Factory Floor · All
Electroplating Line: Gold, Nickel, Black Nickel and Antique
From our Shenzhen floor: how pin blanks are cleaned, plated in gold, silver, nickel, black nickel, gunmetal, rose gold or antique, and tone-checked.
Plating is what turns a gray zinc blank into a gold, silver, black nickel or antique pin. Blanks are racked, cleaned, given a base layer, then the finish layer, then rinsed and dried. Antique finishes get a darkening step and a light polish afterwards. Tone is checked against a color board before the batch moves on.
Every blank is wired or clipped onto a rack so current can reach it. Where the wire touches, plating is thinner, so the contact point is put on the back or the edge, never the face. A rack holds one order at a time. Mixing orders on a rack is how tones drift between batches, so we do not do it.
The line is a row of tanks. Cleaning first: the blank is degreased and etched so the plating bonds. Then a base layer, usually copper or nickel, which fills micro-pores and gives the finish something to grip. Then the finish tank: gold, silver, nickel, black nickel, gunmetal, rose gold or copper. Rinse tanks sit between every step. A missed rinse carries one bath into the next and shows up as a stain.
Gold and silver are thin finish layers over the base. Thickness is set by time in the tank and current. Longer gives a deeper tone and more wear resistance; it also costs more. Two-tone pins are plated in one finish, masked, and plated again in the second. The masking is done by hand.
Antique gold, antique silver and antique copper start as the bright version. The rack then goes through a darkening bath that blackens the whole surface. The high points are polished back to bright by hand or on a soft wheel; the recesses stay dark. This is why antique looks best on soft enamel and on designs with real depth. Flat designs have nothing to stay dark.
Before a batch leaves the line, it is held against the color board under the same light every time. Gold that is too green, nickel that is too warm, black nickel that is too brown: all go back. The board is the reference for the reorder a year later as well. For pins going to the EU and UK, we can arrange nickel release testing to the REACH Annex XVII entry 27 limit on request.
Plating options for each pin type are on the custom enamel pins page. Test reports and how we check tone are on the factory quality page.
Book a live video walk-through of the plating line: email pin@guangdongcs.com or WhatsApp +86 187 1868 4696 (Bella, Export Sales).
Order Facts
- From 100 pcs per design · better price at 500+, best at 1,000+
- Free artwork proof within 2 working days
- Sample 10–14 working days · bulk 30–60 days · rush from 10–15 days
- DDP door-to-door available: duties and taxes included in the quote
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