Nickel vs Stainless

[JAYjohnson]

I was wondering what the pluses and minuses are of the two finishes and what do you prefer if you had the choice?

[Fjold]

Nickel is a coating and eventually it will crack allowing moisture to get to the base metal and corrosion to start which will cause the plating to start to peel. Stainless will always look the same.

[armandolo]

Nickel is not as durable. It chips ove rtime and use. Nickel looks shinier though. And correct me if I'm wrong but I believe nickel is also a harder metal

[shooting4life]

For lots of use get stainless, for a safe queen that does not get shot much get nickle. Nickle guns just make me smile

[Snapping Twig]

Electroless nickle is damn durable, but it has a satin finish not everyone wants.

Depending on the process - which undercoating metal is used - nickle can be easy to harm or more durable. Certain gun cleaning chemicals can affect nickle finishes by dissolving the metal undercoating.

[Wherryj]

Nickel is a coating and eventually it will crack allowing moisture to get to the base metal and corrosion to start which will cause the plating to start to peel. Stainless will always look the same.

I don't think that this is absolutely correct. Stainless steel CAN rust. I've seen it in surgical equipment and on my SS barbecue and fridge.

As you stated it is more resistant than nickel, but not totally immune. That being said, I doubt that you are getting any of your firearms doused in disinfectants, leaving them in the rain or having orange juice splashed on them by four year olds, so the SS should be essentially rust free.

[advocatusdiaboli]

Electroless nickle is damn durable, but it has a satin finish not everyone wants.

Yes. My Sig Sauer P299 .40 S&W Equinox has nitron covered stainless for the slide (with some stainless exposed) and nickel trim (satin-matte) for the trigger, hammer, slide release, take-down in, and decocker. The nickel is very durable but not shiny like the stainless--more stain like he said. It ain't no safe queen either.

[bsg]

for me that is an easy question because... i'd love to have a factory electroless nickle older P series Sig.... i do have a w german .380 P230SL and that finish does hold up.

[den888]

Yes, nickle is a finish and can eventually come off. You can polish stainless to look like nickel, probably the best of both worlds. The Colt Python Stainless Elite model, was stainless and highly polished.

[pyromensch]

I don't think that this is absolutely correct. Stainless steel CAN rust. I've seen it in surgical equipment and on my SS barbecue and fridge.

As you stated it is more resistant than nickel, but not totally immune. That being said, I doubt that you are getting any of your firearms doused in disinfectants, leaving them in the rain or having orange juice splashed on them by four year olds, so the SS should be essentially rust free.

yes ss can rust, but it all depends on the amount of nickel in the alloy. a barbeque, is not comparable to a firearm, as it is subjected to extreme heat, and cooling, allowing moisture to penetrate, and therefore cause a breakdown
of the metal.

ever think about titanium?

[GM4spd]

Stainless is more durable for sure but for certain applications only nickel
will do. Pete

[Miltiades]

Both are good

I have both nickel and stainless and don't have a strong preference for one over the other. Nickel is very attractive and holds up indefinitely with reasonable care. But stainless is an excellent metal for guns, and will not wear off. Nickel has a slight gold tone while stainless is more silver. Below are two Sigs, one in nickel and one in stainless.

[bsg]

please correct me if i am wrong... but the electroless nickle finish is much more durable than a nickle plated finish.

[Miltiades]

Electroless vs. Electrolytic nickel

please correct me if i am wrong... but the electroless nickle finish is much more durable than a nickle plated finish.

The two common methods of nickle plating are electrolytic nickel and electroless nickel. The first method uses electrical current in the plating solution, while the second is purely chemical without electricity, hence the term "electroless". The electrolytic method produces a fairly shiny plating, while the electroless produces a matte finish. Here is a quote from the Internet on the advantages of electroless:

Electroless nickel (EN) plating is a chemical reduction process which depends upon the catalytic reduction process of nickel ions in an aqueous solution (containing a chemical reducing agent) and the subsequent deposition of nickel metal without the use of electrical energy. Due to its exceptional corrosion resistance and high hardness, the process finds wide application on items such as valves, pump parts etc., to enhance the life of components exposed to severe conditions of service, particularly in the oil field and marine sector. With correct pretreatment sequence and accurate process control , good adhesion and excellent service performance can be obtained from EN deposited on a multitude of metallic and non-metallic substrates.

[Blaster 80]

Nickle looks more nicer but the stainless is more durable,i would get nice nickle finish because of the looks,im not worried about the durably cuz i can always get it refinished.