REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Moderators: CYBORG, Oldewing, robin1731, Forum Moderators
-
- Chrome Member
- Posts: 149
- Joined: Thu Jan 23, 2014 6:23 pm
- Location: Tampa, Fl
REFINISHING OLD CHROME
My timing belt covers are really bad looking and was wondering what methods you have used to remove the old chrome. I will probably just paint them. I did a web search and there seems to be many ways to do this and maybe some have been tried by forum members. Here is a list of the ones that I'm considering.
1. Cola soak overnight 2. Bleach soak 3. Break fluid wipe 4. Over cleaner
1. Cola soak overnight 2. Bleach soak 3. Break fluid wipe 4. Over cleaner
- Attachments
-
- 20140210_091145_resized.jpg (62.13 KiB) Viewed 602 times
1977 GL1000
1980 GL1100
1998 Valyrie GL1500
1980 GL1100
1998 Valyrie GL1500
- sunnbobb
- Facebook Admin
- Posts: 21272
- Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 4:09 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/sunnbobb/
- Location: LaConner, WA
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
none of the above if it is real chrome. Only reverse electrolysis removes chrome.
I found the end of the internet
---- Bradshaw Bikes custom polishing for your wing. Visit us on facebook!
1978 Learning Experience
1980 County Road Hauler "Brain Damage"
1978 Cafe Custom Gl1000 "Vyper"
1977 Bulldog Inspired "Vaincre"
1981 Street Fighter GL1100 "No Quarter"
1983 Supercharged Street Drag "Anubis" (in worx)
1983 gl1100 mint restoration "Kristen"
1985 Aspencade..pondering.
---- Bradshaw Bikes custom polishing for your wing. Visit us on facebook!
1978 Learning Experience
1980 County Road Hauler "Brain Damage"
1978 Cafe Custom Gl1000 "Vyper"
1977 Bulldog Inspired "Vaincre"
1981 Street Fighter GL1100 "No Quarter"
1983 Supercharged Street Drag "Anubis" (in worx)
1983 gl1100 mint restoration "Kristen"
1985 Aspencade..pondering.
- Sagebrush
- Run Executive
- Posts: 6465
- Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2007 10:35 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/album269/
- Location: Raleigh, NC
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Are they chrome or are you just assuming they are? OEM covers were clear coated aluminum and will polish nicely once the clear is removed. There are quite a few after market chrome covers out there though and by now the chrome is usually flaking from the aluminum base. There have been a few attempts to clean up the chrome ones but its very difficult to remove all the old chrome and any left on will just flake off in the future and will generally degrade any kind of paint job you attempt.
Dean Spalding
Raleigh, NC
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
'82 Yellow GL1100
'81 Blue GL1100
My Gallery
My 1100 Build Thread
Raleigh, NC
"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
'82 Yellow GL1100
'81 Blue GL1100
My Gallery
My 1100 Build Thread
- ericheath
- Honored Life Member
- Posts: 9580
- Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2009 11:20 am
- Location: Winnipeg, Manituba
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Any Walmart carries "aircraft stripper." It's the snizz. Less expensive in the long run than the other methods you've listed. Here it's around $7 a can. Spray it on, wait a few minutes, blow it off with and air hose. O'reily's and the like sell a different brand that is probably a tad better. Click on Sunnbobb's name or check out his posts on polishing aluminum in Shoptalk. It's work, but can be done. Less work is to send them to him if they're aluminum.
Whatever I suggest here should be given ample time for a moderator to delicately correct. I apologize in advance.
77 WING, 1200 engine with 77 heads, cams, gl1100 foot pegs, Magna V65 front end, 764A carbs, [-gone Suzuki M109 monoshock--, replaced with gl1100 shocks] gl 1200 swing arm, gl1500 final drive, wheel and rear brakes Valkyrie seat, Meanstreak tank, Sportster pipes, Power Arc ignition off crank.
77 Wing. black
83 Wing, in pieces
"Continuing education is important even if the subject matter is fairly useless (as in this case)."---Greg Foresi
77 WING, 1200 engine with 77 heads, cams, gl1100 foot pegs, Magna V65 front end, 764A carbs, [-gone Suzuki M109 monoshock--, replaced with gl1100 shocks] gl 1200 swing arm, gl1500 final drive, wheel and rear brakes Valkyrie seat, Meanstreak tank, Sportster pipes, Power Arc ignition off crank.
