illdthedj

ok, the scenario:

i have a fully chrome lugged fork. it has a little triangle in the lug, and i thought it would be fun to paint that triangle white to match the white frame.

long story short, i didn't like it, and wanted to remove the paint.
used a little bit of nail polish at first....then paint thinner, then acetone, and bits of the paint were just not coming off, so i put some aircraft stripper on a rag and rubbed the paint off. worked fine, BUT i noticed where there was aircraft stripper, some sort of film or something was stripped off as well.

i guess my question is....
do chrome parts or forks have a protective film or clearcoat on them? is that what the aircraft stripper removed?

because i can tell something was stripped....the areas where it was stripped, the chrome still looks great. but its where the stripping stopped i notice the beginnings of some sort of layer....i dunno.

also, ive heard conflicting stories, so i guess ill ask here:
does aircraft stripper damage chrome? ive heard it dosn't, and ive heard stories it does....but something tells me that some chrome has a protective finish or film or clearcoat on it, and THAT is what was damaged or made spotty when people got aircraft stripper on it.

and by aircraft stripper, im talking about normal paint stripper that comes in a can.

ok thats it thanks!

San Rensho 

Chrome is bare metal. Paint removers don't remove metal, just paint.

illdthedj

yah thats what i figured.

its just that from some googling ive read a handful of people complained about aircraft stripper creating spots and discoloration on chrome....

buuuut im thinking, like what i think has happened to my chrome fork, is that sometimes chrome parts are coated in some sort of film or clearcoat or maybe is wax, who knows....and THAT is what is being removed/damaged on the item, not the chrome itself.

eddubal

Sometimes companies will clearcoat the chrome for added protection. it will also protect any decals on it. I have a vintage Peugeot that was like that.

Jed19

May be some kinda chemical reaction. Chrome plus the stripper could have formed some kinda oxide, depending on the chemical composition of the stripper.

My money is on the residue beign a chrome oxide of some kind.

hueyhoolihan

aircraft stripper is a little vague. what is it chemically?

after all chrome is removable. i think i remember somebody being able to "strip the chrome off a bumper" or something to that effect. don't remember exactly...

cycle_maven

The reason chrome stays so shiny is that it forms a hard oxide coating that is relatively impermeable to air, which keeps it from rusting like iron. It doesn't need clearcoat 'cause it makes its own. The oxide coating is removed by reducing agents like lye and paint stripper. Exposure to air again lets the oxide form, but in the meantime the stripper has contaminated the oxide and discolored it. Don't use paint stripper on chrome- use something non-polar like paint thinner.

well biked 

Chrome is sometimes clearcoated on bicycles, sometimes it's not. When this gets discussed in the C and V forum, there's usually some debate about whether it's a good thing or not.

I've never put paint stripper on chrome, but I once stripped an aluminum bike frame down to the bare metal, using, I think (IIRC), an EZ Stripper brand paint remover. I had first purchased EZ Stripper "aircraft stripper," and there was something in the directions on the can that worried me enough to call their tech line. The tech person cautioned me to NOT use their "aircraft stripper" product on aluminum, as it could damage it. They then recommended another product of theirs, which I later used with good results, but I've always thought it was funny that a product called "aircraft stripper" could harm aluminum. I appreciated the advice, because it was a nice mtb frame.

Looigi

Methylene chloride is often found it paint strippers and can attack aluminum. I don't think it'll affect chrome.