Nickel in guns?

[Naturallia]

Just thought of another thing for me to watch out for. How can I tell if a gun has nickel in the metal? I'm sensitive to it and will eventually break out in a rash if nickel is touching my skin.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Cthulhu]

A nickel finish tends to be very bright and shiny, though I suppose it is possible to have a brushed finish. However, usually guns with nickel plating tend to be advertised as such.

-JT

[Tom G]

If you can get the specs or find the gun in a catalog it might tell you.

[dr_cmg]

Stainless steel contains nickel. Here is a quote about stainless from a cookware retailer.

How can stainless steel affect my health?

The principal elements in stainless that have effects on our health are iron, chromium and nickel.

♦ Iron can be very beneficial and a required mineral in a normal diet.
♦ Chromium is also beneficial in small quantities, and you would have to cook four complete meals in the same stainless steel pots every day to come anywhere close to reaching any adverse affects from chromium intake.
♦ Although nickel is poisonous in large quantities, only trace amounts go into the food - not enough to make a difference. The few who are allergic to nickel, however, should avoid using stainless altogether.

Stainless Steel

What does this mean in regards to firearms? I don't know, but I would suggest doing some testing and making sure that the gun you carry has a good exterior finish coat like most of your better dark surface guns.

[ICTsnub]

Most of the time, the nickel is covered by chrome.

[Ram Rod]

Most of the time, the nickel is covered by chrome.

A lot of plating processes involve some process in nickel before the final plating. If done correctly, you should never have contact with the nickel.

[Rob72]

Or you can stick with Glock or XD...

[SIXTO]

In addition to what others have said about the plating process etc., I cant think of any new manufacture SD type pistols that are an actual nickel finish anyway.

[QKShooter]

Well, if you really wanted a certain firearm that was only available in Stainless and there was a chance that there was Nickel in the Stainless alloy - you could have the firearm Industrial Hard Chromed over the Nickel or Titanium Nitride coated.

[archer51]

In addition to what others have said about the plating process etc., I cant think of any new manufacture SD type pistols that are an actual nickel finish anyway.

Actually Bersa, and CZ are still producing satin nickel guns.

[Naturallia]

Thanks everyone. Wow, no wonder I seem to want to stay away from stainless steel.

[Geronimo45]

I think you should avoid IWB with a nickel/stainless gun - unless you have an undershirt between you and the gun. Or a holster that covers it. I've also got a nickel allergy, and I carry my stainless S&W in an OWB holster. No problems thus far.

[Naturallia]

thanks! i'll just try to find a holster to cover the slide as much as possible.

[aus71383]

Watch out what ammo you use as well - some of the ammo you buy will have nickel plated cases.

Austin