77 Wing. black
83 Wing, in pieces
"Continuing education is important even if the subject matter is fairly useless (as in this case)."---Greg Foresi
- Whiskerfish
- President
- Posts: 36852
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2006 9:34 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/whiskerfish/
- Location: Norfolk Va
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
ericheath wrote:SNIP It's work, but can be done. Less work is to send them to him if they're aluminum.
Look here
http://www.ngwclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=44501
"Agreement is not a requirement for Respect" CDR Michael Smith USN (Ret) 2017
"The book is wrong, this whole Conclusion is Fallacious" River Tam
2008 GL1800 IIIA "TH3DOG"
1975/6/7/8/9 Arthur Fulmer Dressed Road bike
1975 Naked Noisy and Nasty in town bike
and a whole garage full of possibilities!!
Psst. oh and by the way CHANGE YOUR BELTS!!!!
"The book is wrong, this whole Conclusion is Fallacious" River Tam
2008 GL1800 IIIA "TH3DOG"
1975/6/7/8/9 Arthur Fulmer Dressed Road bike
1975 Naked Noisy and Nasty in town bike
and a whole garage full of possibilities!!
Psst. oh and by the way CHANGE YOUR BELTS!!!!
-
- Chrome Member
- Posts: 149
- Joined: Thu Jan 23, 2014 6:23 pm
- Location: Tampa, Fl
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Sure looks like chrome flaking off to me! Shiny mirror like flakes.Sagebrush wrote:Are they chrome or are you just assuming they are? OEM covers were clear coated aluminum and will polish nicely once the clear is removed. There are quite a few after market chrome covers out there though and by now the chrome is usually flaking from the aluminum base. There have been a few attempts to clean up the chrome ones but its very difficult to remove all the old chrome and any left on will just flake off in the future and will generally degrade any kind of paint job you attempt.
1977 GL1000
1980 GL1100
1998 Valyrie GL1500
1980 GL1100
1998 Valyrie GL1500
- delling3
- Gold Member
- Posts: 1177
- Joined: Mon Sep 17, 2012 8:14 am
- Location: Sterling Heights, Michigan
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
If it is flaking then it likely is chrome, and the covers are likely aftermarket. The stock covers came from the factory in polished/clearcoated aluminum as previously mentioned. They are available relatively cheaply on ebay. If you want the stock look, I would suggest starting there. If not, paint or powdercoating is an option.
The tops on my carbs were chromed. I sandblasted them and used hammerite paint for them. I had my valve covers and timing belt covers ceramic coated with a high-lustre silver ceramic. I went this route because I didn't want to worry about polished aluminum.
The tops on my carbs were chromed. I sandblasted them and used hammerite paint for them. I had my valve covers and timing belt covers ceramic coated with a high-lustre silver ceramic. I went this route because I didn't want to worry about polished aluminum.
delling3
1979 Yamaha XS750SF
Previous:
1978 GL1000 - JUNE 2017 BOTM: Sold
2006 Kawasaki Concours: Sold
1995 Kawasaki Concours: Crashed/totalled.
1976 GL1000: LAST RESTORATION, sold
1981 Honda CB900F Supersport: 3rd restoration, sold.
1979 Yamaha XS-750F: 2nd restoration, sold.
1982 Honda FT-500 Ascot: First (only) new bike. Family forces sale.
1973 CB500 Four: First restoration, long gone.
1972 Suzuki TS-100: First bike, sold.
Only dead fish go with the flow . . .
1979 Yamaha XS750SF
Previous:
1978 GL1000 - JUNE 2017 BOTM: Sold
2006 Kawasaki Concours: Sold
1995 Kawasaki Concours: Crashed/totalled.
1976 GL1000: LAST RESTORATION, sold
1981 Honda CB900F Supersport: 3rd restoration, sold.
1979 Yamaha XS-750F: 2nd restoration, sold.
1982 Honda FT-500 Ascot: First (only) new bike. Family forces sale.
1973 CB500 Four: First restoration, long gone.
1972 Suzuki TS-100: First bike, sold.
Only dead fish go with the flow . . .
- duke182
- SUPER BIKER!!!!
