Official Luthiers Forum!

I've been working on a Korina V for too long but I'm at the point where I need to get the tail piece plated or finished to look like gold. Supposedly the original Gibsons were gold plated.

I had these made in steel by a metal fabricator because I couldn't find anything close to what's supposedly accurate. They still need drilled.

Do any of you know much about gold plating - who does it, and what I should spec? Or is there an alternative? Are "gold" pickups actually gold plated or is there some other process.

Thanks,
Kevin Looker

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I'm not a luthier.
I'm just a guy who builds guitars in his basement.
It's better than playing golf.

Check with your local jewelry maker.

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"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Look in your local phone books for "metal finishing" "metal finishers", "metal platers" "chrome or chroming services". Any one of them will know the processes used for plating pickup covers. if you send them a pic of a pickup cover...and then tell them they are cheap, I'm fairly certain you'll find that the gold plating on common pickups covers is an electroplating process and the layer is a brass alloy...not gold. They will probably also tell you that in order to get it super shiny...you have to prep the steel to a shiny state before the plating process.

Honestly...making that part out of sheet brass (A360 alloy) and polishing it using the same finishing schedule as your lacquer would probably result in a very highly polished gold part. Like...800, 1200, 1500....and then the polishing wheel with Menzurna medium and fine compounds.

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I read Emerson on the can. A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...true...but a consistent reading of Emerson has its uses nevertheless.

StuMusic