Gold Stems...

What do the "Mongoosians" around here think? Were they brass plated or was it something called "Irridite"? Maybe it changed at some point... What's the dealio?

In the Interview here that Cash put together with Skip, it was said:

"The Goldstems were brass plated & then clear coated. Yes, they can be redone."

On "another site" it was being debated as a result of this add:



Let's hear the scoop...

Lot's of people want to refinish these babies as the OG finish didn't always fair too well:

i dunno, but i did some 'net searching and it seem that irridite (iridite) is a coating for aluminum (not steel alloys).

Total conundrum...

My searches gave me this...

'Irridite" or "Iridite" is actually a tradename from a company called "MacDermid" for proprietary chromate conversion coatings on zinc plating. You need to zinc electroplate the steel before you can "Iridite" it.

Maybe it wasn't cost effective once the product really "took off" and went into mass production?

Also, as this process would most likely have involved the use of hexavalent chromium, it may very well have been banned at some point by the EPA. Maybe Skip's original plater he went with, just couldn't do it anymore... Maybe he then switched to a mass-quantity capable brass plater?

This is all pure speculation on my part. I'm just thinking maybe there was a switch to brass at some point of production for some reason... Then again, maybe not.

Another Mongoose Mystery...

Anyone else?

A Waza quote-
"i have $10,125 worth of gold stems!!!!... thats just silly. Man some people have to just "step away from the PC" and go look out in the real world. Most ive paid was $250 AND IT WAS NOS SEALED IN A BOX!!!!!!
It cost me $10 each to have them brass plated again. They are like "New" now"

The pic here was cool, but it's no longer available-
http://www.vintagebmx.com/community/index....amp;#entry36350

I grabbed the one on the left that I posted for $150.00 (9 out of 10 IMO) because I figured I needed it for my nasty, stolen, previously abused '79 Nickel Supergoose... The one on the right came for "free" when I bought an old customized '76 Goose for $150.00 from a guy in Oklahoma.

I polished the frickin' crap out of that Supergoose with Mothers and it's now my favorite, vicious looking, neighborhood whip... No decals, no serial number! Women and children run screaming when I take that baby out! My absolute best rider after my 26" "Phat Urban Commando"...

Here's the rest of the story on the skanky Gold Stem in the first pic...

Before:

A little Citric Acid Bath soak:


Came out clean, but the finish was long gone even before the bath, not much "Gold" left...

Removed the old decal:

A new decal and some rattle can Gold (I removed the Gold on the top part after this pic):

For under $2.00 it looks OK, at least until I see my plater... Or maybe Bridge's plater!

where did you get the sheet of gold stem decals from?

They were sent to me (along with some other old Mongoose stuff) from a friend in California. Very nice guy...

Do you have any idea about this "Irridite vs. Brass" mystery Waz? If not, maybe we could ask someone?

Chris steel can be finished with the process as well.

Here are a few examples of what gold iridite/irridite a.k.a. Zinc Dichromate looks like on steel (without nickel plating underneath).



http://www.moroso.com/catalog/categorydisp...p?catcode=27101



http://www.detailplating.com/zd.htm



http://www.livermoreperformance.com/ford_oil_pans.html

Walk into any quality hardware store and look at their grade 8 bolts. Same stuff.

Dichromate is a sealer that is deposited on an inorganic plating, such as zinc plating. It is very thin and in itself does not provide much corrosion resistance. However, when it is deposited onto a metal, such as zinc plating, it enhances the corrosion resistance and is an excellent base of a paint that can be applied over the plating.

These two pics show a strong commonality between the finishes:


Note the OG Stem on the Left: