Looking for advice on my awful-looking grille and trim. It's a '53 Chrysler T&C wagon, so while the front end trim probably could be swapped with pieces from more commonly found sedans, I believe everything on the back end is wagon-specific. Just hoping to do something, even if it's a DIY solution. I suppose my options are basically: - leave it alone, - buff it smooth with sandpaper or steel wool - polishing as best I can, - hand the whole thing over to professionals for re-chroming, - have pros strip/copper plate, repair and prep myself, then back to the pros, - find whatever I can to swap in from a parts car, - have the parts recast in steel or aluminum so they'll never look this bad again. Cost can't be easily factored in, I realize - donor parts would be a range, and I haven't gotten any bids from chrome shops near me in Chicago. Guess I'm just wondering what you've done - or would do - to improve the looks of these if they were on your ride. Pic 1 Pic 2 Pic 3 Pic 4
live with the fact that 50 year old chrome looks 50 years old? look at from this angle: if you do any of them, you have to do ALL of them to make it look right, or the ones you THOUGHT looked okay will look like ass next to newly chromed parts. whatever you do, don't go painting them silver.
I fill and paint my stuff or remove it entirely as a rule. my excuse is that it is a hot rod and doesn't need it. Chrome shop is going to cost you an arm and a leg. Had the taillight bezzels done for a '48 lincoln this year 125 each. I would think that chrome shop is your best bet if they need to be restored but it is not going to be cheap and maybe can't be done at all depending on the condition of the pieces.
Good points. Yeah, I'd rather not take out a 2nd mortgage on the house just to look purty... and you're both right - going the professional route really requires doing it all at once. I just figured between the sanding disc on my grinder, Cyclo buffer, and other tools sitting around the garage, perhaps there was a good way to go from an "F" to a "C+", if not an "A".
Having the same delima with my 51 Plymouth.. Right now it's just 60 year old chrome and stainless "kind of gives the car character" IMHO... They wanted $4200 to rechrome my grill, bumpers, ornaments and laker pipes etc.. For now it's staying old chrome but if I ever decide to spruce it up I think I will paint it all gloss black and color sand and buff it all to a show finish... It will give off the same reflection but have a different perspective when looking at the car overall..
While the underlying problem is the fact that the trim pieces are die cast zinc, as you obviously know, it wasn't helped any by the poor excuse for chrome used in many applications in that period. The Korean War effort affected the availability of materials deemed more important and the manufacturers did the best they could with what was available. In '52/'53, several GM, Ford and Mopar products got the substandard treatment, most notably the grille surround on '53 Chevy's, '52/'53 Ford bezels and Chrysler, DeSoto and Plymouth parts. If cost is a significant concern, and show quality restoration is not, I suggest you take a close look at powder coating in silver. I've seen some pieces done that way and the finish looked great, at least to my eyes, and I am particular about detail. You may still have to have the parts stripped to get a good surface adhesion, but check with the powder coat shop about the compatibility of 'filler' materials for the pits. Best wishes.........those T&C's are among my favorite cars. Ray
In the last few years I have been replacing parts that I could and re-chroming the pot metal pieces that were severely pitted. There are a few shops around now that are doing some amazing chrome plating paint look,,I saw some pieces recently at a show and it really fooled me,,I thought it was chrome. HRP
Agree about the powder coating, Ray. Last year we went back to the old strip at Lodi, CA. (Kingdon) There was a powder coating booth there, and they had some examples of what they're doing now. There is a 'chrome' substitute that isn't quite "Blue Show Chrome", but it would look excellent on grille, bumpers, and other pieces on my '54 Ford Coupe. Very nice.
HRP, if you happen to think of any of those chrome plating paint shops... do share! Not planning on entering this wagon in any shows (in fact it'll be a daily driver and tow vehicle for our vintage Airstream.) Still, it'd be nice to not feel apologetic about it at cruise nights... and since the big, boxy wagon has its original black paint, decent chrome (not necessarily spectacular) would bring a lot to the table. Hnstray, great suggestion - I was aware this was Korean-era chrome... oh well! Powdercoating in silver sounds interesting... sounds like the same impressive results HRP is referring to. Lpdesignz, good plan - I think $4200 is almost always better spent elsewhere. ~
Thx for weighing in, Atwater Mike. Just googled chrome / silver powdercoating comparisons and found this. The rear bike frame is in powdercoat chrome. Just as you say, it's not the bluish look we're used to... but FAR nicer than what I have now, and sounds a lot less expensive. Very exciting option, particularly if it holds up to wear and tear as well as any other color of powdercoat.
