Where would I go to get something chrome plated?

[Christopher561]

I was gonna take a bike that needs a pain job. Strip it or sand it really fine then put a chrome finnish on it. Is there a local place that may do this? I want the top grade stuff not that spray can stuff i mean a whole frame dip. My dad said it would be exspensive any sudjestions of who to call? il do a google later on.

[poptom]

Dismantle it completely including the bottom bracket, head bearing races, wheel alignment screws, and seatpost clamp.. Don't sand it.

Find a plating shop in your area (yellow pages) and take the frame in for a quote. Best to try different shops. They may chemically strip the paint or they may prefer that you do it. Anyway, they will have to dip it for degreasing.

There is a lot of hand work on their part. They will plate it first with copper and polish it out. Maybe two or three times. This is what makes it smooth and shiny. Then they will plate with nickel and then chrome.

It will cost more than a good paint job but it may not be too expensive. It's the labor in polishing out the copper that is the biggest part of the job.

Good luck and post back here about what you do.

[Christopher561]

Originally posted by poptom
Dismantle it completely including the bottom bracket, head bearing races, wheel alignment screws, and seatpost clamp.. Don't sand it.

Find a plating shop in your area (yellow pages) and take the frame in for a quote. Best to try different shops. They may chemically strip the paint or they may prefer that you do it. Anyway, they will have to dip it for degreasing.

There is a lot of hand work on their part. They will plate it first with copper and polish it out. Maybe two or three times. This is what makes it smooth and shiny. Then they will plate with nickel and then chrome.

It will cost more than a good paint job but it may not be too expensive. It's the labor in polishing out the copper that is the biggest part of the job.

Good luck and post back here about what you do.

one question what would i be looking up in the yellow pages "Chrome"?

[Mark]

try looking under plating

[Rainbow]

yeah use the phone book and do some research on your own. To have something chromed is more than you can afford though.

[RoundEye]

If you are making a low rider bicycle fine, but if you need it for off road or something, don't do it.
I would bet that all of that plating adds anywhere from 20-40 pounds.
I've done mag wheels for customers motorbikes(sent them off), then they come back and complain how heavy they are and how much harder it is to turn the bike. You add 20 pounds to a wheel, then get it spinning at 55mph on the Interstate, it feels a lot more heavy then it is.

Also stay away from those "chrome paints". They are nothing more than silver paint.

[poptom]

The cost will really be determined by the condition of the frame. If it's not pitted with rust, it may not cost any more than a professional paint job and I don't think it will weigh any more than paint. It's worth checking out.

[RoundEye]

poptom, I'm going to have to respectfully disagree you. When I was building custom motorbikes, some people wanted parts painted others wanted them chrome. The same parts that were chromed were way more heavy then the painted parts. Even though it's a thin layer the weight of the copper and nickel added up, if it was a large part.

Also talking about a triple plated pro job too.

If we weren't careful and didn't plug or seal off all of the holes, we would have to remove the crome afterwards, by either grinding it out or retapping it, if it was a threaded hole.

In some spots it was pretty thick.

I still stand by what I said about the wheels, they are much heavier after chroming. I used to have to remove the wheel from the bike, then strip off the tire, bearings, disk and such.

When that wheel came back it was a whole lot heavier. Maybe not 20 pounds, but noticeably more heavy.

[poptom]

RoundEye:

OK. I suppose the wheels would be heavier since mag wheels have a lot of surface area.

I understand the effect it would have on wheels. Most of the added weight is added at the rim portion, around the periphery, where the rotating mass would have by far the greatest effect. I'm not surprised that you would feel the difference in handling but I think it's due more to the distribution of the weight rather than the weight itself.

You are right about the threads getting messed up. He will have to re-tap the smaller holes but maybe not the bottom bracket. If that's too tight, a pro bike shop will have the tools to clean up those threads.

[Christopher561]

i think its just a 20 inch. just for road riding. i would sand it down and also remove the chain, gear, peddles, and Ect.. that shouldnt be that hard to do. just give a round or ballpark figure of how much it might cost?

[Christopher561]

Originally posted by Rainbow
yeah use the phone book and do some research on your own. To have something chromed is more than you can afford though.

gezz whats your prob im just asking a simple question..

[poptom]

I have no idea what it might cost. I don't think it would be terribly expensive. Factory chromed bikes don't cost any more than painted. I had a frame cad plated once for about $12 but there was no polishing or multiple plating involved.

Don't sand it. That will only add scratches that they would have to fill with copper.

The left crank bearing retainer is probably left hand thread and very tight. You can knock out the head bearing races with a sawed off broom handle. These are parts you would remove anyway if you painted it.

[Christopher561]

Originally posted by poptom
I have no idea what it might cost. I don't think it would be terribly expensive. Factory chromed bikes don't cost any more than painted. I had a frame cad plated once for about $12 but there was no polishing or multiple plating involved.

Don't sand it. That will only add scratches that they would have to fill with copper.

The left crank bearing retainer is probably left hand thread and very tight. You can knock out the head bearing races with a sawed off broom handle. These are parts you would remove anyway if you painted it.

well i built the bike. so every thing is still loose. yikes i already took about a quarter size pice of paint off with course sandpaper. on the bottom where the peddles get attached i mean where all the bearings are.

[Mark]

chris what kind of bike is it ? what brand ? because if it is a pos i would not bother with plating it, just paint it.

what i mean is dont spend $200 to chrome plate a $100 dollar bike. just an idea

[Christopher561]

Originally posted by the snake
chris what kind of bike is it ? what brand ? because if it is a pos i would not bother with plating it, just paint it.

what i mean is dont spend $200 to chrome plate a $100 dollar bike. just an idea

its a old dyno it was a BMX bike its black. and it was free from my cuz, MY cuz's father is a police officer and then the bike wasent claimed in 90 days or something so he got it and gave it to me for my birth day. just like this one except its black http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=1819387025

[poptom]

Oh, I think it's worth looking into as long as you want chrome. It's a small frame and may not cost too much. It may already be plated under the black paint. If that's the case, all you need to do is use paint stripper on it.

[Rainbow]

Your the problem...make some phone calls and do your own research. There chrome shops all over the city!