Well Rob,
I do understand the differences in plating times and how polished vs matt is obtained. I was using the term "polished" because that's a term everyone could recognise without going down what Brewer called "Nerd Avenue" (how did you get that picture of me anyway, Brewer?) I cannot speak for Pentac and how they do their plating, so I won't. I do not think their plating is the best, nor the worst. I did notice in the photos you provided that you have your spoons convex-up and the other concave-up. Certainly, that affects how they photograph. I won't argue your point that plating over nickel gives less flash than brass or copper. I believe that's true.

Regarding affordable spoons, here's a tip I haven't seen mentioned. Go to Dick's when they have one of their big sales. At the fishing counter, they have free tide tables. On the back of the tide table, there's a coupon for $10 off any $50 purchase. They don't have Pentac, RVRFSHR, or R&B, but they do have Little Cleo's, Dick Night's, and everything Blue Fox. You'll often find these 25% off during a sale, plus you get the extra $10 off if you make a $50 purchase. I make a lot of $51 Blue Fox/Little Cleo purchases there. I like the bigger Blue Fox spinners for slow or shallow water and the smaller Little Cleos for low water.