Chrome
 

Has anyone had parts chromed? I have heard there are different levels of quality and quantities of dip within the process. I am not looking to sell my kidney for re-chroming parts but would like a good long lasting finish. Thanks for your advice.

Re: Chrome
 

Quality chrome is not cheap! Lot of preparation involved.

Re: Chrome
 

With the environmental regulations, its getting difficult to find people doing it.

Re: Chrome
 

I sent my '41 grill to Pauls Custom Chrome in Pa. Beautiful job but ain't cheap!

Re: Chrome
 

Try Walker's Custom Chrome, 2145 Grand Coulee Blvd. Redding CA 530-275-3634
He did the bull nose for my 41 pickup. Sent the piece to him, he call with a firm price, shipped it back when done. You can be sure you'll get your piece back from him.

Re: Chrome
 

Paul's Chrome is great but like fordor41 said very expensive.

Re: Chrome
 

Just sent small parts to PAUL'S as they have done other parts for me. They are expensive but there finish is GREAT.

Re: Chrome
 

I send all my parts to Custom Chrome there in Akron Ohio. Spelling may be off. The level of chroming also depends on the quality of the parts being redone. I had these guys do parts for me 25 years ago and they had a lifetime warranty on their chroming. I can tell you that after 25 years of exposure my parts still look like new. Well worth the money especially if you have a hard to find part. Will not send my stuff anywhere else.
as you can see I am in Alaska and only want to do this once.
Vic

Re: Chrome
 

As the OP suggested, there are different levels of chroming, with "show chrome" being the top and most expensive. The quality/cost depends on the number of layers of plating and the amount of buffing between layers. As others also suggested, cost depends on how much repair work has to be done to the underlying part to prepare it for chroming. I found this article, which gives a pretty good description: http://www.finishing.com/faqs/chrome.html

Re: Chrome
 

Vic,
I heard there used to be a chrome shop there in Anchorage till the EPA shut it down. Now half the cost of chroming stuff is the cost to ship it outside and back, especally bumpers.
Ralph

Re: Chrome
 

Some shops don't do the whole process. First the part has to be dechromed without removing all the fine details in the metal and that ain't easy on some base metals. Especially zinc die castings. This is the worst part of the job and the base metal has to be polished as smooth as possible without messing it up. The best platers are the ones that do a good job of deplating and repairing of the base metal. Copper plating then builds up the surface and can be polished & plated several times to repair small blemishes. Copper sticks to near any form of metal with the right preparation. Nickel plating sticks well to the copper so that comes next and it also has to be polished well. Last is the chrome since it sticks well to the nickel. The plater has to know his stuff to get just the right thickness of chrome so it doesn't fill in all the details or be too thin for proper polishing.

Good platers earn every bit of their money. It is a tedious and dirty job but the end result it a restoration that you can be proud of. If you find a shop that can do all of the above with at least 95 to 98% quality then you better stick with them. Some do well on steel but 50% on die castings. Some can do a good job of repairing base metal and some not so good. If folks in the know give you a tip on the shop they use on a regular basis, I'd go that route for sure.

Re: Chrome
 

1/2 of the price of a good chrome job is two commodities.....Copper & Nickel....I can't speak so much for copper but Nickel has gone up over $1 in the last 60 days...and the yearly trend of nickel has been steadily rising!!! SO the price is 1/2 tied to this market!!!

Re: Chrome
 

One of the rechrome firms I have delt with said labor was the biggest cost.
Almost all the chromers in L A county have been chased to Texas, or gone out of business because of cost to comply with E P A rules.
Bruce

Re: Chrome
 

Acids baths and heavy metal solutions are watched from the cradle to the grave. You have to pay the big bucks to buy it, contain it, and get rid of it. It keeps going up every year and God forbid if you have a spill that is uncontained. Your shop will end up an EPA super fund site.

Re: Chrome
 

Paul's Chrome is the best I've ever used. Very professional, very high quality.

Re: Chrome
 

Since you live in Calif have your thought about going to Mexico to have the work done. It may be a lot cheaper and good quality.

Re: Chrome
 

Not sure , but Walker's may have closed their doors. Last time I was there(April of '16) Howard said he was retiring before the end of the year. He was going to try to sell the business and if not he was just going to shut the doors.

Re: Chrome
 

I have used Verne's chrome plating in Gardena. Bob [one of the owners] is a member of LA Roadsters and does great work, including metal polishing and powder coating. His shop is on El Segundo Blvd just west of the 110 freeway - [323]-754-4126. He loves to talk hot rods, especially early Fords, vintage bicycles and vintage surfboards.

Re: Chrome
 

I use Qual-Krom in Erie, PA. They use the hexavalent process which was used in the 30's, 40's, and 50's. They can do the latter process because they were grand- fathered in. Their specialty is chroming die casting parts. They do excellent work at competitive prices.

Re: Chrome
 

So, what's a good kidney worth these days?

I wish posters would not just say "boy it's gotten expensive" but give dollar figures. What's expensive to you may not be expensive to me. My front bumper is nice but my rear bumper needs attention. I've seen whole bumpers for sale under $1k. What did your bumper rechroming cost?

And like the OP asked, what are the levels, if any, of a chrome job?


I've watched car tv programs where they've sent stuff back to the rechromer.