Not sure about the powder coating as i haven't seen it, but many places also do ceramic coating, and it looks pretty chromey to me. It's often used on headers.
It is possible to do chrome at home at least the smaller pieces. Caswell Plating has some good kits. Once you get the hang of it, it is possible to "scale up". I made a transformer out of an old 550v arc welder that has the power to chrome grilles, bumpers etc.
I'm interested in what you find out, since I am also in Chicago, and will need bumpers rechromed this winter. Let me know where you go for whatever option you choose. From what I'm told, Finishing Touch in Chicago does a great job, but they are not cheap. I have other chrome shop info around Chicago that I'll have to find. I'm told Chrome Plater Josh here on the Hamb does a nice job too. I was going to ask some of the guys in Chicago car clubs where they might recommend, but I haven't yet. http://www.thefinishingtouchinc.com/
i don't know what your stuff looks like,but i had my taillight surrounds,and portion of my trunk ornament on my 56 premiere quoted.there were 3 pieces per tailight,all pot metal,250. each,thats 750. per tailight.the trunk orn. also 250.so imade the tailight surrouds out of 1x3/16 steel.the price,250 for 6 pieces.the trunk orn.i made from copper sheet,silver soldered to form,75. it took about a week,but i saved 1300!.if i ever figure how to post pics i will.
These guys advertise in hemmings and claim to do it right... http://local.yahoo.com/info-13983527-pot-metal-restorations-tallahassee
Good suggestions. Didn't realize the powdercoat chrome turns milky after a while from sunlight... if that's what Dabirdguy is referring to. Vinyl on bumpers and nose trim? Mmm, nah, I don't think that could possibly stand up to how regularly we plan on driving this wagon. Who knows, when all is said and done I may try and do the prep myself, take a big gulp, and have it triple dipped for real.
I talked to Finishing Touch very reputable and they wanted 1500 for the front and 1500 for the rear bumper on my Galaxie. I found Courtesy Metal Polishing in Villa Park and they ere right around 470 a piece and heard some real good reviews about them. I actually spoke to Tino at his shop, he knows his stuff and is fair about everything. There is another guy in Steger that I will be talking to this weekend and he was around 350 for each bumper. JIMMY
The header ceramic looks good, like you said not an A but maybe a C. Just make sure that your pit filler will stand the heat of the oven.
Star chrome no longer does bumpers, I was referred to by a friend but I was told they were around 250 for each bumper. JIMMY
Clean up what you have with polish etc and keep it waxed while you look for something better. Mever can tell when you'll find a mashed 4door sedan with great chrome. Sadly it is a problem with all Korean War era cars.
Chrome on 63 Galaxie at shop (not mine) was 16,000. Looks great. Not cheap but this price was for everything there was 160 peices give or take. Pm me for more info. I highly recommend this guy if you want to do it once and only once. It's that nice.
I hate to be an ass here but I'd MUCH rather see tired chrome then subsitutes like powder coating or even more so painted trim. Anytime I see it I think the owner was too cheap to step up and do it right. I know it's tough to bite the bullit and pay for proper chrome but IMHO it's a nessesity if your really restoring a car with new paint, ect. I'll never understand a $10000.00 paint job with painted bumpers but they are out there. I find it interesting how everyone bitches about how expensive chrome has got, was it ever not expensive??? I remember having to save forever it seemed to get the bumpers done on my 56 Vicky back in the 70's!
When was chrome not expensive? 1968. After a fender bender I had the bumper on a 62 Ford Galaxie sedan straightened and rechromed for $22.
agreed, powdered chrome sucks unless its an indoor use item. To make it weather durable it has to have a high gloss clear coat, which knocks it down to a polished aluminum look.
I couldn't possibly agree more. I'd much rather have some old used rough stuff than any painted on substitute. Also keep in mind that prep is everything, in chroming and in painting, so no matter what you cover the trim with, it'll only look as good as the surface underneath. Header coating and even powdercoat may not work with regular body fillers underneath due to the heat it takes to cure it, and the chrome paint system has to have a flawless base to get any real shine, plus none of those options hold up very long. I see TONS of early 50's Chryslers for sale as parts cars without engines because people buy them and rape them of their Hemi engines and sell what's left. You should be able to buy a 4 door sedan parts car with very decent, driver quality trim on it for $1000 or less, use most of it, and chip in a few bucks more to have your wagon specific pieces redone.
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