Jim:  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been very tough
on the plating industry.  They require that platers account for every
gram of metal they use.  They also require so much rinse water filtration
that most platers will tell you that the water that they put down the
drain is actually cleaner than what comes out of the tap.  This is why
plating shops are getting harder to find.

Electroless plating is great because it plates the insides of things
like flanges and also plates evenly into inside corners.  Ask your
plater to see a sample of an electroless plated part, as his process
might be a little too 'blue' for your liking.  Old fashioned 'watts
bath' bright nickel has a nice yellowish tint to it.  Usually platers
have a minimum or 'lot' charge, so gather together as much as you can
to plate at once.

I have done some home plating using the Caswell kits with great success.
[http://www.caswellplating.com/]  They sell cyanide-free plating baths,
which are pretty inert.  I will not have cyanide solution in my house!
If you intend to do chrome, you have no choice.  Small parts like
brackets, levers, screws, pushrods, and fittings are a breeze to do.

But I will say this about plating -- it is 95% preparation work.
Plating is not like painting, for it will _not_ cover scratches and
blemishes.  Caswell also sells electroless nickel baths.

To do nickel properly it should be stripped off, but if it's still
pretty clean and not at all flaking or blistering it can be pickled
and then re-plated.  Adhesion is not guaranteed, though.

If you want a mirror finish after plating, then you have to have
a mirror finish on the base metal.  This is why many platers strike the
part with copper first, as it can easily be buffed to a mirror finish.
If you are trying to plate zinc, you must copper plate first.

Good luck with the Wurlitzer.

Eric Bergstrom - PianoPro Service