Help me keep my chrome from getting worse???
 

Hullo - hope everybody here is well...

I've just spent the past couple of days working on my poor baby's too long neglected chrome with alu foil & brass brushes, water, vinegar, & WD40; & as I expected - some of the problems are not being nice. It also spent a night wrapped in Evaporust soaked rags too, but there's pitting that will not go away. For now I'm just going to hit it with a little wax & ride...

But I did spend some time investigating alternative solutions on the interwebz & ran across this do-hickey...


https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...59581d4aba.jpg


https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009XF0H0G...v_ov_lig_dp_it

anybody here ever seen anything like it - let alone used & can critique it?

TIA...

I use it. It's a nickel plating I think, not bluish like true chrome - but it does the job, as long as the touch-up spots are small. Surface prep is critical, it will either not adhere or flake off easily if that's not done well. Pictured is a Weinmann bolt I did, before and after. I didn't fully remove the rust pitting and it shows, but overall a big improvement. I also used it to cover some chrome loss on the headtube lugs of my '70 Raleigh Competition - from more than a foot or two away it's undetectable. My main goal is rust prevention, but aesthetics are important too. I purchased directly from Caswell.

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...e057970f72.jpg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...b50388e748.jpg

I find stuff like this fascinating so thanks for sharing it. I have seen videos on youtube where vintage watches are repaired with a similar technique. The watch case is carefully polished and prepared and then plated with nickel. The results are extraordinary.

Well how cool is that? :thumb:

I would encourage you to try Turtle wax chrome polish and rust remover, green bottle, Auto Zone, Oreilly's, etc.

Slather it on, let it dry, repeat slather and scrub with brass bristle brush, repeat as needed until results stop improving.

I get great results with it and plenty of elbow grease. ;)

For the bolt, did you recoat the whole head or just tiny spots? How small of a spot can you touch up while leaving the surrounding area original?

I did both bolts on the front brake this way. I let them soak in Evaporust for a day, then cleaned and ground most of the pitting from the bolt faces with increasingly fine grit sandpaper, and roughed up the lands as well. After that and an alcohol wipe I brushed on the chrome in several layers until I had it where you see it in the pic. You can go as small as the brush surface on an open surface (about 1 sq cm), and Caswell makes fine tipped wands for more detailed application. Nice thing is when I touch up chrome that has worn areas, the Caswell stuff barely (if at all) adheres to the existing chrome, and what little residue is left is easy to clean. I try to avoid using this if possible, best to clean up and protect with wax per merziac . But it's invaluable for some situations.

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...1118ca3fb4.png

Appreciate all the suggestions...

I'm sitting here looking at a bottle of Chrome Polish and a tub of Paste Wax, and trying to get enthusiastic about scrubbin-n-rubbin for a few hours. My real problem is that each time I go through this, it comes back sooner and worse, so I'm looking for a Silver Bullet to solve my problem. Refinishing is several years down the road and that Caswell thingy caught my eye.

[MENTION=371771]PilotFishBob[/MENTION] - am I correct that it seems like you are using it for very small areas? Do you think 2 or 3 square inch patches would be possible with it?

Thanks again

That Caswell kit plates with cobalt to mimic chrome so there may be some color differences. I'm not sure about being able to plate directly over chrome. Typically you would have to first strip the chrome down to the nickel or copper base and then replate. Certainly check with the manufacturer before you invest the money. There is no magic bullet when it comes to deteriorated chrome other than viewing distance.

I've been experimenting with nickel plating to restore old sewing machines. Preliminary test pieces came out very well and I'm looking forward to doing some "real" parts. The one thing that is essential is that the parts have to be polished very well in order for the finished product to look well. Any pitting or sanding marks will be magnified by the plating.

Good luck. If you buy the kit, please post your experience using it.

Yes, the largest areas I've tried touching up were about .5 x 2 inches or so - chrome socks on a Raleigh. Went so-so on that, but from a few feet acceptable. My main thing on using it is that I don't want to have to keep maintaining problem areas, and this gives me reasonably long-lasting protection. When I noted above that prep needs to be thorough I can say I've found out the hard way what happens when it isn't. The chrome on those same bolts I posted flaked like crazy the first time because I was sloppy in prep - doing it right pays off. Also, I wasted a bottle of solution because I didn't think to pour small amounts into a separate container for use - I dipped directly from the bottle and wound up ruining it. Learn from my stupi... er, pain. :twitchy:

Caswell also has larger-scale kits for going beyond just using the brush anode method. I've heard good things about those but a little much (and too pricey) for my purposes. https://caswellplating.com/electropl...ting-kits.html

Well I have my bike's chrome about as shiny as its going to get this time around. So as soon as I get the wheel done, its gettin' ridden. And I am definitely getting one of those little Caswell platers and will do some practicing so that I'm hopefully able to use it on the next periodic chrome refurb. Thank you PilotFishBob for your info about it.

Which leads me to my last(?) question on this subject...

I think I mentioned earlier that what's really been pissing me about my chrome corrosion(?) is that it gets worse, sooner after each treatment lately. So...what does this sub-forum think about clear-coating in place of polishing in a desperate attempt to stay prettier, longer?

Thanks again everybody...

Diminishing returns to be sure, I have rubbed grease into bad chrome and had it seem to slow down the process some but makes it hard keep it shiny unless you wipe too much off. ;)

I had a an old Honda motorcycle with lots of chrome that needed polishing to stay looking good. I would clean the chrome well and then use Nevr Dull on it. It would keep it looking good for a full season - even after several washes.

It's a polish/cleaner impregnated cotton. Rip off a piece, wipe on chrome, allow to dry to a haze and wipe off. It can be found at most auto parts places. I've even seen ott at Walmart.

wax
 

Instead of clear coating just use paste wax.It totally stops rust , easy to apply, protects paint and chrome ,lasts years....I havent used that particular brand of electro plating but I use to work in a shop that had those small brush type plating kits for copper silver gold and nickel.If you prepare polish and clean the metal you can get professional results..but you cant plate over chrome very well.Always did copper first then nickel on highly polished metal and multiple coats.Sometimes copper silver then gold,Clean metal with lacquer thinner and no fingerprints.Buff with jewelers rouge