Technical Spray paint chrome at home?

Going,going---but no yet gone:

https://calmatters.org/environment/2023/05/hexavalent-chrome-plating-ban/

 

One of the members on "The Ford Barn" was at the Puyallup swap meet last weekend and said that there were "5 Chrome plater cos. from Southern CA !!"

 

Sure looks GOOD!

 

Jerry Damon @jivin jer has some experience with this. Jerry?

 

I have seen some trim bits on a T'bird that were chrome wrapped. They looked good, even up close. A couple had very small "bumps" in them, and that was a bit of stuff caught on the surface just as the wrap was laid down. You can buy the stuff cheap enough, so it easy enough to experiment with. One good thing about using this stuff is the surface finish can be filler, paint, etc, so if you get the surface as good as you would before your final paint coat, and apply it before any dust or crap settles on the surface, it should look OK. Traditional electroplating shops will dissappear in developed counties one day, so these other "phoney" chrome methods should get better as more shops take them up.
One upside of getting greyer is that you don't see as well as you age, so you don't get as "picky" over details!

 

Wonder how bright nickle plating would look?

 

No. There are 3 near me in Orange County. One of the best in the country is in Signal Hill 12 miles from me.

 

I hate RAP!OH DID YOU SAY WRAP?

 

I watched this video on reviews of different chrome spray paints for model cars a while back and the guy said the only one that stood out was the Revell, its pricey but has great reviews...

that said zero idea on how it would look on a larger area or hold up to the elements?

 

The plastic automotive grills & trim I believe is commonly referred to as vacuum metalized of which I'm uncertain of the procedure or cost, but I can firmly attest to the durability of the headlamp doors & park lamp trim on a 46-year-old G.M. product with 135,000 miles that sat behind a barn for 15 years to the point it was totally grime covered & turning green from years of pine needle accumulation. some elbow grease a fine grade steel wool brought it back to like new unbelievable condition.

 

Seems the trick for the chrome spray paint is to get the piece super shiney black first and then do the chrome over that.

 

Recently watched the T-V program titled 'Chrome" on the Modern Marvels channel showing the history & current methods of plating the plastic & fiberglas components widely used in today's auto industry as well as s host of other manufactures, once the plastic is etched to improve adhesion it goes through a copper/ chromium process much, or at least very similar to plating as we know it, totally different from the vacuum metalizing I made mention of earlier

 

My daughter drives an OT old SR5 4x4 and she broke one of the chrome plastic grills behind the doors while off roading. She said she could buy new replacements in chrome, but it would be cheaper to buy used ones and a can pf chrome paint. I suggested she buy the paint and try it on something first. She texted me and said "well that looks like shit! I'm buying the new ones." Sometimes you have let people find out on their own.

 

Before it comes up, I tried the alsa chrome paint. The advertisements are misleading. It looks OK from a few feet, but it's tender, you have to put a clear over it, and that turns it to an aluminum look.

 

Only chrome looks like chrome... And generally speaking, the closer to 'chrome' the paint/wrap/etc is, the more fragile the finish is. If you clear-coat over it for protection, it ends up looking like slightly dull polished aluminum.

 

If you have a smooth surface and can sand and buff out scratches and pits you can buff carbon steel to close to a chrome finish. Depending on how you use the car either a coat of Gibbs oil ( have to revisit and buff frequently) or a clear coat for protection will look really good and is fairly low cost however either process will require maintenance. Some knives I’ve made sanded to 400 to 600 grit and then buffed which white compound. Excuse my photography not the best.
Dan

 

I think Banditbilly has the right idea. They perform hydrodip at the company I work for and it looks pretty good. I was also thinking a wrap like some others have suggested. As far as durability goes I think they would both survive well as long as the car is garaged. Left out in the elements and all bets are off.

 

I had a friend who bought some chrome spray paint and painted some of his engine parts and some front axle pieces like tie rods and drag links. It looked like polished aluminum and I was very impressed.
So when I was doing the front axle on my '39 Chev I also sprayed the tie rod and drag link and it came out beautiful. But that beauty only lasted until I had an oil sender line crack and spewed motor oil around! I pressure washed the engine and underside of the car, and anywhere the oil got on those painted chrome surfaces they turned an ugly flat aluminum color. I ended up taking the parts off and after cleaning and sanding I repainted them with some mag wheel paint that's more durable.

 

I've used a stainless steel spray paint that came out pretty nice it actually has ground up stainless flakes it lays down too.I think rustoleum made it.

 

My buddy had his 33 Plymouth grille and bumpers powder coated in chrome. The shop told him if they do just the chrome powder coat it will look like chrome, require maintenance, and will eventually not hold up over time. Adding the clear powder coat provides the necessary protection that will last but will give the parts a more grayish tone. He wants the car to be a driver and chose to include the clearcoat. Since all the parts he had done look the same with the grayish chrome finish, he is satisfied. I have seen a couple cars that had chrome wrapped parts. Not sure how well it might hold up, but the overall look was impressive.

 

Yes, with the chrome powder you should apply a clear coat powder coat if being exposed to the elements and going to be cleaned, wiped, waxed or whatever. The new improved chrome plus 2, from Prismatic Powders is decent. It won't turn grey if cured like it's suppose to be. If you apply the powder coat clear coat like it should, it will look more like a polished aluminum then chrome. I have heard of powder coat shops applying "Cerakote" ceramic clear coat over the chrome powder and making it look more realistic. The photo shown here is a 69' Ford pickup truck grille shot with chrome powder coat with clear powder top coat

 

I prefer the luster of Nickel plating plus it has to have nickel under the chrome layer to adhere.
The grill insert of my car is Nickel and has held up very well.
The visor can't be removed so I sanded it down to shiny and clear coated it. After several rock chips punctured it, under the clear began to rust. Sand everything off, (no fun sanding louvers)
I then used a product called MirraChrome, by the Alsa corp. 4 oz bottle, just south of $500.
Starts with a basecoat of black Endura followed by mist coats of the product. Tread carefully, We applied 1o light coats and stopped. Too many will dull the shine or revert to black

 

Some fascinating information here. Keep the comments going.

 

Season 4, episode 14, of "Rides" titled "ZZ Chop"
Builder was Jerry Noone, car was a '61 Caddy, built as a gift to Billy's wife, Gilligan.
And the guy doing the chrome paint on the roof was just some random dessert dweller from Mojave, named Gene.

 

I used some chrome bumper paint on some white 8 spoke wheels. Stuff turned to a cast aluminum color and looked good on them, but never looked chrome at any point.

 

I’ll be darn, I didn’t recall Gene doing the paint.
“Oh how years have passed”

 

Chrome Gnome on the range

 

Your back yard?

 

Where the beer and the misanthrope play.

 

Where never was heard,
of a shiny plated turd,
AND CHROME WASN"T BUILT IN A SPRAY!