Summary for chrome removal from aluminum Discussion
Chrome removal from aluminum Harley parts is the core issue here: Jamie Miller asked how to strip chrome from aluminum rocker boxes after salt water only partially helped and left stubborn spots. The only answer in the thread, from an unnamed plating-shop adviser, says the parts should be taken to a plating shop because the finish is not just chrome but layers of at least three metals—copper, nickel, and chrome—over aluminum. According to that advice, removing it properly requires sophisticated chemistry to dissolve the plating stack, not a simple home remedy. The discussion does not offer a do-it-yourself stripping method or a safer shortcut, and the practical takeaway is that professional plating expertise is needed to avoid damaging the aluminum base metal.
Q. I am building a Harley and need to remove the chrome from the rocker boxes. Do you know of anything that would work. Have tried salt water and it helped but left big spots that won’t come off. Any suggestions.
Thank you
Jamie Miller
hobbyist – Cleveland, TN, United States
2004
A. You need to take these to a plating shop, Jamie. There are layers of at least three different metals (copper, nickel, chrome) on top of the aluminum, and it requires sophisticated chemistry to dissolve them.
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com – Pine Beach, New Jersey
Need quick confidential answers? $25
Need project assistance? $100/hr.
2004