Chrome Paint Pen -- I think this may work!
03-21-23, 07:44 PM
#26
aka: Dr. Cannondale
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 7,454
Bikes: Bob Jackson, Wizard, Pegoretti Duende, Merckx ProSLX, Pelizzoli, Cannondale ST, Schwinn Tempo, Schwinn Voyageur, Canyon Endurace, Richard Sachs, Davidson Discovery
Mentioned: 221 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1995 Post(s)
Liked 2,593 Times
in
969 Posts
Might try hearing up the pen with a heat gun/hair dryer before applying. Old RC trick, makes the paint flow better.
__________________
Hard at work in the Secret Underground Laboratory...
Hard at work in the Secret Underground Laboratory...
Likes For rccardr:
03-21-23, 08:03 PM
#27
Edumacator
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Goose Creek, SC
Posts: 6,045
Bikes: '87 Crestdale, '87 Basso Gap, '92 Rossin Performance EL-OS, 1990 VanTuyl, 1980s Losa, 1985 Trek 670, 1982 AD SLE, 1987 PX10, etc...
Mentioned: 46 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1942 Post(s)
Liked 2,169 Times
in
1,434 Posts
Originally Posted by Andy_K
In fact, I can now tell you that alcohol will take it off of metal very efficiently too.
I got impatient and decided to see if it was still pliable enough that I could press the edges out of it. That made it dull, so I rubbed it down with Maguires. That made it worse, so I decided to clean it up and give it another coat. I used rubbing alcohol as prep, and "poof" bare chrome, blemish and all.
I got impatient and decided to see if it was still pliable enough that I could press the edges out of it. That made it dull, so I rubbed it down with Maguires. That made it worse, so I decided to clean it up and give it another coat. I used rubbing alcohol as prep, and "poof" bare chrome, blemish and all.
__________________
1987 Crest Cannondale, 1987 Basso Gap, 1992 Rossin Performance EL, 1990ish Van Tuyl, 1980s Vanni Losa Cassani thingy, 1985 Trek 670, 1982 AD SLE, 2003 Pinarello Surprise, 1990ish MBK Atlantique, 1987 Peugeot Competition, 1987 Nishiki Tri-A, 1981? Faggin, 1996ish Cannondale M500, 1984 Mercian, 1982 AD SuperLeicht, 1985 Massi (model unknown), 1988 Daccordi Griffe (most not finished of course), 1989 Fauxsin MTB, 1981 Ciocc Mockba...I...am...done....
1987 Crest Cannondale, 1987 Basso Gap, 1992 Rossin Performance EL, 1990ish Van Tuyl, 1980s Vanni Losa Cassani thingy, 1985 Trek 670, 1982 AD SLE, 2003 Pinarello Surprise, 1990ish MBK Atlantique, 1987 Peugeot Competition, 1987 Nishiki Tri-A, 1981? Faggin, 1996ish Cannondale M500, 1984 Mercian, 1982 AD SuperLeicht, 1985 Massi (model unknown), 1988 Daccordi Griffe (most not finished of course), 1989 Fauxsin MTB, 1981 Ciocc Mockba...I...am...done....
03-21-23, 09:07 PM
#28
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 16,520
Mentioned: 449 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3447 Post(s)
Liked 5,339 Times
in
2,185 Posts
Likes For nlerner:
03-22-23, 12:02 AM
#29
Stop reading my posts!
Join Date: Sep 2004
Posts: 12,468
Mentioned: 84 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1232 Post(s)
Liked 767 Times
in
595 Posts
Originally Posted by jdawginsc
Looks like my chrome challenged Ciocc is set to go!
03-22-23, 02:06 AM
#30
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,408
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 497 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2987 Post(s)
Liked 3,014 Times
in
1,203 Posts
Originally Posted by rccardr
Might try hearing up the pen with a heat gun/hair dryer before applying. Old RC trick, makes the paint flow better.
