On Sun, 12 Feb 2006 13:03:52 -0800, in rec.crafts.jewelry Jack Schmidling
wrote:

It is my understanding that the karat rating of gold plating is simply a
statement of the color and has nothing to do with the amount of gold.

Is this correct?

js

Generally, Yes. single bath systems with single anodes and power supplies, such
as the majority of gold plating baths one can purchase for small shop use, are
usually fairly high karat deposits formulated to match a particular color, not a
precise karat content of the deposit. These baths are labeled according to the
color they are supposed to most closely match.

More complex systems exist, usually reserved for electroforming operations,
which can produce a plated deposit of a specific desired alloy composition, thus
giving control over both color AND karat content of the finished item. These
are, so far as I know, proprietary systems, and not inexpensive ones at that.

Peter