robert wrote:you lost me al ,do you mean the gold could be a result of a recon years ago ,and therefore not really original ?
Hi Robert,
Yes, the gold plating you found is likely to be the result of parts being replated me thinks. I have been told there were some replacement Lockheed servos made some years after Mk1/2 production that had gold coloured zing plating.
The Bright Clear Passivated Zinc and Gold Passivated Zinc are the same process, I think just left in for longer. You can also get Olive Green Zinc (looks like military spec). -The 'darker' the colour, the greater the corrosion protection.
I used to work for Lockheed /AP. It was common to change between Bright Clear and Gold, as customers (the car makers) wanted to improve protection, then save costs by reducing it, then increase it again...... So it's probable that they very both used at the same time!