Plating plastic-please help!

[Joebobber]

Hi. So Im hoping someone on here as experience electroplating plastic. I can't get it to work for some reason. Im following a tried and true recipe for graphite paint. However I haven't verified it's conductivity but I mean of course it is right it's close to 50/50. I haven't tried to submerge the part, instead I tried a pen player to see if it'd work. No dice. So I didn't even bother with submerging it. I tested the pen plater on a scrap piece of steel and it would plate so I know that is ok. Any advice? I tried 2 different mediums in my recipe. The 1st I used a clear gloss glaze which I saw online. It hardened but fell apart if it got wet. So then I tried mod podge hard coat (in the purple bottle). This worked great except it wouldn't plate.

What am I doing wrong? Yes I prepped the plastic parts, the paint stuck great. I only touched it with gloves.

 

[MRDucks2]

Never even heard of the process, Joe, but you have my interest. I'll be watching and see if you get any feedback.

 

[Joebobber]

Never even heard of the process, Joe, but you have my interest. I'll be watching and see if you get any feedback.

It's not hard according to everything I have read and the watched... just paint the part in conductive paint, then plate it. Metal is easy-peasy! I redid a quackenbush safety rifle i got off gunbroker for $50 shipped that was in rough shape. I found missing parts, made a stock, and replated the receiver nickel and blued everything else. It took forever getting the rust and pockets out and sanded polished cleaned, ect. I made a jig to suspend it and spin it slowly in the solution too. I also plated the buttplate but didn't put as much effort into it.