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
03-25-23, 05:19 PM
#31
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Wake Forest, NC
Posts: 3,491
Bikes: 1989 Cinelli Supercorsa
Mentioned: 7 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2097 Post(s)
Liked 1,704 Times
in
1,037 Posts
I bought “chrome” spray paint to bling out my toe strap buttons. What a waste. It was just flat silver.
Got this pen today, and honestly I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s as close to chrome as you’re going to find outside of a chrome shop.
Thanks for passing along this discovery, Andy!
Got this pen today, and honestly I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s as close to chrome as you’re going to find outside of a chrome shop.
Thanks for passing along this discovery, Andy!
Likes For smd4:
03-25-23, 06:22 PM
#32
I don't know.
Join Date: May 2003
Location: South Meriden, CT
Posts: 1,591
Bikes: '90 B'stone RB-1, '92 B'stone RB-2, '89 SuperGo Access Comp, '03 Access 69er, '23 Trek 520, '14 Ritchey Road Logic, '09 Kestrel Evoke, '17 Surly Wednesday, '89 Centurion Accordo, '15 CruX, '17 Ridley X-Night
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 180 Post(s)
Liked 444 Times
in
252 Posts
I bought one of these pens after reading the OP. They really are nice. I'll get a lot of use out of it. Thanks.
03-31-23, 04:16 PM
#33
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,408
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 497 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2987 Post(s)
Liked 3,014 Times
in
1,203 Posts
I wanted to share a few updates and encourages others who are trying this to also share their experiences.
I'm still working with the same spot on the fork crown. My second try was decent, but if you looked really closely you could see the difference in texture. A try at smoothing that out with a polishing wheel proved to be too aggressive. In less than a second it rub through to the bare chrome. Since then, I've been trying the various suggestions involving heat, while also experimenting with applying a thick layer of the paint. This seems to be a bad combination. I'm making too many simultaneous changes for a scientific analysis, but it appears that the higher temperature is causing the surface layer of the paint to dry too quickly, creating a semi-hard outer layer before the paint has had a chance to self-level.
I brought the frame into a heated room off of my garage -- about 75 degrees. I tried heating the pen and heating the surface, but either way I'm still getting a lot of visible variation in the surface level, and unlike when I had the bike in the cold garage it isn't smoothing itself out overnight. After the first night, seeing the wavy surface I tried intentionally putting down a lot of extra paint. That left a very wavy surface. After a couple of days I tried wet sanding that to get it smooth. That worked but it lost its shine. I might have been able to bring the shine back with a bit of polishing. That usually works with glossy enamel paint. In this case, a preliminary experiment that I had done earlier didn't seem promising.
At this point I'm going to move the bike back out to the garage and see if another layer on top of what I have will level it out again.
How is it working for everyone else?
I'm still working with the same spot on the fork crown. My second try was decent, but if you looked really closely you could see the difference in texture. A try at smoothing that out with a polishing wheel proved to be too aggressive. In less than a second it rub through to the bare chrome. Since then, I've been trying the various suggestions involving heat, while also experimenting with applying a thick layer of the paint. This seems to be a bad combination. I'm making too many simultaneous changes for a scientific analysis, but it appears that the higher temperature is causing the surface layer of the paint to dry too quickly, creating a semi-hard outer layer before the paint has had a chance to self-level.
I brought the frame into a heated room off of my garage -- about 75 degrees. I tried heating the pen and heating the surface, but either way I'm still getting a lot of visible variation in the surface level, and unlike when I had the bike in the cold garage it isn't smoothing itself out overnight. After the first night, seeing the wavy surface I tried intentionally putting down a lot of extra paint. That left a very wavy surface. After a couple of days I tried wet sanding that to get it smooth. That worked but it lost its shine. I might have been able to bring the shine back with a bit of polishing. That usually works with glossy enamel paint. In this case, a preliminary experiment that I had done earlier didn't seem promising.
At this point I'm going to move the bike back out to the garage and see if another layer on top of what I have will level it out again.
How is it working for everyone else?
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
03-31-23, 04:45 PM
#34
Bike Butcher of Portland
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 11,213
Bikes: It's complicated.
