Official Luthiers Forum!

Owned and operated by Lance Kragenbrink
It is currently Wed Nov 27, 2024 5:00 pm


All times are UTC - 5 hours


Forum rules


Be nice, no cussin and enjoy!




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 11 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:21 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 8:55 pm
Posts: 3820
Location: Taiwan
First name: Tai
Last Name: Fu
City: Taipei
Country: Taiwan
Focus: Repair
Status: Semi-pro
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?

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:26 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Sun Mar 06, 2011 12:04 am
Posts: 5823
First name: Chris
Last Name: Pile
City: Wichita
State: Kansas
Country: Good old US of A
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
Expensive and basically useless.
Also - how will they market that color?

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


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 2:37 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 8:55 pm
Posts: 3820
Location: Taiwan
First name: Tai
Last Name: Fu
City: Taipei
Country: Taiwan
Focus: Repair
Status: Semi-pro
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.

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:06 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2005 4:02 am
Posts: 3263
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
First name: Barry
Last Name: Daniels
Most metallic plating is done with electrolysis in chemical baths, not vacuum.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 3:15 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Wed Sep 24, 2008 8:55 pm
Posts: 3820
Location: Taiwan
First name: Tai
Last Name: Fu
City: Taipei
Country: Taiwan
Focus: Repair
Status: Semi-pro
Barry Daniels wrote:
Most metallic plating is done with electrolysis in chemical baths, not vacuum.


Titanium nitride is coated with vacuum deposition.

_________________
Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com



These users thanked the author Tai Fu for the post: Barry Daniels (Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:20 pm)
Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 4:54 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa

Joined: Sat Mar 09, 2019 4:50 pm
Posts: 1258
Location: Goodrich, MI
First name: Ken
Last Name: Nagy
City: Goodrich
State: MI
Focus: Build
Status: Amateur
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.

_________________
Why be normal?


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 7:00 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Sun Mar 30, 2008 8:20 am
Posts: 5968
"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


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:03 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Sun Mar 06, 2011 12:04 am
Posts: 5823
First name: Chris
Last Name: Pile
City: Wichita
State: Kansas
Country: Good old US of A
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
We could go with cadmium plating.... it's gold, purple, and blue. Very hard.

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


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 8:39 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2005 4:02 am
Posts: 3263
Location: The Woodlands, Texas
First name: Barry
Last Name: Daniels
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.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2021 9:59 pm 
Offline
Contributing Member
Contributing Member
User avatar

Joined: Sat May 17, 2008 1:11 pm
Posts: 2375
Location: Spokane, Washington
First name: Pat
Last Name: Foster
Country: USA
Focus: Build
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.

_________________
formerly known around here as burbank
_________________

http://www.patfosterguitars.com


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Mon Sep 13, 2021 12:14 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa
User avatar

Joined: Sat Jan 19, 2013 7:33 am
Posts: 1876
First name: Willard
Last Name: Guthrie
City: Cumberland
State: Maryland 21502
Zip/Postal Code: 21502
Country: United State
Focus: Repair
Status: Semi-pro
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.

_________________
For the times they are a changin'

- Bob Dylan


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 11 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Bing [Bot], peter.coombe and 37 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
phpBB customization services by 2by2host.com