The Chromed Fork Mystique
 

From what I've seen, it's pretty much a given that in the vintage bike lines, the "up-line" models would have a chromed fork and the entry level models would not. But, what I haven't figured out yet is WHY? What makes a chromed fork (and I am speaking of the chromed one -- not the all chrome fork) better than a non-chromed fork? Is it just the aesthetics of the time? Is there a technical reason?

A curious mind wants to know...

Thanks!

Aesthetics of the time. Same thing for partially chromed fork and rear triangle ends, which peaked in the mid 1980's with full-chrome rear triangles and similar fork and headtube treatments. All for looks.

-Kurt

Kurt, Not sure I agree when it comes to rear triangle. A chromed chainstay on
the drive side goes a long way to avoiding the inevitable chips in paint from chain slap etc.

marty

Aesthetics and durability of ther finish. Repeated removal and installation of wheels leads to damage of the finish on and in the immediate area of the dropouts. The other common area for chroming, for durability, is the right chainstay, due to chain contact fromm wheel removal and chain slap. Paint is not as resistant as chrome, to this type of damage.

The drawback with chrome is the potential for hydrogen imbrittlement, its cost and it's toxicity. By the end of the steel era, it's use had been restricted primarily to dropout faces and drive side chainstays.

The irony of chrome is that while it is more resistant than paint when it comes to damage from impacts and abrasion, it is less resistant to rusting from moisture.

I agree and many marinonis from the 1980s are a testement to that. Chrome was an option, these bikes were all custom, which is actually seldom seen. However, many a marinoni has a chromed drive side chainstay and only that chainstay.

But I do agree that it was largely aesthetics of the time. Why on the higher end models? Because chroming is a time consuming and more expensive process, so logically it's going to be more expensive to buy a chrome bike. Forks get banged up a lot too so it makes sense to have full chrome forks IMO to keep the bike looking better, longer.

does chroming add a measurable amount of weight?

The drive side chainstany AND the dropout flats. He typically did did both.

Fully chromed chainstays are most functional, yes.

I was, however, thinking of the partial chrome jobs at the back that terminate halfway down the chainstay. No function at all - the forward section of the chainstay will still be subjected to harsh chainslap:

http://www.jaysmarine.com/para_reartria.jpg

Now if this same machine had a fully-chromed right-side chainstay, then I would consider it functional.

-Kurt

About as much as not blowing your nose before you ride.

One would be better off taking a crap in the can beforehand...

-Kurt

Chrome is microns thick so there is no noticeable weight difference.

I understand that the chroming of the fork ends, drop outs, seat stays, and chain stays started with the professional race teams. Bikes like a Peugeot PX-10.

http://homepage3.nifty.com/ClassicBi...ugeotpx10S.jpg


Numerous wheel changes during races meant a bunch of chipped paint on the bikes. The chrome was more resistant to chipping. So naturally the customers who wanted to purchase the best bikes wanted the chrome, too.

Eventually the look, but not the durability of thick chrome, trickled down to the lower end bikes which were never raced professionally. That would include bikes like the 29 lb Fuji Gran Tourer SE.

http://www.wheelhousedetroit.com/images/LaTour2.jpg

My neighbor has a kind of obscure bike "Star" which has those aforementioned chromed areas. It seems kind of a low-end bike in some respects but I noticed the chrome right away. Looks good.

Like all raccoons, we are drawn more to shiny objects.

I'd have to disagree on that.
Chainslap on my (unchromed) bikes occurs closer to the drop-out.
The chain would have to be bouncing pretty seriously to hit the paint closer to the chainrings.
I have a '62 & a '73 and both have 1/2 chrome stays.
There are no chips on the forward paint/decal sections.
The rear deraileur wire might also help some with deflecting the chain, as they are both routed on top of the stay.

The fully chromed fork meant a quality detail back then, don't know why. My Pinarello has chromed fork, rear dropouts, left chainstay and FD hanger, but I like painted forks more.

I dont know, I kinda agree with 'cuda888' in a kinda sorta way, :D

I mean, granted, there would be more chain slap at the dropouts and even halfway up the chainstay, but there is also the consideration of the chain possibly coming off the crank rings (for whatever reason) and dragging across the bottom bracket shell all the way back. Also when the back wheel is removed the chain is usually all over the inside of the chainstay, marking and maybe even scratching a painted stay.


That said, here is my shameless plug to show you guys a fully chromed fork (I mean all of it) :D



http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3278/...b1c51198_o.jpg

all us crows and magpies resent that "raccoon" slur ;)

There is an irony to the use of fully chromed forks. Yes, it was more labor intensive and time consuming which would translate to more expensive. However on some of my old 1970s bikes the entire fork and fork crown was plated because just this was easier than doing only the lower portion. Any overlap of the chrome beyond the point which would be exposed, would later need to be scuffed just to receive the primer and paint - a bothersome additional preparation stage.

One example of a badly prepared job is an early 70s Motobecane Grand Record where the chrome was not well prepared (scuffed or distressed) beneath the paint. The result was that the paint and primer eventually began to flake off in large patches until virtually all had simply been shed off.

So, NOT painting some of the full chrome fork ultimately eliminated a couple final steps... making the full chrome fork actually cheaper.

AND... it makes sense that you could slap a full chrome fork onto ANY painted frame, without needing to color-match. Just grab one out of stock, and you've completed the frameset - regardless of the frame color! A great way to simplify and reduce the cost of factory assembling a bike.

I do have a very nice full chrome Columbus fork on one bike from the later 70s. To my eye it always simply looked like it was a replacement had been added when an original paint matching fork had been lost. The Colnago "Super" was one of the first I can think of with full chrome forks... they always looked very odd and off balance to me too.

Pros did not want a chromed bike; they felt it added too much weight.

Perhaps aesthetics as a function of quality?

Generally I always felt that chroming was applied to the higher end frames, the more, the better?

Now these frames were generally Reynolds 531, and the component groups were generally higher end as well. So when you rode up on group of riders and noticed the chrome forks and stays on a bike, you could tell which who was riding the < 23lb. bike before you could read the decal to see what brand it was.

My own personal observation is that half-chrome stays were introduced by the Europeans, at a time when 1/2 step gearing and larger, inner chainrings (i.e 45T-47T) were popular. The larger the chainring, the less likely there is to be slap on the forward section of the stay. When crossover gearing and smaller chainrings, typically 42T, came into popularity, largerly courtesy of the Japanese, they were simply copying European styling and retained the half-chromed stays. Once we started seeing crankests with smaller BCDs and chainrings down to 39T, full chroming of the drive side stay came into vogue.

I'm sure we can all find exceptions. I can name several. But this seems to have been the general trend. Of course, the irony of all this is that ATBs largely ignored the practice. Given their 20-something inner chainrings, they stood to gain the most from chrome stays. In the early days, we used to take a piece of thin aluminum, form it over the stay and wrap it with cloth, electrical tape. However, it was not too long before the ATB industry came up with the cheaper solution of plastic and metal stay protectors. This solution was then applied to the entry and mid-range road models and would eventually find its way onto the high end frames when non-ferrous materials that could not be chromed, took over that market.

next time I tip over a garbage can, I'll invite you to join me for dinner.....:D