New Technology ?

[stvman]

Recently when testing a JD 4200 I noticed the loader lift cylinders were a charcoal color not chrome. When I asked the salesman what's up he said "beats me". After two inqueries at other dealers same response or the havent been run through the shop yet/w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif it will come off when they wash it. I find that highly unlikely considering I operated the loader and the cylinder packing would have removed it. Any info out there?

Thanks, Steve

 

[Muhammad]

Grease? /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif Lots of it?

I haven't seen them like that, sounds weird!

 

[M. Sullivan]

Sounds like a cost reduction to me. Did they all have it??

 

[TomG]

The cylinder rods on my Kelley backhoe are that colour. The pamphlet blurb made an advertising point out of them. 'RAM' brand cylinders, advertised in Northern, state "...NitroSteel is a superior alternative to hard chrome "…I'd guess that NitroSteel is probably the same thing. Superior to chrome, who knows? Cheaper to manufacture, almost certain?

 

[W5FL]

More than likely it is a US issue with the EPA on plating chemicals. Chrome plating is disappearing rapidly in the US.

 

[TomG]

Good note. You're probably right. I guess there would be a disposal problem with plating chemicals. I imagine that plating companies and photo finishers used to just dump stuff down the sewer. No wonder we're now knee deep in regulations.

 

[luther]

The process is called nitride plating. It is used by the military for the prevention of rust and loss of sealing. It is a more expensive process than hard chrome plating. It is too bad that your JD salesperson didn't know this. You need to hook up with someone who does know what their talking about!

 

[David USMC]

I havent seen the cylinders yet however, if indeed Nitride plating this type of coating has been used in aviation for years to reline pistons during an engine overhaul. The major aviation engine manufacturers have varying views on the process but, there are alot of light single engined aircraft flying around with cylinders lined with this product. I would not be concerned about their durability.

 

[W5FL]

They haven't dumped it down the drain for many years (if ever), but a lot got dumped on the ground and disposed of improperly causing the rules to be expensive to comply with.

Not familiar with Nitride plating on Steel. Chrome was a very good product that was not porous, didn't oxidize, and provided a good sealing surface for O rings. When the EPA started enforcing the StormWater regulations, a lot of plating places have had much difficulty in complying unless everything was inside a building. Outside processes soon disappeared.

Tell us a little more about Nitride Coatings. Since you probably can't plate Nitrates, it must be a surface finish similar to anodize on aluminum. If it is effective, maybe the big flat Texas Pickup bumpers will no longer blind us at night. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Unless I'm mistaken (perish the thought) this process is quite common on diesel engine crankshafts and some high performance applications.