- Posts: 3375
- Joined: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:33 pm
- My Album: http://ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/duke182/
- Location: hope,ark
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Sand blast and then sand sand and sand some more. Then sand and prime and spot fill imperfections. Sand a little more reprime wetsand then topcoat witj chosen color.
After clearcoat sand(cut) and buff.
After a few weeks polish again then wax.
That should give you some of the best looking painted covers in wingdom.
Goodluck whatever you decide
After clearcoat sand(cut) and buff.
After a few weeks polish again then wax.
That should give you some of the best looking painted covers in wingdom.
Goodluck whatever you decide
God bless those who protect our freedom, at every level
Knees in the breeze makes miles of smiles
"Strive for progress, not perfection"-a wise man
1984 1200 standard
click pic to see my gallery
vote in my poll
Knees in the breeze makes miles of smiles
"Strive for progress, not perfection"-a wise man
1984 1200 standard
click pic to see my gallery
vote in my poll
- robin1731
- Membership Admin
- Posts: 21724
- Joined: Mon May 29, 2006 8:31 am
- Location: Decatur, Indiana
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
An industrial sand blaster can do a decent job. And works well enough to paint/powder coat over it. But like Sunnbobb said the only way to really remove chrome is to take it a chrome palter and have them remove it. Under the chrome is copper and nickel plating. So that needs to come off too.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
- Norbert R
- Gold Member
- Posts: 1373
- Joined: Wed Apr 03, 2013 3:13 pm
- Location: Johannesburg South Africa
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
Agreed. I had one chrome valve cover that I sent to an electroplater - they used acid/chemicals to remove all the plating. Got it back amazingly clean, not the slightest hint of any residual plating. It was a nice uniform matt finish, extremely smooth, with made this the easiest of all my ali parts to polish as a result. Dirt cheap too, and no textured finish like you'd get from blasting.robin1731 wrote:An industrial sand blaster can do a decent job. And works well enough to paint/powder coat over it. But like Sunnbobb said the only way to really remove chrome is to take it a chrome palter and have them remove it. Under the chrome is copper and nickel plating. So that needs to come off too.
- sunnbobb
- Facebook Admin
- Posts: 21272
- Joined: Thu Jan 10, 2008 4:09 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/sunnbobb/
- Location: LaConner, WA
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
We won't touch chromed parts, sorry. As for having the chrome removed, it is much cheaper to just buy some used covers and polish them. Bin the chromed ones.
I found the end of the internet
---- Bradshaw Bikes custom polishing for your wing. Visit us on facebook!
1978 Learning Experience
1980 County Road Hauler "Brain Damage"
1978 Cafe Custom Gl1000 "Vyper"
1977 Bulldog Inspired "Vaincre"
1981 Street Fighter GL1100 "No Quarter"
1983 Supercharged Street Drag "Anubis" (in worx)
1983 gl1100 mint restoration "Kristen"
1985 Aspencade..pondering.
---- Bradshaw Bikes custom polishing for your wing. Visit us on facebook!
1978 Learning Experience
1980 County Road Hauler "Brain Damage"
1978 Cafe Custom Gl1000 "Vyper"
1977 Bulldog Inspired "Vaincre"
1981 Street Fighter GL1100 "No Quarter"
1983 Supercharged Street Drag "Anubis" (in worx)
1983 gl1100 mint restoration "Kristen"
1985 Aspencade..pondering.
- rcmatt007
- Treasurer
- Posts: 31305
- Joined: Fri Oct 21, 2005 12:48 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/rcmatt007/
- Location: New River Valley, Virginia
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
agreedsunnbobb wrote:We won't touch chromed parts, sorry. As for having the chrome removed, it is much cheaper to just buy some used covers and polish them. Bin the chromed ones.
