Protecting gold modelgun finish?

Yes, I know, the opposite question to the one normally asked hehe.

Long story short, I'm still waiting on the arrival of a gold Marushin M712 Schnellfeuer.

I'm intending to use it as a film and photo prop (as well as a nice thing to have). But I do have some special plans for it.

To keep it suitable for the rather flamboyant character who'll be using it. The idea is to make it more closely resemble a presentation model. This will no doubt be pricey, but at the moment I'm unsure if it can actually be achieved at all.

This is an older C96 model, and I'd probably be incorporating more traditional scrollwork. But just to give you an idea, the inspiration would be something like this.

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I'm slowly learning hand engraving, but I'm certainly not up to that standard yet. I'm also uncertain as to how the often very soft zinc alloy used would hold up to hand engraving anyway (at least certainly the undisciplined gougings of a rank amateur) I certainly don't have the thousands it would cost to commission a professional hand engraver, so I'm thinking laser engraving might be a safer and certainly more budget friendly option.

I'm aware that the very thin finish can be polished off by hand. And I'm not sure how well it will stand up to the process of engraving and then blackening to give it that authentic antique gold appearance. So I'm not sure if it would be an idea to replate the gun first, whether there is anything else that can be done to protect it, or if in fact the finish is more rugged than I'm giving it credit for.

I don't know if anyone else has tried something like this, but any thoughts or advise will as always be much appreciated.

Cheers.

It would be more sensible to replate it AFTER you have had it engraved.

You think it would definitely need that then? I realise it's a slightly uncommon thing to do. Most finish mods I've encountered lean more towards field worn realism, but I was just wondering if anyone else had done something similar?

My biggest problem is I've still never actually held one. I have an HFC airsoft carbine version, and the metal used on that seems surprisingly sturdy. No doubt I'll have a better idea on these when I finally get my hands on one. Still they just seem to be the best metal model available for what I want at present.

Thank you.

Yeah it's an interesting puzzle. I figured being 24 carat the plating probably was very thin indeed, and that's what I mainly needed confirming. Exposing the alloy underneath with engraving actually wouldn't be a problem. Gold itself doesn't tarnish, but an old gold look tends to develop through multiple tiny scratches on the surface. There are companies that offer this process, but actually it's the engraving that needs to be darkened. So in this case if a metal that better responds to blackening agents is exposed, that's actually a plus. I'm intending quite a high percentage of surface coverage, so the rest can stay shiny that's fine.

But that's why i'm in a bit of a quandary about whether to get it replated before or after, as I may not actually want the engraving itself re coated with gold (if you see what I mean).

The idea eventually is to have two as the character's a bit of a duel wielder (sorry to be predictable). So one is gold the other is nickel but similarly engraved. It's meant as a bit of an antiquated nod to the guns Ebony and Ivory from Devil May Cry for those familiar with that game.

But yeah this will certainly not be a cheap project. For a film or video I'd normally just hire props. Unfortunately in this case these "hero" props are heavily and irreversibly modified in very specific ways. I don't imagine the people hiring them would much appreciate me doing that, so I've got to buy them really and sort it out myself.   (these icons are a hoot).