Mentioned: 1244 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4420 Post(s)
Liked 4,772 Times
in
1,984 Posts
Originally Posted by cyclo_girl
Bloody genius. Just ordered one
***** ***** has a very nice collection of curated vintage bicycles and parts for sale at her website. I encourage you to take a look.
__________________
If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
If someone tells you that you have enough bicycles and you don't need any more, stop talking to them. You don't need that kind of negativity in your life.
04-12-23, 02:20 PM
#35
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,408
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 497 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2987 Post(s)
Liked 3,014 Times
in
1,203 Posts
Another update. I'm still trying to figure out the technique for this. I've used rubbing alcohol to start from scratch several times. After the paint has been sitting for a couple of days, alcohol doesn't wipe it off as easily. On the first attempt, it feels kind of sticky and leaves a bit of residue. A few more sprays and a bit of scrubbing gets it off. I think this is probably telling me something about curing time.
I tried using the pen on a paper surface before applying it to the bike so I wouldn't have any droplets on the pen surface and then attempting to put down a very thin surface. That did leave a thin, smooth surface but the shine and color wasn't even. It looked very streaky (sorry, no pictures). Last night I tried intentionally putting down a couple of big drops of paint (you can do this by pressing down on the pen body while the "point" is on the fork crown) and then using the pen to spread it around. That's kind of what I did the first time around, and the results are very similar.
There's a bit of a drip-like blob in the lower right corner. It was bad last night. This afternoon it's much better. I've got the bike in the workstand with the fork crown sloped down away from this spot, and I'm hoping it's still got enough viscosity left to level itself completely. If not, I honestly might be happy with it the way it is. That's a terribly harsh picture and looks like I applied some kind of digital art effect, but I didn't. That's a fender you're seeing under the fork crown, which gives you a point of reference for the level of flaw exposure here. You can see there are still some tiny air bubble pop spots.
Here's a pic from a different angle that looks much nicer.
That's more representative of the impression I get when I look at the bike. And if you're standing up and just glancing down at the fork crown, it looks more like this.
So, yeah, from three feet with 50+ year-old eyes, it looks absolutely perfect. My rattle can paint job definitely won't be better than that.
I tried using the pen on a paper surface before applying it to the bike so I wouldn't have any droplets on the pen surface and then attempting to put down a very thin surface. That did leave a thin, smooth surface but the shine and color wasn't even. It looked very streaky (sorry, no pictures). Last night I tried intentionally putting down a couple of big drops of paint (you can do this by pressing down on the pen body while the "point" is on the fork crown) and then using the pen to spread it around. That's kind of what I did the first time around, and the results are very similar.
There's a bit of a drip-like blob in the lower right corner. It was bad last night. This afternoon it's much better. I've got the bike in the workstand with the fork crown sloped down away from this spot, and I'm hoping it's still got enough viscosity left to level itself completely. If not, I honestly might be happy with it the way it is. That's a terribly harsh picture and looks like I applied some kind of digital art effect, but I didn't. That's a fender you're seeing under the fork crown, which gives you a point of reference for the level of flaw exposure here. You can see there are still some tiny air bubble pop spots.
Here's a pic from a different angle that looks much nicer.
That's more representative of the impression I get when I look at the bike. And if you're standing up and just glancing down at the fork crown, it looks more like this.
So, yeah, from three feet with 50+ year-old eyes, it looks absolutely perfect. My rattle can paint job definitely won't be better than that.
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
Last edited by Andy_K; 04-12-23 at 02:26 PM.
