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titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
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Author:  Tai Fu [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:21 pm ]
Post subject:  titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
You know how gold hardware seems to wear out kinda fast while chrome lasts much longer?

I seen some titanium nitride coated items (such as watches) that looks very close to being gold, but titanium nitride is much harder than gold (it's used to coat drill bits).

So my question is, how come nobody makes tuners or guitar hardware coated in titanium nitride?
Author:  Chris Pile [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:26 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Expensive and basically useless.
Also - how will they market that color?
Author:  Tai Fu [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:37 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Considering that there are so many titanium nitride coated items out there, such as drill bits, I don't think it's particularly expensive to do. It just uses the same vacuum process that most coatings are done. Plus parts can be coated with TiN inside and out to achieve better wear characteristics on them. If anything gold plating is more expensive as you use actual gold (just not very much) and it involves the use of very toxic chemicals.
Author:  Barry Daniels [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:06 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Most metallic plating is done with electrolysis in chemical baths, not vacuum.
Author:  Tai Fu [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:15 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Barry Daniels wrote:
Most metallic plating is done with electrolysis in chemical baths, not vacuum.


Titanium nitride is coated with vacuum deposition.
Author:  Ken Nagy [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 4:54 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
I'm pretty sure that TiN coatings are dirt cheap to do. They charge for the upgrade in wear. They aren't shiny, so maybe no one wants a flat gold tuner? It's not the look. Carbide inserts for metal turning have multiple layers and thicknesses of various coatings. You pick the one for whatever you're doing. Even some ceramic inserts are coated, but it is mostly as a visual for wear. When they start looking black on the corner, they're done.

It's an industrial look, not a bling look.
Author:  Clay S. [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 7:00 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
"It's an industrial look, not a bling look."

I have some Sperzel tuners that are a satin gold finish that could certainly pass for TiN coating.
https://guitaraudio.com/sperzel-3x3-tri ... satin-gold
Author:  Chris Pile [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:03 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
We could go with cadmium plating.... it's gold, purple, and blue. Very hard.
Author:  Barry Daniels [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Gold hardware wearing out would be due to an excessively thin layer of gold plating.

I have some nickel plated hardware on my tele which I like better than chrome.
Author:  Pat Foster [ Sun Sep 12, 2021 9:59 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Barry Daniels wrote:
Gold hardware wearing out would be due to an excessively thin layer of gold plating.

I have some nickel plated hardware on my tele which I like better than chrome.


Me too. I've always liked nickel better. Gold, meh.
Author:  Woodie G [ Mon Sep 13, 2021 12:14 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: titanium nitride coated tuners/hardware
Whenever a guitar came into Greenridge wearing gold plate tuners, Mr. Morelli would seque into the classic VW commercial... "Vat time iss it? Time to un-pimp your ride!"

https://youtu.be/e1MNEqCr748

When we could get rid of those gold tuners, we could say we 'unpimped' that customer's guitar.
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