Proper Care for Nickel Plated ?

[TMan]

The "Fine Gun Room" at Bass Pro Shops has several beautiful nickel plated Colts. Some of these are NIB and flawless. Since I would never buy a gun that I didn't intend to shoot (with the exception of a donor gun), I was wondering how you properly care for a nickel plated gun? I'd hate to spend a lot of money and then ruin the finish.

If you do screw up the finish, is it a big deal to get it replated, or are you just better of trashing it and getting a new one?

[MLB]

Not to hijack your thread TMan, but we are getting a new Bass Pro Superstore here in Buffalo, NY. It is reportedly their third largest store. Hopefully it will also have the third largest "Fine Gun Room" ;D

Our Memorial Auditorium has been vacant since we built the HSBC Arena for the Sabres years ago. The new Bass Pro Shop will make use of this fine structure and bring a much needed anchor store to our languishing downtown. Maybe it will also put a spark into our waterfront development too.

OK, enough of the Buffalo commerical. Back to the nickel...

["DoubleAction"]

TMan; The Nickel plate is no more of a problem with taking care of as the Blued finishes. Most cleaners that affect bluing will affect the nickel as well. Surface abrasions are the same concern with both, but nickel provides a better protective barrier against rust while also providing much better lubricity between moving parts.

[5ontarget]

don't let bore solvent set on the nickel finish. Depending on the plating process, the nickel is actually plated on copper that was plated onto the steel. Sometimes it goes chrome, nickel, copper, steel. From the little I know of plating, I was told that steel and nickel don't plate well, so copper is often used between them. scratches and blemishes in the nickel that exposes the copper would then be subject to copper solvents. There are some nickel plating processes that don't use copper too. I think it is electroless plating, and is generally preferred because it allows for a finer finished product, and is allegedly more durable.
Then there is hard chrome and that is a different animal...

If you take care of your guns (and I can tell you do), the nickel finish should not be a problem.

["DoubleAction"]

TMan; The Colts have some very good bright nickel finishes; Checkmate Plating has provided services to Colt for their nickel. My S&W 29-2 Bright Nickel is over twenty years old, and it still shines like new. My Colt Single Action Army is over ten years old and it is still flawless. I just keep these guns wiped down with a silicone cloth.
The Nickel Plated Merwin Hulbert that was once owned by Jesse James still has it's original nickel plating.
You can check the prices for replating services by going to the Checkmate website.
handgunforum.proboards3.com/index.cgi?board=Information&action=display&n=1&thread=1785

["DoubleAction"]

TMan; I clicked on Checkmate's link to their website and it seems to have changed. The stuff on there now is not what is was a few months ago. They had an excellent site, I do not know what happened to it.

["DoubleAction"]

One of the most difficult areas to clean on a nickel plated revolver, for some, seems to be the cylinder face. Removing the burned in powder flash rings is a chore of patience, but not difficult.
I've since applied the same procedure of removing fouling to the cylinder faces of the Stainless Revolvers. I use a particular brand of lead remover to disolve the fouling, rather than abrasive methods of restoring the cylinder face to it's original like new finish. The same method of cleaning can also be applied to cylinder faces with the glass bead matt finishes. Abrasive methods of cleaning the cylinder face will also result in premature wear on the finish, almost immediately.
The same method I apply with the Nickel has also reduced the time I once took in restoring the stainless cylinder faces.