occurred has never really been documented. Trying to do a "museum-correct" restoration gets progressively tougher beginning with the K2 model; basically, unless you begin with an intact/all-original base machine, there's going to be some educated guesswork.
Yes, brand-new Honda-bagged bolts are still available. They differ substantially from their 1970s ancestors.
Fender bolts are almost always heavily rusted, as are the undersides of the fenders. There's a lot more salt and acidic chemicals where bikes are ridden than seems possible. The only way you're ever going to keep the fender bolts and fender undersides in mint condition is by keeping the bike away from all dirt and moisture. If you're actually going to ride...best to clearcoat the business side of the fenders, and use stainless steel bolts to mount them.