Hard Chrome??

[55 Fargo]

Hi all, have a friend who does industrial hard chome, powder coat etc.

I may have him do my bumpers in hard chrome, the first piece I will have test chromed is my hood lip trim.

He also suggested having the engine head, manifolds, t/stat housing done too.

I am hoping this can look not too bad, as I cannot afford nickel chrome plating at the moment.

So anyone know about hard chome, and what to expect.....Fred

[Tony_Urwin]

Never heard of it. I have heard of flash chrome (chrome over stainless) which is usually found on hubcaps. Standard triple-chrome plating is copper, then nickel, then a final thin coating of chromium. Don't know what hard chrome would consist of...

[Big_John]

Hard chrome is generally for a wear surface like a crankshaft. Its not "shiny" like decorative chrome and its much thicker. Lots of times its used to build back up a worn surface.

I think you are talking about one of those spray on coatings that are supposed to mimic chrome. I've heard good things about it, but I understand it looks more like polished metal.

[55 Fargo]

Hard chrome is generally for a wear surface like a crankshaft. Its not "shiny" like decorative chrome and its much thicker. Lots of times its used to build back up a worn surface.

I think you are talking about one of those spray on coatings that are supposed to mimic chrome. I've heard good things about it, but I understand it looks more like polished metal.

This is a hard chrome plating as you have mentioned, for a lot of industrial uses, such as hydraulic pistons, bearing races, not as shiny and mirror like triple plating, but the price will be right, next to nothing.

It is not a spray on coating, but done in a plating tank...........

[greg g]

Hard Chrome Plating

Most people would not be very familiar with hard chrome plating. Hard chrome plating is chrome plating that has been applied as a fairly heavy coating (usually measured in thousandths of an inch) for wear resistance, lubricity, oil retention, and other 'wear' purposes. Some examples would be hydraulic cylinder rods, rollers, piston rings, mold surfaces, thread guides, gun bores, etc. 'Hard chrome' is not really harder than other chrome plating, it is called hard chromium because it is thick enough that a hardness measurement can be performed on it, whereas decorative chrome plating is only millionths of an inch thick and will break like an eggshell if a hardness test is conducted, so its hardness can't really be measured directly.

Hard chrome plating is almost always applied to items that are made of steel, usually hardened steel. It is metallic in appearance but is not particularly reflective or decorative. Hard chrome plating is not a finish that you would want on a wheel or bumper.

There are variations even within hard chrome plating, with some of the coatings optimized to be especially porous for oil retention, etc., others "thin dense chrome", and so on.

Many shops who do hard chrome plating do no other kind of plating at all, because their business is designed to serve only engineered, wear-type, needs. If a shop says they do 'hard chrome only', they have no service that most consumers would be interested in.

Might have an effect on how thing fit after plating.

[Eneto-55]

I worked in a plating shop back in the 70's and early 80's, and while our shop did industrial chrome, I was seldom involved with it - I worked on the zinc, tin (both hot & bright), copper, nickel (both hot & bright), and cadmium lines. Occasionally I got involved with a bit of chrome - they had a contract with Zebco to chrome plate their fishing reel crank handles. That was copper-nickel-chrome (on pot metal). Generally, though, the chrome shop plated aircraft crank shafts. They had a machine shop too, and they would turn the journals down to true them up, then plate back to specs. Afterwards we would bead blast the crank (with the journals covered with tape) and then hot tin plate the rest of the crank.

The advantage of triple plating is that the copper plating is more water proof than either nickel or chrome (as I recall, certainly more so than nickel). (I nickel plated (w/o doing copper first) the fan blade on my 62 Chrysler, and it didn't take long before it was covered in pin-hole rust.) I stand to be corrected, but I would say that that is the main disadvantage of 'hard chrome' - that it will rust. In the mechanical application it is in oil, so it obviously does not need the extra protection that the copper provides, and copper is relatively soft, so it would actually be a weakness. One of the owner's buddies had a 32 shoebox hot rod, and he grinded, polished, and chromed his idler arms. They were very polished when he finished with them. (I often stayed after quiting time and workd on parts for my P-15 - the owners were the greatest, to allow me to do most anything in there.)

Neto

[55 Fargo]

I worked in a plating shop back in the 70's and early 80's, and while our shop did industrial chrome, I was seldom involved with it - I worked on the zinc, tin (both hot & bright), copper, nickel (both hot & bright), and cadmium lines. Occasionally I got involved with a bit of chrome - they had a contract with Zebco to chrome plate their fishing reel crank handles. That was copper-nickel-chrome (on pot metal). Generally, though, the chrome shop plated aircraft crank shafts. They had a machine shop too, and they would turn the journals down to true them up, then plate back to specs. Afterwards we would bead blast the crank (with the journals covered with tape) and then hot tin plate the rest of the crank.

