Rock Bottom – Pirate Booty!

A short while back, in fact quite a little longer than a short while back, we were asked to gold plate a one ounce silver doubloon replica coin. The doubloon was originally a Spanish coin which was used mid 16th to the mid 19th centuries. It was hand-struck from gold and is commonly referred to as a “gold piece”. The doubloon weighed approximately one ounce and was solid 22 karat gold.

The doubloon was also widely used in the West Indies and South America. Due to being made from almost pure gold the doubloon had value worldwide even where it wasn’t legal tender. Since much of the piracy that took place was between English and Spanish privateers, Spanish gold doubloons often formed English pirate booty.

The doubloon in the following video was actually 24 karat gold plated by us.

Amateur film maker, Robert Lorrimer made his short film “Rock Bottom” over two consecutive mornings at ‘Petit Bot Bay’ on the island of Guernsey armed with a Canon 7d DSLR, light weight tripod, a banana and a suitcase.

More details on this film clip can be found here: Rock Bottom.

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Gold Plated SAS Knife

The Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife pictured below shows the typical before and after images of the type of work we can do and the finish we can achieve. The image below shows the knife prior to stripping, polishing and electroplating.

The following image shows the completed knife which has had the blade thick nickel plated with a 24 carat gold plated grip.

The knife is double-edged with a foil grip developed by William Ewart Fairbairn and Eric Anthony Sykes in Shanghai before World War II. This was made famous during the War when issued to British commandos, including the SAS. The knife is so symbolic of British Commandos that a solid gold Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife is part of the commandos’ memorial at Westminster Abbey. The knife features in the insignia of the Dutch Commando Corps, founded in the UK during WWII, the Australian 2nd Commando Regiment, and also the British Royal Marines.

WW2 Spitfire ‘Merlin’ Engine

Photo above shows a camshaft part fitted to a Merlin engine.

Cam prior to cleaning and polishing.

Close-up of cam prior to cleaning and polishing.

Cam degreased & polished prior to electroplating.

Close-up of cam degreased & polished prior to electroplating.

Completed cam in 22 carat gold plate.

Close-up of completed cam in 22 carat gold plate.