Robvolz 

Were people doing this in the early 70s?

I like the look. But I’m also dismayed by the amount of flaking Cromovelato I’ve seen.


And I’m assuming that today’s automotive paints have more adhesion than whatever they were using in the 80s

jdawginsc 

I think you meant this to be in the regular CV forum.

machinist42

Sans Photos it's really difficult to offer an assessment but $75 to maybe $100 locally and sky's the limit on eBay Italy!

(Why are there never Pictures?)

Robvolz 

I apologize. This got posted in for sale instead of regular classic and vintage.

I do not have a Paint on chrome bike. I was wondering when they first came about.

machinist42

If you have a Bicycle with chrome socks or half chromed fork, you have a "Paint on chrome bike."

(Pics would be appreciated!)

Chromovelato is Lacquer on Chrome.

(Taking exception with the previous poster and suggesting your "Paint on chrome' bike might only be worth $50-75.)

steelbikeguy

no idea, but I think there are one or two models in the Raleigh catalogs of the early 70's (if memory serves).

I get the impression that cromovelato was something that was tried in a few areas or product lines, and then folks quickly learned that they just weren't durable enough. The technology isn't really a factor in when it appeared, I'm guessing. It's just the application of tinted clear lacquer over polished chrome. I think almost everyone with experience could have predicted that paint wasn't going to stick to polished chrome.

A variation on the theme is "candy" paint, or what Raleigh called "flamboyant" paint. This is tinted clear lacquer over a gold or silver base layer of paint. This provides an analogous reflective layer under the tinted lacquer, but at least the tinted lacquer can adhere to the base layer. It's a bit of a pain in terms of time and expense of production, though. I think the pearl or metallic paints provided a similar level of appeal from a single layer of paint.

I've only got a few pics of bikes with cromovelato paint. The nicest was a Magni that Mr. Barron displayed at a CR gathering a few years back:



The Magni's paint is distinctive even indoors, showing a reflective behavior.

by comparison, I've got a copper colored Raleigh International with "flamboyant" paint, and it is really only distinctive in full sunlight. That's when the gold base layer shines back through the paint.



to be honest, both look better in person. Moving your head around makes it clear how the light affects how it looks. It's quite different from just having glossy paint.
One thing that they both have in common is that they are nearly impossible touch up.

Steve in Peoria

Robvolz 

Chromovelato is Lacquer on Chrome.

Not so fast. As I’ve explored different chrome shops I have learned that not every chrome shop has deep vat. Some of them only do small parts. So for example, if you only 10 inches deep, then you do socks on forks.

machinist42

[QUOTE=Robvolz;22798039]Well, sure, it's not like a fork could be laid on its side, right?

So these shops create absolutely perfect margins over multiple immersions so no Paint whatsoever gets on any of the chrome?

Pics or it didn't happen....doesn't happen,,,hasn't happened....is male bovine fecal matter.

(It may really aid your Sale if you posted a Photo or two of the Chromovelato Bicycle you are selling!)

Robvolz 

[QUOTE=machinist42;22798042]again

my bad for posting this in for sale instead of the regular C&V

I am not trying to sell anything to anyone.

I was simply trying to understand the timeframe of when this style of paint came out.

Robvolz 

“analogous“

Great word. I had to look it up. Totally makes sense.

FBOATSB

I prefer gelato

steelbikeguy

[QUOTE=machinist42;22798042]I'm not sure what the dispute is, but on partly chromed forks and such, the whole item is indeed often fully chromed.
The key detail is that the portion that will be painted will not be polished. It will have enough texture for the paint to adhere to.
The problem with cromovelato is that paint was applied onto polished chrome, and there wasn't enough texture for the paint to hang on to.

Over the years, there have been a number of folks who noticed that there was chrome under some of the painted portions of their bikes, and stripped that paint, only to find unpolished chrome that didn't look nearly as good as they had hoped.

