Has anyone made a variable power supply for use in home electroplating ?
Printable View
Has anyone made a variable power supply for use in home electroplating ?
Swiss Toni
Depending on the power needed a cheap dimmer switch ahead of a car battery charger works to provide adjustable power to hot wire foam cutter or
a electro chemical rust removal system for me. The latter is similar to electro-plating but in reverse.
Bob
Thanks Bob. Food for thought!
It depends on how much current you need. Plating is best done with a current-regulated supply (not voltage-regulated). It is relatively simple to build a current regulator if you have any experience with electronics. Email me for more info.
Another good solution is to just buy a switchmode bench supply from EBay. Some are well under $100, and most of them are capable of regulating both voltage and current.
i would concur with using a battery charger or transformer and a resistor.
the plating process doesn't take much voltage, but the more amps available will enhance deposition rates.
I'm not an electroplating expert by any stretch but I do know electronics enough to agree with Don that if you arn't an expert the best route is to find, buy, adapt. It is a rare day when reinventing the wheel is the best route with electronics.
Figure out just exactly what your needs are and then let google and other search engines be your friend. Very good chance Ebay will have just what you are looking for.
Toni I don't know what finish you are looking for but I've used products from these folks in the past with great results
EPI - Electrochemical Products Inc.
For my power supply though I had re-purposed a 650 Amp DC power supply from a large mig welder. But we were doing 1000s of small parts contained in baskets every week
Guys, thanks very much for the informative replies! I will be plating (BZP) steel items for some of my motorcycle restorations. I think the best idea,as suggested, is to visit 'that site' and look for a purpose built unit, electrickery not being one of my strong points!