Honda CB750 Sandcast

General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: RIchcolano on September 15, 2023, 02:55:25 pm

Title: Cadmium or Zinc plated hardware ??
Post by: RIchcolano on September 15, 2023, 02:55:25 pm
I am sending all my hardware out for strip and replate.
Who knows whether the original finish was bright zinc or Cadmium ????
Title: Re: Cadmium or Zinc plated hardware ??
Post by: kp on September 18, 2023, 05:37:11 am
The nuts, washers and bolts were blue zinc but some parts ware gold bright finished such as the battery box washers and spoke nipples. Some other items were tinned such as the front brake pipe and some were chromed such as the front hub bolts. Other bolts such as the fork drain bolts and seat hinge bolts could have been cad plated but I cannot say that as factual.
Title: Re: Cadmium or Zinc plated hardware ??
Post by: hondasan on September 18, 2023, 01:36:06 pm
My gut feel based on many years of restoration of Hondas, observation of original bikes, dialogue with other knowlegeable like minded people such as KP and others on this forum, is that Cadmium plating has never featured on Honda motorcycles, certainly post 1960. Bright zinc with various passivations (clear, yellow, olive drab on more  modern bikes,......) tends to predominate except of course for the various chrome plated fasteners (top yoke pinch bolts, handlebar clamp bolts, ets).
Here in the UK cadmium plating has been pretty well impossible to get done  for a great many years  for us hobbyists for reasons of toxicity - not sure what restorers of MUCH older vehicles which would of had cadmium plated parts do. 

Chris R.