Stripping chrome

Does anybody know the best/easiest way to strip chrome?

 

i sand mine . pot metal is another story.i stay away from it.

 

Hello, You may have to take the Chrome to a rechroming shop to get the nickled Chrome removed.. It may have to be dipped for removal..

 

Are you going to rechrome or just paint it ? I would just grind it off , but be carefull . Eastwood might sell something to take it off . I go with grinding !

 

Decorative Quality Chrome-plating is a 3step process.
First a Copper base, which is like primer/surfacer in a paint job.
Next is Nickle, which gives the job the lustrous shine.
Last is Chromium which is a transparent protective layer for the Nickle shine coat.

The "Korean" chrome so often found on cars from the early 50s has only the copper and chromium which why it is "goldtinged" when nice and greentinged" when the chromium layer has been penetrated and worn.

 

That's interesting to know. Not to hijack but if you wanted to be sure of a good plating surface should you copper plate it thick and fine sand before it goes to nickel and chrome? Also, can you just leave it nickel if that's the finish that you want? Thanks for any advise.

 

the layers are buffed to a high gloss

 

I will be rechroming eventually (as I can afford it). I was planning on shaving the bumper bolts and adding a 1949 Chev overider to my 51 Ford bumper. You mentioned to be careful when grinding, anything in particular I should watch out for? Thanks everyone for the responces.

 

If you sand, I would suggest even looking into the sanding belts they make with the different grits for power bench sanders. Thats how they de-chrome at the chrome places sometimes. But yes, always be careful with power tools. ZIIIIOPP crap it went through!

Had a local guy build a 37 Ford plastic car, yea I know, he wanted to use a power board sander on it.
This is why he has a plastic car....

 

We send all our stuff out to be sand blasted, a go industrial sand blasting shop should be able to get it done.

 

If you're going to eventually, finances permitting, have the chrome replated...DON'T touch it! You will only incure MUCH more expense, to have it replated, if you try to mechanically remove the plate yourself. Platers will usually tell you not to touch it...polishing aluminum is along the same lines. Sand blasted aluminum costs a lot more to have polished than stuff that isn't. Platers will reverse plate your pieces to get to the base metal, and sanding the base metal means a lot more labor ($$$) to polish the scratches out before triple process plating...

 

I'm sort of in the same boat, having (nearly) completed some custom grille pieces. I've learned that the smoothest you can make a piece of metal before giving it to the plater, the less time they will have to spend in getting it right...in theory, saving you money. If you don't spend time making it right, then someone else has to, and you will pay for that labor.

I plan to sand down my pieces to at least 600 grit, if not finer. I am not quite sure how fine I need to go for the copper to adequately cover the scartch marks before the nickle and chrome layers. (absolutely no grinding) Like DeSoto says, it's best to leave good plated areas alone as that finish is already perfect.

Also make sure your plater knows exactly what you expect. If the back side of a bumper is not important, then say so. They can kill the rust, but won't spend a lot of time finishing it (ALWAYS paint the backside of a bumper with silver Rustoleum before mounting on a car).

 

I have had the plater chemically strip it. It was cheap.

 

Pasadenahot is right on the money about the chroming process!If you want to strip the chrome from a bumper , you have two good ways to try. First is take it to a chrome shop and ask them to just strip the chrome for you as already stated. The simple version is ..they strip it the reverse of plating(differant chemicals and the current is going the other way.)tThe other way is to sandblast it and grind off anything remaining. But be CAREFUL..breathing nickle dust can cause cancer! Grind outside and wear a dust mask at least !On potmetal (Diecast) parts,the least destructive way is take them to the chrome shop to be stripped...Hope this helps...John

 

Never sandblast anything to be chromed .Dont waste your time polishing parts that still have half good plating on them ,it will only go out the window when the parts are stripped .same with welding or fill repairs ,get the shop to strip them first.otherwise your e chasing your own tail with more cash outlay .GOSPEL !

 

Oh yes.... Clean any grease and paint off and send it to the platers.
Don't blast, some residue will awlays be imbedded in the metal surface making polishing a nightmare.
Only grind off if you are very, very good.

Triple plating, great for building up surfaces as the copper portion used as a last resort can go on really thick, several plate and grind operations and pits can be filled. But it's not necessary for other parts, Indeed my plater says that the steel is sacrificial to the copper, he showed me some Mercedes blades (triple plate from new), the chrome face looks great but they are eaten away from underneath.

Hope this helps

 

i would agree with the guys who say take it to the platers for reverse process.
if you're gonna paint it, sandblasting is fine.
pot metal is a bitch no matter how you go about it


skull

 

Try a monument shop.(Be sure your parts are grease-free! Grease and granite do NOT mix.They'll tell you to hit the road real quick otherwise!)
If they use aluminum carborundum grit to blast the stone with it'll do wonders to kill the chrome.Stay away from sand,"black beauty" and whatever else...

Used to do that in another life and killed lotsa chrome that way.
Paint will tack and stick right to it.If done well,powder coat will too.

 

pasadenahotrod:

"Decorative Quality Chrome-plating is a 3step process.
First a Copper base, which is like primer/surfacer in a paint job.
Next is Nickle, which gives the job the lustrous shine.
Last is Chromium which is a transparent protective layer for the Nickle shine coat."

The "Korean" chrome so often found on cars from the early 50s has only the copper and chromium which why it is "goldtinged" when nice and greentinged" when the chromium layer has been penetrated and worn


You are right, except that chromium is not transparent, although it does reflect the physical shape of the surface of the nickel, but you cannot see the nickel underneath. In rare cases I have rechromed parts that had no nickel at all, but only had a chrome layer over copper. It looked just like chrome over nickel until it was stripped, and had held up remarkably well.

Also, old items that have copper and nickel under the chrome can get a green tinge on the chrome. Almost all the cheap foriegn chrome I have seen has had no copper, just a thin layer of nickel and chrome.


The replies given are pretty good. The problem is there are too many variables to give one overall answer.

What is the base metal and what condition is it in?

What platings does it have and what conditon is it in, is there adhesion issues with the existing plating?

What are you're immediate and future plans for the parts?

What would you like to do yourself to save money and what do you need the plater to do? How nice does it need to be? This depends on your polishing skills mostly.

You can do your own polishing on any plated metal if you are up to it, but talk with your plater first. Different platers have different methods and preferences. I have no problem stripping parts for a cutomer to polish themselves. Every single part is different and requires special treatment.


-Josh