Getting small vintage bits re-chromed ?

[still me]

Anyone had any re-chroming of small vintage bits like QR skewers done?
If so, was the pricing outrageous? Does the guy at the chrome place
laugh when you bring in a handful of bike parts? Does it make more
sense to just to scour for some NOS or barely used parts?

[* * Chas]

"still me" <wheeledBob@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:623ec3p18seuucacdeg48en1uu0ebuaqnh@4ax.com...
> Anyone had any re-chroming of small vintage bits like QR skewers done?
> If so, was the pricing outrageous? Does the guy at the chrome place
> laugh when you bring in a handful of bike parts? Does it make more
> sense to just to scour for some NOS or barely used parts?
>

There's a product called Evapo-rust that will easily remove rust from any
iron or steel part.

http://www.evaporust.com/

I met the people who produce and market the stuff at IMTS - The
International Manufacturing Technology Show in Chicago a few years ago.
Other than that I have no connection to the product.

Being a complete skeptic about these kinds of products I thought it was
just some new kind of snake oil until I saw several demonstrations. The
stuff is pretty amazing.

Don Gillies used Evapo-rust to remove the rust from a severely corroded
frame:

http://www.ece.ubc.ca/~gillies/raleigh/international/Carlton77.html

I've been using it a lot lately to remove rust from my vintage bike
components. I start off by removing all grease, oil and dirt with a
solvent. Next I remove as much rust as I can with fine steel wool. I've
found most of the thick rust can be gently scraped off with a small screw
driver being careful not to scratch the chrome or surface.

I usually leave the parts sit in a small plastic container of Evapo-rust
for at least 24 hours. I remove the parts, rinse them with water and dry
them off. The parts will have a dark gray to black finish in the formerly
rusted area. This is just carbon that comes off easily.

A light polishing with extra fine steel wool usually leaves an acceptable
finish that can't be detected from several feet away.

You will need to coat the parts with a light grease or oil or a plastic
spray to keep them from rusting again.

I have a 1982-3 vintage frame that had a lot of rust around the bottom
bracket and brazed-on cable guides. I soaked it in Evapo-rust for 2 days a
nd it came clean.

I use Q-tips soaked in Evapo-rust in the top tube brake cable guides to
remove rust in those areas. It takes several days of repeated applications
but it gets the job done. I remove the crusted rust first with a
screwdriver or similar tool.

So far Evapo-rust hasn't caused any problems with plating, paint or other
metals like aluminum or brass. It doesn't have much of a smell and you
don't need gloves to work with the stuff.

There are several places in NorCal that will do re-chroming work but the
parts will need to be stripped of previous plating first. The minimum
charge is going to be at least $50 USD.

Chas.

[jim beam]

still me wrote:
> Anyone had any re-chroming of small vintage bits like QR skewers done?
> If so, was the pricing outrageous? Does the guy at the chrome place
> laugh when you bring in a handful of bike parts? Does it make more
> sense to just to scour for some NOS or barely used parts?
>
>
i used to work for a chrome plating company, and we would take on small
projects like this. but it's a real pita and we'd charge the earth
accordingly. imo, it's not worth it - just polish what you have or get
nos - shiny doesn't affect mechanical performance.

ps. chrome platers are pretty scarce stateside these days. difficult
environmentally.

[Donald Gillies]

Prices for plating have doubled in my area (San Diego) in the past 24
months. For anything QR-sized or smaller, I now prefer a $20 dremel
($40 for the whole kit from costco), especially for the brass brush
and the flap wheel, plus a $34 brush plating set from
www.caswellplating.com ("plug-n-plate"). WHile you're there get some
800, 1200 sandpaper, and get some 1500 or 2000-grit paper and polish
at your local autoparts store.

The chromer will leave your bits in the muriatic acid for too long,
giving them a "melted" look. Home plating is much more gentle and
does a better job of preserving vintage logos. I have several
PAGNOLO skewers to prove it!! REV AMP!! TENT!

- Don "NOLO" Gillies
San Diego, CA

[!Jones]

On Sat, 18 Aug 2007 15:14:59 GMT, in rec.bicycles.tech still me
<wheeledBob@yahoo.com> wrote:

>Anyone had any re-chroming of small vintage bits like QR skewers done?
>If so, was the pricing outrageous? Does the guy at the chrome place
>laugh when you bring in a handful of bike parts? Does it make more
>sense to just to scour for some NOS or barely used parts?

I guess it's "yes" to all. What has helped me was to read and learn
about the plating process. About 50% of the cost is in chemical
disposal and, in most states, platers must be bonded before they can
buy the chemicals. It's a nasty business!!!

But read up on how plating thickness is measured and talk in those
terms; hint that you have a probe or that you're going to have it
tested and get the thickness in *writing*!!! 1 mil of chrome looks
good... at first.

I once managed a manufacturing area where we did gold plating... not
that I know squat about the details. One day I was inspecting and
noticed that one of my techs had beautifully gold plated tools.
Needless to say, he packed up his tools! I mean... how frequently
could he have used them?

Jones