Metal finishing Q&As since 1989
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Need info about how to chrome plate a metal sculpture
Q. I make metal sculptures by welding junk (bearings, connecting rods, saw blades, valves, etc. etc.) together to make a sculpture of people, animals and dinosaurs. I want to get them chrome plated, how would the finish look since there are so many different surfaces and textures. Would it shine all over like chrome? What would a piece of metal that has been lightly sandblasted look like if it was chrome plated?
Where could I send something like this to be plated.
Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
- Millersburg, Pennsylvania
2001
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A. You can probably have such an object nickel plated at reasonable cost, William. Chrome has very little "throwing power" for plating any recesses and would require complicated making custom jigs. Our Jobshops Directory (see button at bottom of page) includes a good number of nickel and nickel-chrome plating shops.
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
Q. I'd like to find out how to shortcut the learning process of chroming odd shaped parts.
Ted Karet- Denver, Colorado, USA
2005
A. Shields, thieves, and auxiliary anodes are the tools for chroming odd shaped parts, Ted. What is your level of knowledge and experience in plating? If you are already successfully doing chrome plating on parts that are not odd shaped, just look up those terms.
If you have no plating experience at all it is a long road in front of you. But you can start with our
Chrome Plating Tutorial, and then move on to books about chrome plating such as Guffie's "Hard Chromium Plating" [on
Amazon
affil link]
or
"Chrome Plating" [on
Amazon, or
AbeBooks]
by Weiner & Walmsley. Good luck.
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2005
Q. I'm looking to open a chrome shop in my area. Either where can I find the info I need or what would I need to do this?
Jason Randall HavlikEntrepreneur - Charles City, Iowa USA
2007
A. Hello, Jason. Have you read our "Introduction to Chrome Plating"? Try to get one of the books we mentioned from your library, or perhaps the Metal Finishing Guidebook. See if you can attend a local AESF meeting (www.nasf.org). Is there any chance you might like to work as a chrome plater for a little while so you gain some real knowledge of it, or will you be trying to hire a plater? One of the consultants listed in our directory can help you start scoping out some suitable real estate and sizing up the equipment you need. Good luck. Thanks.
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2007
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