Ebbtide

Reading a thread about frame refinishing I was wondering if anyone has ever had their steel frame hard chromed?

It would certainly prevent rust, shine, and be scratch and chip resistant.

genericbikedude

I don't know first hand, but I hear tell that chroming is a very environmentally unfriendly process. FYI.

Ebbtide

I've seen it done, lots and lots of chemicals, heat, and smells. My daily commute takes me past several small shops that specialize in hard chrome and it got me wondering. The stink from those places are certainly noxious.

nick burns

CyclArt charges $600 for a complete frameset chroming.

sirwilliamjr

I've got a Scapin road frame with what appears to be chrome under the paint. Seems to be a whole lot tougher than the paint, too.

-Will

ignorant

i don't like chrome much, high carbon content and can slightly embrittle components. I'm sure a materials scientist will know more than me....

but, you can get a chrome look powdercoat, which is pretty sweet..

sydney

Makes ya wonder how they got away with chrome forks and stays for years?

ignorant

https://www.mechanicalplating.com/hydrogen.htm

https://www.corrosionsource.com/handbook/testing/he.htm

https://www.hghouston.com/n062297.html

I doubt bike frames are harder than a rockwell C30.. but I don't know for sure.

https://freepages.pavilion.net/users/nickfull/chrome.htm


chrome bikes do look really really sweet

sydney

Lets hear from everyone that has hasd a chromed frame or fork fail due to documented enbrittlement. I'm not about to toss any of my well used ones in the recycle bin. Why don't you post some scary drivel about aluminum fatigue life and failure while you are busy dredging the internet?

Ebbtide

I've run into some problems with cheaper MIM parts not taking chrome evenly (or so they said) and those were rated as high as 60 on the rockwell scale (IIRC). Interesting point you raise nonetheless.

ignorant

if you look at my first post, i say.. I don't like it.. that comes mostly from working at remington arms for a while and having to deal with plating lines.. crap.. it's an opinion.

Nessism

Hard chrome plating is different than cosmetic chrome. I don't know the details but hard chrome is for reduced wear under high loads, like engine crankshafts, and is not appropriate for a bike frame.

From what I've heard, certain types of steel are more sensitive to hydrogen embrittlement from chrome than others. Non-heat treated steels, read as old school, seem to be the least affected. There have been some full chrome frames but it's a costly process. The chrome will only look as good as the metal underneith. It takes a lot of polishing of the base metal which costs a lot of money.

Not sure this helps but thought I 'd share

catatonic

Hard chrome is the finish you find on tools.

THe chrome your are thinking of is a finely done process involving a layer of chrome, and a super-thin zinc coating...the zinc coating is what makes the chrome as brilliant as it is.

Really, it's quite expensive to chrome plate anything...if you can get a decent looking nickel plate, I'd go for it.

Nessism

The real good looking chrome jobs are sometimes called "triple chrome plated". This denotes first a copper layer, next a nickle layer, and lastly a chrome layer. Of course, polishing between each step. I've never heard about adding a zinc layer.

catatonic

ahi got mixed up a bit, it is chrome and nickel.

zinc is only involved in aluminum apparently: https://www.finishing.com/faqs/chrome.html

Julien

Well, here's my experience...my oldest bike is a 30 year old Nishiki 10 speed which in its history has been stolen and recovered... I like that bike, but it looked really awfull so I decided a couple of years ago to fix it up... I stripped the frame using a grinder with a brass wire wheel and brought the stripped frame to an automobile chrome refinisher... For $120 Canadian, they hard chromed it (copper, nickel and chrome layers) taking care to block all the openings and threads. I then rebuilt the bike with Shimano 600 Arabesque components all buffered up, buffed and rebuilt the wheels with a 3 Leading 3 Trailing spoke pattern... and the result was a shiny new bike which really turns heads when I ride it... Although it does add weight to your frame, the chrome finish is very resistant, doesn't chip easily, won't rust and is easy to clean... If you're old enough you'll remember that car bumpers all used to be chromed... and they lasted forever... certainly doesn't fatigue the steel under it...

catatonic

true but bumpers aren't load bearing

I had a chrome "team murray" BMX for the longest time as a kid, and it lasted quite well, despite how poorly maintained it was (it got the water hose, and some hopps oil, nothin else aside from fix-a-flat when the tubes get punctured).

Actually, that bike was a pretty smooth ride comparing it to the MTB I got in part with the cash i sold the BMX for.

dooley

So chrome is proven to weaken to weaken frames and is ****ty to the environment?! Why bother, just powdercoat it.