Customs ** Advice needed from CHROME PLATERS **

Ok, I'm in need of some serious advice regarding modified bumpers/chrome plater. I'm not gonna drop any names here, but i was told by someone involved on a famous Kustom build that recently won some prestigious award that the modified bumpers on that vehicle were smoothed out and repaired with LEAD?!! Then coppered, then blocked, then coppered again.... numerous times for perfection. Now, i just got off the phone with a very reputable plater here in SOCAL, and i'm told it's not the way to go?!?!?!?

I just wanna know what you guys have to say regarding modified bumpers and the plating process. I totally trust the plater i talked to, just curious what other platers have to say or recommend. Im in the process of heavy modifications on my project, but before i do so, i just wanna make sure I'm not messing stuff up.... So far I think im doing a decent job, but then again i have never modified and plated a bumper.....

I don't know if that makes a difference , but the bumpers will stay in california... NOT OUT OF STATE ( I always hear chrome is better " OUT OF CALIFORNIA?? " )

I'm a little disappointed that I'm told not to use lead, since that was my answer to imperfections in the modifications and the actual pits in the original bumper!!



Thanx in advance!!!

 

Ian, I took 2 1/2" out of my '55 Cadillacs Dagmar's (narrowed them)...MIG welded them back up and sent them to Ogden Chrome for finishing...they simply smoothed them and chromed them...no need for lead...

Check it out...

R-

 

Looks great!!! My rear bumper has every piece modified and Im in the process of getting rid of the seams, that a lot of smoothing out man!! they look good like that in metal but i know they're gonna need some attention once they start the shinning process, No doubt!!!

 

Potmetal is repaired by first copper plating, then soldering in the pits and polished and repeating the process until it is ready for nickel and chrome. There shouldn't be a reason why this would not work on steel, but then what do I know ;-)

I am not sure what type of solder is used, but I would think a good chrome shop does all those processes and they will probably prefer to do all the steps themselves starting from bare steel.

 

I have always filled and modified with Mig/Tig, smooth em out and send em to plate. I've never had a plater tell me otherwise.

 

what way does your cali plater do it?

 

Every plater I've dealt with tells me something different. I'm to the point I'm going to buy my own little tank and do this **** myself. I hate having things chromed...

 

Good Luck with that...and don't let the EPA hear of it...!!!

R-

 

ask joshtheplater here on HAMB. He does quality work and is very helpful with his advice.

~ Carl

 

A couple years back at the Grand National Roadster show, I watched a build video about Chip Foose's "Impression" 36 Ford. To achieve perfection in the fit of the chrome windshield frame components, they copper plated, sanded, copper plated, sanded - mulitple times. I would expect that you could only make corrections of a few thousanths of an inch, but it does work.

 

agreed!!!

 

x2!!

 

Chrome Josh used solder to fill some pits on parts he chromed for me.

 

call bob barnes at vern's chrome plating.

i cant think of a better authority on the subject.

(323) 754-4126

 

The guy who i talked to mentioned Vern's plating. Im not so sure i can afford Vern's?!?!?! Im not even gonna mention the cost of this rear shoebox bumper that was modified....

 

It is usually best to have the bumpers stripped by the chrome shop, then copper plated. Then you can solder right on top of the copper and block it out and copper plated again.

This is the process used by my Chrome guy.

 

Ogden chrome did the bumpers on my Shoebox too. They were just welded up and smoothed out with a grinder and a file.

They did a super job and I couldn't believe the price, even with shipping them halfway across the country.

 

The shop I used to work for would use silver solder to do pit fills and other repairs. But on steel, you can just weld up deep pits or other imperfections.

Something else to be very careful of, is if you're welding bolts into the bumper to shave the heads, that creates a stress point and when you tighten the bolts they'll often pull inward and mark the chrome.

You're much better off to weld the bumper bolt hole shut, then weld a tab to the back of the bumper where a carriage bolt can slide in. That way, there is no pull on the bumper when they're tightened. It also means you can change the bolt if the threads go bad and plating won't build up on the threads. That's the way some DeSoto bumpers were made right at the factory.

As far as prep work goes on the bumper, the best bet is to bring them into whichever shop you're having do the work and ask them what they'd like. They might be happy with your metal finishing and be willing to take it from there, they might not want to see any solder on the parts and they'll end up melting it all out and redoing it themselves which would be a big waste of your time.

It's like a paint shop, the good places all have their own way of doing things and they don't want to paint over your fresh primer for fear that they can't trust your bodywork underneath. They have a reputation to protect and possibly a warranty they have to stand by, just like a good paint/bodyman does.

 

most reputable chrome shops are labeled metal finishers. polishing and smoothing is their business, plating is a delicate art but the foundation of their quality relies on filling gaps, smoothing crowns and perfecting the part as much as possible before the dipping starts. i've always welded the parts gotten my pieces to about 80-90% and let them earn their money! i would ask the plater you intend to use what they need from the part when you bring it in.

 

Alright! Been welding the seams for a while and here's where I'm at! Pretty smooth! Mig weld , grind , file, block with 80, repeat!

 

I wonder if part of the "no lead" statement is fear of EPA type problems from residue in/on their stuff.

I worked in a plant that did "hard" chrome plating and contamination was a real problem.

 

I'll be watching for replies to this one. I have also done extensive mods to my Buick bumpers. Shaved bolts and smoothing them. So far I've just been welding and grinding. Have not contacted any platers yet. Thanks for asking this question Ian.

 

working with copper in the semiconductor industry tells me that the building of copper and knocking it down like you would with filler will give you a brittle coating that doesnt really grab onto the parent metal giving you a potential crack/seperation in time. Your best bet is to file it straight as possible and give to the chrome plating shop

 

jordan, im pretty sure you're wrong there. Copper is a filler used to smooth out the metal of it's imperfections. i think that's why it goes back in forth to the copper tank?!?!?!! after blocking and sanding!!???

 

A lot of guys in the Nor Cal area use Sherms. He'll cost you both arms and a leg but you can bet your life they'll be absolutely perfect. I recently met the old owner at my boss's 75 Birthday bash. They run in the same Sprint Car circles. He told me "Anybody can make a part shiney, but very few will make it perfect". Not saying I agree with him (he's way too expensive for me) but for a car of your caliber don't be afraid of paying out a little more than usual if you're guranteed to get excellent results.

James

 

Here's where I'm at so far! 6 hours later pretty much! Still got some filling to do and maybe add more , blocking! But close, no lead.

 

If you have been following my build, this bumper is 5 pieces. MIG tacked, TIG welded seams and off to the plater. A month and $420 later.
(see picture) It took them multiple p***es before getting it nice.
regards,
George

 

When using a MIG Ian, after your done you might want to sand blast the welded areas to see if any fishers show up..

 

Man that should be good Ian. I have had stuff in worse shape than that chromed and it turned out great so that should be fine.