Likes For Andy_K:
04-12-23, 04:53 PM
#36
Newbie
Join Date: Apr 2023
Location: SF Bay
Posts: 21
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 16 Times
in
8 Posts
Originally Posted by cocoabeachcrab
i can tell you first hand that this one is fantastic.. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/b0...?ie=utf8&psc=1
it's a 5 footer for sure! Maybe even 3 feet if you are over 65! 6 inches after half a bottle of fish eye pino grigio... I have spoken.
it's a 5 footer for sure! Maybe even 3 feet if you are over 65! 6 inches after half a bottle of fish eye pino grigio... I have spoken.
lol
04-12-23, 06:56 PM
#37
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Hotel CA / DFW
Posts: 1,501
Bikes: 83 Colnago Super, 87 50th Daccordi, 79 & 87 Guerciotti's, 90s DB/GT Mtn Bikes, 90s Colnago Master and Titanio, 96 Serotta Colorado TG, 95/05 Colnago C40/C50, 06 DbyLS TI, 08 Lemond Filmore FG SS, 12 Cervelo R3, 20/15 Surly Stragler & Steamroller
Mentioned: 10 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 523 Post(s)
Liked 595 Times
in
389 Posts
Great product.
I have been using for a few years to patch some of my bikes chrome blemishes and other bits like nice dura ace pedals that still work great but got scratched up from contact.
I have been using for a few years to patch some of my bikes chrome blemishes and other bits like nice dura ace pedals that still work great but got scratched up from contact.
Likes For madpogue:
04-12-23, 09:44 PM
#39
guy with punchable face
Join Date: Jul 2022
Posts: 877
Bikes: several Eddy Merz (ride like Eddy, braze like Jim!)
Mentioned: 22 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 520 Post(s)
Liked 513 Times
in
229 Posts
Originally Posted by madpogue
Now they need to make smoke chrome / black chrome variants to match the High Sierra, etc.
I am in desperate need for a pen like this but with gold. My dad‘s old Colnago Oro flaking pretty bad. Can you imagine the price of gold plating these days.
__________________
Waiting for the campy 100 ani groupset.
Waiting for the campy 100 ani groupset.
04-12-23, 10:42 PM
#40
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,408
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 497 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2987 Post(s)
Liked 3,014 Times
in
1,203 Posts
Originally Posted by joesch
Great product.
I have been using for a few years to patch some of my bikes chrome blemishes and other bits like nice dura ace pedals that still work great but got scratched up from contact.
I have been using for a few years to patch some of my bikes chrome blemishes and other bits like nice dura ace pedals that still work great but got scratched up from contact.
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
04-13-23, 06:47 AM
#41
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Hotel CA / DFW
Posts: 1,501
Bikes: 83 Colnago Super, 87 50th Daccordi, 79 & 87 Guerciotti's, 90s DB/GT Mtn Bikes, 90s Colnago Master and Titanio, 96 Serotta Colorado TG, 95/05 Colnago C40/C50, 06 DbyLS TI, 08 Lemond Filmore FG SS, 12 Cervelo R3, 20/15 Surly Stragler & Steamroller
Mentioned: 10 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 523 Post(s)
Liked 595 Times
in
389 Posts
Originally Posted by Andy_K
Got any tips for getting best results?
Have notrccardr suggestion to heat up, sounds like it may help aswell.
Likes For joesch:
04-13-23, 08:23 AM
#42
Junior Member
Join Date: May 2022
Location: Dixiana, AL
Posts: 153
Bikes: 1993 Diamond Back Sorrento, 1965 Schwinn Racer 3-speed, 1987 Schwinn High Sierra, 1990 Specialized Sirrus, 2020 Specialized Sirrus 3.0, 2013 Giant Seek 1
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 38 Post(s)
Liked 329 Times
in
96 Posts
Originally Posted by Robvolz
I am in desperate need for a pen like this but with gold. My dad‘s old Colnago Oro flaking pretty bad. Can you imagine the price of gold plating these days.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BP1ZZQCW...lig_dp_it&th=1
04-13-23, 08:33 AM
#43
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: North of Boston
Posts: 793
Bikes: 1973 Schwinn Sports Tourer plus a " few" more :)
Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 173 Post(s)
Liked 160 Times
in
125 Posts
I JUST ordered the pen from the OP suggestion.
I have a few chips in my chrome fork and never could find chrome mirror finish.
Thank you. for sharing this GREAT info !!!!!!!
I'll keep all posted.