-Rodger-
all it takes for evil to prosper is the want of a few good men to do nothing-Edmund Burke
The question is not how much time do you have, it is what you do with the time that you have Gandalf
"One of the greatest dignities of humankind is that each successive generation is invested in the welfare of each new generation." Fred Rodgers
"it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert" ancient saying
78 constantly modified/customized since 1978, BOTM June 2015 de-evolving this very moment viewtopic.php?f=30&t=65511
76 Ltd "cookies bike" ALMOST DONE
79 project, finished, FOR SALE
'86 1200 (Beth's)(FOR SALE) with motorvation sidecar (sidecar sold) , July 2017 BOTM
'17 HD Road king and 08 HD Heritage softail (Beth's) (FOR SALE). I guess you can say we have MBS
all it takes for evil to prosper is the want of a few good men to do nothing-Edmund Burke
The question is not how much time do you have, it is what you do with the time that you have Gandalf
"One of the greatest dignities of humankind is that each successive generation is invested in the welfare of each new generation." Fred Rodgers
"it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert" ancient saying
78 constantly modified/customized since 1978, BOTM June 2015 de-evolving this very moment viewtopic.php?f=30&t=65511
76 Ltd "cookies bike" ALMOST DONE
79 project, finished, FOR SALE
'86 1200 (Beth's)(FOR SALE) with motorvation sidecar (sidecar sold) , July 2017 BOTM
'17 HD Road king and 08 HD Heritage softail (Beth's) (FOR SALE). I guess you can say we have MBS
- robin1731
- Membership Admin
- Posts: 21724
- Joined: Mon May 29, 2006 8:31 am
- Location: Decatur, Indiana
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
rcmatt007 wrote:agreedsunnbobb wrote:We won't touch chromed parts, sorry. As for having the chrome removed, it is much cheaper to just buy some used covers and polish them. Bin the chromed ones.
Yeah, I should have added that. I did have some parts dechromed once. I didn't have any other choice with what it was. Taking the chrome off was as expensive as having them chrome plated. All the chemicals used in that industry make it pretty unfriendly to the environment. Regulations makes the price pretty high.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
- rcmatt007
- Treasurer
- Posts: 31305
- Joined: Fri Oct 21, 2005 12:48 pm
- My Album: http://www.ngwclub.com/gallery/v/wingmans/rcmatt007/
- Location: New River Valley, Virginia
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
"chrome" plating is rather interesting. copper is layed down first to have a smooth surface, then nickle, and finally chrome.... the silvery look is the nickle
-Rodger-
all it takes for evil to prosper is the want of a few good men to do nothing-Edmund Burke
The question is not how much time do you have, it is what you do with the time that you have Gandalf
"One of the greatest dignities of humankind is that each successive generation is invested in the welfare of each new generation." Fred Rodgers
"it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert" ancient saying
78 constantly modified/customized since 1978, BOTM June 2015 de-evolving this very moment viewtopic.php?f=30&t=65511
76 Ltd "cookies bike" ALMOST DONE
79 project, finished, FOR SALE
'86 1200 (Beth's)(FOR SALE) with motorvation sidecar (sidecar sold) , July 2017 BOTM
'17 HD Road king and 08 HD Heritage softail (Beth's) (FOR SALE). I guess you can say we have MBS
all it takes for evil to prosper is the want of a few good men to do nothing-Edmund Burke
The question is not how much time do you have, it is what you do with the time that you have Gandalf
"One of the greatest dignities of humankind is that each successive generation is invested in the welfare of each new generation." Fred Rodgers
"it takes 10,000 hours to become an expert" ancient saying
78 constantly modified/customized since 1978, BOTM June 2015 de-evolving this very moment viewtopic.php?f=30&t=65511
76 Ltd "cookies bike" ALMOST DONE
79 project, finished, FOR SALE
'86 1200 (Beth's)(FOR SALE) with motorvation sidecar (sidecar sold) , July 2017 BOTM
'17 HD Road king and 08 HD Heritage softail (Beth's) (FOR SALE). I guess you can say we have MBS
- robin1731
- Membership Admin
- Posts: 21724
- Joined: Mon May 29, 2006 8:31 am
- Location: Decatur, Indiana
Re: REFINISHING OLD CHROME
rcmatt007 wrote:"chrome" plating is rather interesting. copper is layed down first to have a smooth surface, then nickle, and finally chrome.... the silvery look is the nickle
I like stopping at the nickel part myself. Has a different look and holds up better than the chrome.
1976 Goldwing Super Sport
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
1985 Honda Elite
1976 KZ900 Dragbike
1992 ZX7 Dragbike (KZ900 style motor w/NOS)
and a rotation of various purchases
Randakk approved Carb Rebuilder
-
- Similar Topics
- Replies
- Views
- Last post
-
- 4 Replies
- 709 Views
-
Last post by tomk1960
-
- 15 Replies
- 598 Views
-
Last post by cbrianroll
-
- 26 Replies
- 798 Views
-
Last post by Placerville