Technical Bringing back old chrome

I have read a ton of threads on chrome and trying to get that old shine back. This is my method after some testing.

Step one soak a piece of paper towel in CLR 5 to 10 minutes on the piece of chrome you are working on. In this case I chose a big ass bumper because I was testing other methods and working on this so i needed something large.

After it soaks for that couple of minutes on the rusty chrome I have been using a sharp razor blade and scraping all the scale rust off of the chrome.

After scraping it's onto the 0000 steel wool and start working it over. I am doing this all by hand other then the final buff.

I am not set on a compound yet I am testing some turtle chrome polish and I have some wizard on order.

The test piece removal just to give you an idea of the condition of the car it was picked off of in the boneyard.

 

Before


This is the after.

 

The proof is in the pictures. I don't know how long the results will last. Hopefully long enough for my friend Terry to save up some cash to get it rechromed.

The top of this picture was the better of the two when i started. I have not finished the bottom one yet still more work to go.

 

Here is a piece currently soaking in the CLR

 

right after the soak.



This is after a lot of scrubbing with 0000 steel wool and polishing with the chrome polish

 

Doesn't the steel wool scratch the chrome? I've seen threads on using balled up aluminum foil but have yet to try it.

 

Coca cola and tin foil works really good too !!!
Ball up the tinfoil pour the coca cola on it
and rub the rust away and watch it shine

 

That is why i am using 0000 steel wool there is different grades and that is the finest. It has not scratched the chrome. I didn't get very good results with aluminum foil it took even more scrubbing. What you see here is what i have found that works best so far. Of course I am open to suggestions but I have tried a couple different ways.

 

did you try it with the coca cola ??

 

Tried the coca cola what I need to do is try soaking it like i am with the CLR and see how that compares. Pouring it on doesn't give shit for results compared to soaking it. Unfortunately I used my last can of coke in testing.

 

I've had good luck with the fine steel wool. If the chrome can't take that then it's too far gone anyway....

 

Nice work Gerg! I have found that when polishing, buy whatever has the highest ammonia content. If the fumes almost make you pass out, you got the right one. Blue Magic used to be really strong, but I've heard they cut back. Mr. Metal is pretty good, too. Good luck!

 

Damn Slammed...I looked forward to your last avatar every day...now it's fat Elvis ball sack camel toe...ack!

 

Try Simple Green and 0000 steel wool. Spray it right on the steel wool and rub away the rust and corrosion. Works great. Then go to your polishing steps.

 

Whatever you do, the chrome is still shot. Chrome does not rust. It is the steel underneath that does. When the chrome coating is gone, the steel under it rusts, just like paint. So unfortunately, it is not a fix and will not last. And it doesn't look anywhere near as good as un-damaged chrome.
Just so you know, not trying to rain on your parade. Great fix for driver quality stuff, but if you repaint the car, it will look poorly next to the nice paint.

 

Sounds like work I just use an SOS pad and some water and elbo grease.

But if it works for you I'm good with it. Thanks for posting.

 

CLR is good stuff. What percentage are you mixing?

 

This is not a permanent fix. I am well aware of that. I am also not blind I know it is not as good looking as fresh chrome. This is just a way of cleaning up the old stuff until he can afford to get it re-chromed. Driver quality is good enough for right now for the car we are working on.

 

Yeah he literally said I hope it last long enough to save up the money to replace them.

Anyhow, what's CLR?

 

Try soaking your chrome in wood bleach (oxalic acid) the stuff works great, I buy mine at the local hardware store.

 

I've had the best results on poor chrome by using a sewn cotton buff and tripoli buffing compound with a power buffer. The compound isn't aggressive enough to remove the chrome, it's finer than any steel wool so it doesn't dull the chrome, but takes off rust/oxidation like gangbusters. Don't be too heavy-handed where the chrome is 'good', but if you bear down in the pitted areas it can even get the rust out of the pits. I never use steel wool, it dulls the finish too much. Damaged chrome is damaged chrome, but I've 'brought back' some pretty nasty parts to where they can pass the 'ten foot' test...

 

I've had good luck with Lightning (http://lightningstrip.us/rust.htm) and Scotchbrite green pads. As others already said, the damage is done, and nothing will be perfect, but this stuff works pretty well.

 

I use copper scrubbing pads instead of steel wool, they don't scratch.

 

I also like SOS pads.

 

Looks good! Put some good wax on everything once it's all done, will help keep it from rusting right away again. If Wabs keeps it clean, it'll look nice for a good long while.

People need to take note and at least try their best to polish up old chrome before they go painting over it which almost always looks like dog shit.

 

I buff mine by hand with fine steel wool, pay no attention to the air cleaner, it's new.

 

I got some polish wizards turbo cut and colonel brassy. The brassy is a touch more coarse so i am using that first then finishing up with the wizards. I will get some more pictures going hopefully tonight. I want to show you guys the bumper so far it's about 1/4th done but thats not good enough for a comparison shot yet.