The advantage of triple plating is that the copper plating is more water proof than either nickel or chrome (as I recall, certainly more so than nickel). (I nickel plated (w/o doing copper first) the fan blade on my 62 Chrysler, and it didn't take long before it was covered in pin-hole rust.) I stand to be corrected, but I would say that that is the main disadvantage of 'hard chrome' - that it will rust. In the mechanical application it is in oil, so it obviously does not need the extra protection that the copper provides, and copper is relatively soft, so it would actually be a weakness. One of the owner's buddies had a 32 shoebox hot rod, and he grinded, polished, and chromed his idler arms. They were very polished when he finished with them. (I often stayed after quiting time and workd on parts for my P-15 - the owners were the greatest, to allow me to do most anything in there.)

Neto

A Buddy, works in this shop, and he will be doing some hard chroming of some parts, but both of us are considering to do my bumpers, wonder if I could shoot clear coat over them afterwards to protect and get them shinier.

I am willing to do my bumpers in hard chrome, as the price is right, can't be any worst than my scracthed, peeling rust spotted bumpers I have now......Fred

[RobertKB]

Fred, wait until you have the money to do a proper chroming job. Nothing wrong with worn out bumpers that need redoing. The "hard chrome" sounds like a desperation measure that you likely won't be happy with. Keep searching the internet for a good used set as well. Sometimes second choice is bad choice.

[55 Fargo]

Fred, wait until you have the money to do a proper chroming job. Nothing wrong with worn out bumpers that need redoing. The "hard chrome" sounds like a desperation measure that you likely won't be happy with. Keep searching the internet for a good used set as well. Sometimes second choice is bad choice.

True enough, will have him do something small like the hood lip trim and see hwat it looks like......Fred

[chopt50wgn]

Do not shoot clear over the chrome. For any type paint (clear is a paint) you have to have a "tooth" for the paint to bond to. So unless you want to sand the bumper, just give it a good wax and forget it.

[Eneto-55]

Chrome, whether over copper-nickel or single-plate "hard" chrome, is a metal, and can be polished like any other metal. I don't think that the shine would be noticably different, if you prepare the surface (steel) properly. It is a coating of whatever surface you put it on, and so imperfections will show through. As I understand, and this is outside of my actual experience, the copper plating is utilized as a leveling layer, much as primer is in painting. In other words, it is polished or buffed before the piece goes on to the next stage. It may well be done by putting on a fairly heavy plating of copper, buffing, then going back in the copper tank for another thinner plating (of course after being chemically washed again - probably acid-etched, again, outside of my actual experience). Plating in itself is more revealing of what is below the surface than paint is, because it is thinner. So the preparation of the steel before any plating is done is very important. If there is deep pitting or scratches into the steel, then regardless of the method of plating, the best result will come from repair of the surface before any plating is done. This must of course all be done with actual steel - it must be able to go through the proper type of acid etch before the plating process, and I don't think that something like brazing will survive this step.

Regarding pot metal, I'm pretty sure that it must be plated with copper and nickel first, for adherance. (Aluminum is additionally zinc coated before the copper plate.)

I am fairly confident about these statements, but it has been nearly 30 years since I worked in this field, so I welcome corrections to my comments here - no offense will be taken.

Neto

Edited September 25, 2010 by Eneto-55
spelling

[Big_John]

I think your mind is made up and nothing can be said here to change it.

My suggestion is to read up on this before you have anything done. Read especially about the role of the nickel layer in corrosion resistance and reflectivity. Then if you still want to have your stuff hard chromed, fine, but remember if you decide you don't like the look of the hard chrome plating, it will have to be stripped off before you have it done again.

[BobT-47P15]

Fred, do you have any extra, spare chrome items to let him do first.....

to see if you like the results? A bumper, a guard, some trim piece???

[Eneto-55]

And stripping chrome off of steel is a touchy business. Not like cadmium, for instance, which muriatic or phosphoric acid will strip off without attacking the steel itself.

[55 Fargo]

Hi Guys, I have the hood lip trim, that will be done as a test, and we shall see what the quality will be like.

To get myfront and rear bumpers replated for my 47 Chrysler will be approximately $800.00 from a chrome plater, that would be triple chrome, bumpers staightened up etc.

The hard chrome route was a possible low budget alternative, and it would not cost me very much. The bupers would still be stripped in an acid tank I think.

I have not made up my mind either way, but lean toward not doing it, but if it can be done with okay results,why not. Time will tell, hopefully will have a test piece done soon...............Fred

[Don Coatney]

With hard chromed bumpers will your chances of survival in a crash be better?

[55 Fargo]

With hard chromed bumpers will your chances of survival in a crash be better?

only if your name is "Billy Crash Craddock"

[55 Fargo]

Here is a pic of a 30s grille, zinc plated, it was buffed on 1 end, and is quite shiny, but certainly not like nickel plated chrome.

I am letting this Guy do my hood lip trim, with this, but will pass on my bumpers.......