What Is Dual Plating?
Dual plating means that a badge or challenge coin with two-tone finishes.
In simple words, dual platings mean that there are two different metallic colors on the surface of a product. For example, The most common two-tone finish is gold plating and nickel plating. Other popular plating options include black nickel and gold combination, antique bronze, and Nickle finish combination. Compared to single-color plating, Police Badges in dual plating look finer and more etiquette.
The dual plate finish is suitable for 2D/3D/full-dimensional products. The very common products with dual plating are some awards and gifts like custom badges, lapel pins, commemorative coins, belt buckles, key chains, etc.
In conventional products, there is one metallic color only. such as gold plating, nickel-plated, copper finish, etc. A single metal finish product needs to be plated only once, while dual-plated products need to be plated twice.
You may need to know What is Plating first？
When Should You Choose Dual Plating?
Dual plating is an investment that elevates a product from standard to premium. You should choose dual plating when:
- Designing High-Detail 3D Coins/Badges: To make raised logos, text, or characters pop against a contrasting background.
- Creating Formal Recognition Awards: Ideal for official police badges, military coins, and corporate milestone gifts.
- Maximizing Collector Value: Dual-plated items carry a higher perceived retail value for commemorative sales.
Best Dual Plating Combinations
- Shiny Gold + Shiny Nickel: The most popular high-contrast finish for official law enforcement badges.
- Antique Gold + Antique Nickel: Creates a vintage, tactical depth perfect for 3D challenge coins.
- Black Nickel + Shiny Gold: A modern, striking contrast favored by anime and tech badge designers.
Design Tips From Our Factory
- Clear Separation Boundaries: Ensure a minimum 0.5mm metal line/wall between two plating areas so the protective masking layer can be applied cleanly.
- Prioritize High-Relief Areas: Place brighter finishes, like Shiny Gold, on high-relief elements and darker or antique finishes on recessed backgrounds for maximum 3D effect.
Common Mistakes When Designing Dual Plated Products
- Tiny, Overlapping Color Zones: Intricate or micro-sized electroplating areas increase the factory defect rate and costs significantly.
- Choosing Similar Tones: Combining Shiny Nickel with Glossy Silver offers low visual contrast, making the dual-plating effect hard to notice.
Dual Plating vs Single Plating
| Feature | Single Plating | Dual Plating |
|---|---|---|
| Visual Impact | Uniform, single-color | Premium, high contrast 3D effect |
| Craftsmanship | 1 Plating cycle | 2 Plating cycles + Manual masking |
| Production Cost | Standard / Cost-effective | Premium / Labor-intensive |
| Best Application | Promotional pins, mass giveaways | Police badges, military coins, luxury medals |
How to Produce the Dual plated challenge coins?
Taking custom commemorative coins as examples. Below the US police challenge coin is with antique gold and antique nickel finish combination.
Here is the simplified process of dual plating as below:
Step 1. Process a copper plating first. It is a base plating.
Step 2. Go with antique nickel plating.
Step 3. Put on a layer of protective color, cover the nickel-colored part of the product to avoid the color to fade during the second plating.
Step 4. Make the challenge coins dry. Then, the second gold plating can be done.
Step 5. Plate the antique gold.
How To Order Dual Plating Products?
Step 1: Send Inquiry
When inquiry, send us the design, size, color, quantity, and plating colors (metal finish)
Step 2: Confirm Artwork Design
On the Artwork, we will mark the size, color, plating color, attachment, and all the details for approval.
Step 3: Arrange production
Regarding the price of two-tone products, as the dual plated cost is much expensive than the single plated products, and the defective rate is high, so the price of dual plated products is generally higher.
If you would like to make a memorable product for some military department or any important dual plated commemorative coins design, Don’t hesitate to contact us by [email protected]