I have a few chips in my chrome fork and never could find chrome mirror finish.
Thank you. for sharing this GREAT info !!!!!!!
I'll keep all posted.
04-15-23, 09:34 AM
#44
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: North of Boston
Posts: 793
Bikes: 1973 Schwinn Sports Tourer plus a " few" more :)
Mentioned: 4 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 173 Post(s)
Liked 160 Times
in
125 Posts
Originally Posted by Andy_K
I've seen this topic pop up a few times on this forum. I can't remember anyone actually being happy with the results, but I decided to try it anyway. I've got a bike with a blemish in the chrome on the fork crown. An attempt to polish it out left a smooth, but ugly spot. The bike needs repainting, and I've been debating whether to leave the ugly fork crown bare (as a tribute to the bike's history), paint it over, or have it re-chromed. There's something to be said for each of these approaches. Having it re-chromed is what I really wanted, but I'm going to try a home paint job on this bike for now, so I thought, why not try a home chrome repair too? So, I shelled out $11 for a generic chrome paint pen from Amazon.
Here's the before pic, showing the damaged area.
My first attempt with the paint pen was to just slap a bunch on there and see how it went. I did this last night, and I went to bed thinking I'd have to clean it off and start over.
But when I woke up this morning, I found that the paint had smoothed itself quite a bit in the drying process. Here it is with no additional work whatsoever since the above picture.
In person, it looks even better than that. I don't see the tiny dots that are all over the crown in this picture. Notice that the brake also shows a few such spots in the picture. In fact, looking down at it from a normal standing position, I think it looks just as good as the other side. I'll give it a few days to cure and then maybe try to polish it a bit. I may even start over to get rid of that edge where I didn't cover the crown entirely. But right now I'm very happy with the results. It's no substitute for new chrome, but as a cheap fix this doesn't look half bad.
I've got another bike with flaking chrome on the chainstays. Expect an update on that some time this summer.
Here's the before pic, showing the damaged area.
My first attempt with the paint pen was to just slap a bunch on there and see how it went. I did this last night, and I went to bed thinking I'd have to clean it off and start over.
But when I woke up this morning, I found that the paint had smoothed itself quite a bit in the drying process. Here it is with no additional work whatsoever since the above picture.
In person, it looks even better than that. I don't see the tiny dots that are all over the crown in this picture. Notice that the brake also shows a few such spots in the picture. In fact, looking down at it from a normal standing position, I think it looks just as good as the other side. I'll give it a few days to cure and then maybe try to polish it a bit. I may even start over to get rid of that edge where I didn't cover the crown entirely. But right now I'm very happy with the results. It's no substitute for new chrome, but as a cheap fix this doesn't look half bad.
I've got another bike with flaking chrome on the chainstays. Expect an update on that some time this summer.
Did you use a certain technique/application process???
Looks great !!!!!
04-15-23, 05:57 PM
#45
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Beaverton, OR
Posts: 14,408
Bikes: Yes
Mentioned: 497 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2987 Post(s)
Liked 3,014 Times
in
1,203 Posts
Originally Posted by bikemike73
Did you use a certain technique/application process???
I'm still trying to dial it in. The fork crown is challenging because it's a smooth, level surface. I've got another bike with chipped chrome on the chainstay that I think might be easier because it's got an empty area to fill in. Of course, getting it level with the real chrome might be a whole different challenge.
__________________
My Bikes
My Bikes
04-15-23, 06:08 PM
#46
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: Eugene, Oregon, USA
Posts: 27,525
Mentioned: 217 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 17508 Post(s)
Liked 4,133 Times
in
3,072 Posts
Any idea what is in the pen? Is there a MSDS sheet?
It is possible that the pen has Silver Nitrate in it. It can be sprayed on a large surface, but the videos showing the process indicate a process of spraying the silver nitrate, then washing with water and repeating for several coats.
Originally Posted by nlerner
And how many pens would it take to do an entire bike? I'm thinking that @AdventureManCO might want to consider this option for his Huffy project.
