Thin Dense Chrome (TDC) Plating Service

Thin Dense Chrome (TDC) is designed to enhance the durability, wear resistance, and overall performance of metal surfaces without significantly impacting dimensions. It involves depositing a thin, tightly adherent layer of chromium direct to the substrate. The resulting plating layer exhibits remarkable hardness, provides excellent corrosion protection, and has a low coefficient of friction.

TDC can achieve similar results as Hard Chrome with a thinner deposit thickness. Hard Chrome is usually thicker (0.001-0.020”) and needs to be ground to size, while TDC only needs a minimal thickness (0.0001-0.001”). The precise and uniform coating thickness achieved through TDC plating ensures that intricate geometries, threads, and critical dimensions of the original component are preserved.

Greystone has 91+ years of chrome plating experience, and is often able to plate high volumes with more consistent and uniform deposits.

Benefits of Thin Dense Chrome (TDC):

  • Exceptional Hardness: 70-80 HRC
  • Wear Resistance: High abrasion resistance to reduce wear and prolong part lifespans.
  • Low Coefficient of Friction: Improves efficiency and reduces energy consumption.
  • Corrosion Protection: Forms a robust barrier against corrosive agents, maintaining part integrity.
  • Heat Resistance: Remains stable at elevated temperatures, suitable for high-heat applications.
  • Thickness Control: Designed to hold tight-tolerances across irregular surfaces & geometries.
  • Electrical Conductivity: Maintains electrical conductivity.
  • Aesthetics: Reflective & Matte finishes available.

Specifications

  • AMS 2438
  • AMS 2406
  • AMS 2460
  • QQ-C-320
  • ASTM B650
  • MIL-DTL-23422

The key advantage of TDC plating is its ability to significantly increase the surface hardness of the coated component. This enhanced hardness, typically measuring between 65-70+ HRC, provides superior resistance against abrasive forces, minimizing wear and extending the component’s lifespan. Additionally, the low coefficient of friction of the TDC coating contributes to reduced friction and smoother operation, making it an ideal choice for parts subjected to sliding, rotating, or contacting motion.

Thin Dense Chrome plating offers a remarkable combination of durability, aesthetics, and corrosion resistance, making it an ideal choice when compared to other surface coatings for a wide range of applications across various industries. Whether you’re seeking enhanced performance, wear resistant plating or part longevity, Thin Dense Chrome plating stands out as a reliable and effective solution.

Selective Plating

Many Greystone processes can be selectively applied to parts, such as chrome, electropolish and anodizing among many others, using Greystone’s proprietary Precision Plating System® (PPS®) technology. PPS® allows engineers to customize deposits to plate discrete areas of a part simultaneously, to a precise thickness – and meet exacting specifications.

The benefits of selective plating include:

  • Meets extremely tight tolerances (Cpk >2 for tolerances 10% of nominal thickness)
  • Plates multiple surfaces in one operation
  • Increases flexibility for masking
  • Increases control with multiple anodes per part
  • Reduces (or eliminates) secondary sizing processes (“plate to size”)
  • Simplifies the supply chain by reducing or eliminating secondary sizing processes
  • Allows for scalable capital investment and fast, flexible part changeover

PPS® is fully automated and can be built into any plating line. The system allows Greystone engineers to monitor and track every part’s performance during plating – and quarantine any part that isn’t consistent with our control parameters.

Contact us today to explore how our wear resistant plating solutions can provide the performance and longevity needed for your critical components.

Contact us to learn more about thin dense chrome plating services