Technical Spray on Chrome ??... Has anyone used it ??...

This stuff looks wild man. Has anyone used this technique on their car ? Is it durable? Will it work on engine parts ? Bumpers ? What are the limitations?
Looks easy...
Link:



Thanks, Paul....

 

I wonder what the prep for the original surface has to be

 

It photographs better than it actually looks and it's isn't durable. One guy here tried it on some garnish moldings and it didn't survive the installation process.

 

Oh ok... The wife is trying to get her 52' bumpers ( don't say it !..lol.. ) squared away. She found these videos and I had never seen this before. It is a wild lookin transformation.
Thanks, Paul...

 

Does NOT replace chrome - it's just paint - soooo treat it like paint.

 

The grille surround on this GMC was done with it. The grille and bumpers were repop pieces.

 

where was it done ?

 

Believe it or not it was done by a couple of guys that worked at a body shop in Texarkana, Tx. about 5 yrs ago. I can't recall the shop name though. We had a few small parts, such as the ashtray and dome light bezel, done also. I did all of the assembly work myself and treated it all just like you would any other painted parts. Cost was about a 1/3rd of what chroming it would have cost at the time.

 

I had some interior dash pieces done but the clear coat didn't hold up very well. Don't think I would use it on any exterior items. It was $100/sq ft so not what I would call low cost.

 

do a search - subject covered before - as stated, not a replacement for the durability of chrome, etc

 

I had these brass letter blanks sprayed because they were too small to plate the conventional way. It was done in California some years ago and worked out well.

 

I had these wheels professionally done using this process. The finish looks great even up close but it's more of a paint type finish and not very hard. If you rub it with your finger you'll see marks on it like a "show car" paint job. Not sure if any marks will buff out which I haven't tried, but this makes me wonder about durability. I dropped a lug nut on a rim lip when installing one wheel and it chipped out a pencil diameter size piece. The coating is fairly thick. I'd say about 3 to 4 times as thick as a normal paint job.

 

Who cares about the chrome when you've got the ultimate V8 in your car!

 

RmK57... Not my car.
I work for a museum and collector assembling and maintaining his stuff.

 

I did the garnish moldings in my avatar. It is definitely a paint process. I had 4 reputable platers quote the moldings $1800 to $2400. Indy paint in Brownsburg In charged < $600. Looks good---not chrome.
I tell about the wear yet; it's not installed.

 

Thanks you guys !!... Best hotrod forum on the net... Thanks!!...
P.S... Car goes to the interior shop this week, it will be back on the road by the end of the month !! Whoo Hoo !!....

 

Here is a fairly new process that is between paint and chrome....
http://kwicksilverusa.com/services/pvd-chroming/

 

Had this bumper done on my Cadillac better than six years ago...cost me $400. It's now starting to fade and it's not the clear that's fading...it's the silver under it. This photo was taken two years after I had it done. There's nothing that will replace real chrome...but if you need something shiny to get you by for a few years, it works well.

R-

 

Thank you !... There is a PVD place not far from here. I will check it out during the week and report back.

 

Ricks Garage - Thanks for PVD link

 

You know what Jon Arbuckle says! "You Get What You Pay For"

 

This process has its place but you have to understand its limitations. I had a pair of signal lamp lenses done a number of years ago, they are now starting to check. They have always been indoors and never even got wet. What is nice is that the part can be masked off so only some areas are coated.
I would like to find a source that would spray some dash parts for me.

 

I don't really care for chrome, but, when I do want chrome, I'll wrap tinfoil around something and call it a day. "I am, the most uninteresting man around. Enjoy life my friends..."

 

I have seen it and it looks more like polished aluminum than chrome but id paint an will scratch easy. My suggestion is save up and get real chrome over copper/nickel plating . There is no substitute.


Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

This subject comes up regularly and guys line up one after another to say "don't cheap out, get real chrome" etc etc etc. ad nauseam.

When it comes to bumpers and such I agree, but there are plenty of small interior bits (especially in '50s and early '60s cars) that are either plastic or pot metal that are hard to chrome or un-chromable, small jobs that are cost-prohibitive, or guys (like me) who live in places where the chrome shops have all gone to the big junk yard in the sky.

I've got a '59 Edsel dash in my shoebox and I made some pieces to fill in places that I modified, I need to find a way to match the factory chromed pot metal insert. So far the only solution I can come up with is spray-on. Even if I could find a chrome shop within a reasonable distance, I'm unlikely to get a friendly response when I walk in with my 4 little pieces of dash insert.

Here's a pretty interesting thread about spray chrome. It got shut down because fake chrome ain't cool, but there's a lot of good reading...

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/diy-spray-on-chrome.674441/

 

I've been using this spray on chrome for the past year now, and I've noticed that there is now a spray chrome ''remover'' in case your piece went wrong in the process, .... Does anyone here have any idea what this chemical is to remove it by just spraying it over the part and it vanishes from the part before your eyes!

 

I just watched that same video last night on the net. I think it might have its place (interior knick knacks, etc.) and looks like you can do it yourself which is a big plus in my book.

 

I've been trying all sorts of liquids (oven cleaners, WD40 etc) with no luck! ... I've also tried the activator that comes with the solutions (just before the chroming process) and it comes off easily but you have to wipe it with a cloth to do so, .... Wondering to add something else to this chemical.

 

Here is the link ... Silver / Chrome remover.

 

Since the bulk of the comments lean toward the finish being delicate, I wonder if it can be clear top coated ???