Steve in Peoria

daka

I think laquer-over-chrome goes way back. Carlton was doing it for Huffy back in the early sixties. As you can see where the shift lever band used to be, good adherence was not a virtue. Also good proof that Capella lugs are not unique to 1973 Raleighs.



Carlton-built Huffy Constellation

oneclick 

About 15 seconds after the first one was done.

Bling *always* wins.

juvela

-----

it goes back at least to the 1950's - would expect significantly further - when seen on marques such as Ideor

some of the cycles shown in thread thus far have flambouyant finishes rather than chromovelato

in flambouyants a metallic base coat goes down on top of the primer and before the colour

the most common colour for the base coat is silver but copper and gold are also sometimes employed

another name for what is termed chromovelato in the past was chrom-o-lux

would think that our iab would be able to tell us how far back goes the finish...

some of the flashiest of the modern era are done by Wilier Tristina


-----

BMC_Kid 

Having seen about a dozen Pinarellos in various cromovelato colors over the years, I've come to the opinion that the later examples were more robust and not as prone to flaking. The one I ended up keeping and recently building up was an '89 example in Cromonero, the dark grey cromovelato finish. Surprisingly, there was only one area where it looked like the finish had cracked - as if it had shrunk and split. However, even that finish was still adhering pretty well and was intact and not flaked off at all. It might even be a scrape in the paint, I really can't tell as the two edges are almost exact, as if they fit together. The decals are even in great condition. My example still has the matching stem and seat post and both look great. So maybe by the late 80's they got their paint formulation or process tweaked and started producing higher-quality finishes. I wish mine was one of the more flamboyant colors as the grey only really stands out in the full sun, otherwise, it is kind of dull looking. I am thankful that at least the paint finish is sound.

Mr. 66

At my house? Chromvelato became a thing about 2 months ago...

Reynolds 

+1. A friend of mine owns a gorgeous copper Wilier, finish is still holding on after some 50 years.

steelbikeguy

Just for the sake of enjoying some of the cromovelato joy, here's a 1981 Raleigh Superbe that Mr. Bingham displayed at the 2016 Classic Rendezvous event. Note that this Superbe is named for the SunTour Superbe components, and is very much unlike the earlier Superbe roadster.







Can you imagine how good it would look in sunlight?!

Steve in Peoria

BillyD

Moved from C&V Sales to regular C&V.

Andy_K 

Paint over chrome and lacquer over chrome probably both have the same problem -- polished chrome doesn't provide a good surface for adhesion. When you have paint over chrome that doesn't flake off, it's probably because the chrome was left rough or made rough.

This Mercian has lost its paint at some point, but you can see where it was intended to have paint and where the chrome was intended to be exposed:



This Pinarello, on the other hand, had the lug painted and the seat stay polished.



The rough areas on the tube weren't very rough, which may have led the paint to flake. I decided to embrace that and had only the lugs repainted.



With cromovelato, the chrome needs to be pretty smooth for it to look nice. That probably explains the higher incidence of flaking with cromovelato.

Erzulis Boat 

Yep. It's flaky.

Ktodd

ETOE on Youtube has a how to paint Cromoveloto posted. Watch it if youre interested in the process.

rancho66 

Just watched that ETOE video. He has all the items to get it done. Not too difficult, but getting the proper cromoveloto primer, tint, and hardeners could be costly. I have one of those gold Raleigh Superbe frames that could use a new gold coat. Needs decals too so definitely not something I will ever get around to.

unworthy1

House of Kolor still sells their line of Kandy Kolor including 2-pack (2K) polyurethane paints.
I never sprayed any over chrome plating but...with ANY 2K paint do yourself the favor of using proper protective gear!

My guess is all urethane paint will be more durable than any lacquer, but as for adhesion? Dunno.

There are also transparent powder coats available, also have no person experience with any over chrome. If you think that could be both more durable as well as better adhering to chrome, find a local PC shop that can show you some examples.
If anybody here has used PC to make a "cromovelato" effect, please let us know your results