General Category => Engine & Transmission => Topic started by: RickS on March 09, 2013, 09:44:49 AM
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When did Wico start cadmium plating their Magneto backing plates. The one I have for my 55 is plated, but all the others I have seen are just the bare aluminum. Was this to help with corrosion resistance?
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I don't know about the 'when' , but I do know that cadmium plating is a very good corrosion deterrent .
Not to muck up your thread , but here's an FYI ( from Wiki ) :
Cadmium plating
Cadmium plating is under scrutiny because of the environmental toxicity of the cadmium metal. However, cadmium plating is still widely used in some applications such as aerospace fasteners and it remains in military and aviation specs however it is being phased out due to its toxicity and corrosive properties.[4]
Cadmium plating (or "cad plating") offers a long list of technical advantages such as excellent corrosion resistance even at relatively low thickness and in salt atmospheres, softness and malleability, freedom from sticky and/or bulky corrosion products, galvanic compatibility with aluminum, freedom from stick-slip thus allowing reliable torquing of plated threads, can be dyed to many colors and clear, has good lubricity and solderability, and works well either as a final finish or as a paint base.[3][5]
If environmental concerns matter, in most aspects cadmium plating can be directly replaced with gold plating as it shares most of the material properties, but gold is more expensive and cannot serve as a paint base.
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Rick, are you sure it's plating? Aluminum is very hard to plate. Most times if aluminum is treated with anything, it's anodizing.
Mike Sal
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Rick, are you sure it's plating? Aluminum is very hard to plate. Most times if aluminum is treated with anything, it's anodizing.
Mike Sal
Mike, I am NOT sure. I will post a picture later, when I clean it up.
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Here it is. Any guesses?
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Just looks like a bright casting to me. Are you sure it's aluminium? It almost has the appearance of die cast zinc.
Mike Sal
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Just looks like a bright casting to me. Are you sure it's aluminium? It almost has the appearance of die cast zinc.
Mike Sal
Mike, I'm not sure of anything! I thought it was a coating, because in some places it looks rubbed through to the base material.
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I have seen this process before. I think my 1949 firestone outboard has it on its backing plate.(wico also) Seems to me it was almost like a second skin.
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When Gary rebuilt my Model M engine, he had the magneto backing plate, the carb body, and the fuel filter anodized. He said that that was how they came from the factory. The metal has a very slight green tint to it. I never asked exactly what he meant by "anodized".
Mike