Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

I successfully goldplated the applewatch!

Status
Not open for further replies.
RyanFlynn

RyanFlynn

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 24, 2006
515
474
Los Angeles
Hey Friends,

My wife loves the look of the gold apple watch, but could never justify spending 10k+ on one, so I gold plated her Stainless steel Milanese apple watch. Well, i actually plated 2! I was going to keep it, but I think i'm going to stick with my 42mm link when it finally arrives, so its hitting ebay. (apple won't accept the return)

Anyway, here are some pictures of the finished product:

$_57.JPG


$_57.JPG


$_57.JPG


$_57.JPG
 
  • Like
Reactions: KateKelly, doboy, Ledgem and 3 others
RianFlynn said:
We own part of a motorcycle shop out here in LA, so I have access to the the equipment and chemicals required to do something like this. Wouldn't recommend trying it without some knowledge
Click to expand...

I figured you had some experience. How much did the material cost, if you know?
 
The gold itself is probably worth about $60 as its an extremely thin plating, but the labor involved is where the costs lie.
 
Last edited:
That looks... pretty cool! Did you clear coat it or anything? Are you worried about chipping?
 
RianFlynn said:
We own part of a motorcycle shop out here in LA, so I have access to the the equipment and chemicals required to do something like this. Wouldn't recommend trying it without some knowledge
Click to expand...

And your custom motorcycles are super cool too! Very nice job guys :cool:
 
You could make some serious $$$ doing that for other people I think. I believe some people would pay a couple hundred to have it done and look that good. I don't know how many hours labor it took but there is money to be made there. I would consider doing it to my SS milanese.
 
CPx said:
That looks... pretty cool! Did you clear coat it or anything? Are you worried about chipping?
Click to expand...

Correct me if I'm wrong, but gold plating is an ion bonding of two metals, no clear coating required. But overtime, the gold plating can crack from corrosion if the surface is not taken care of.

I see a lot of car rims' chrome plating crack
 
Too bad I dont like gold Jewelry because this turned out really nice...I def think better than 10,000K...You could make some serious coin doing this
 
Nice photo of the wife as well LOL : >)....Judging by wrist size and mid drift I bet she is smoken wearing that gold
 
Thanks everyone! I'm very excited about how it turned out. I'll build a square space site this weekend and see what the interest is like. Does $499 seem reasonable for this service?
 
$400-500 seems about right? Not that I know anything about the process.

Any thoughts on longevity/resilience of the gold plating? How prone to chipping/scratching?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back