Plastic Chrome

[Anonymous]

Hi guys,
Is there a way to redo Japanese Chrome? There is a part between the tailsection and the lens cover of my 1100 but the plastic chrome has come off. The result is a band of yellowed plastic showing instead of the chrome.

Thanks in advance, Steve

[Dink]

most places that do real chroming can also do plastic chrome, and if they cant they will know who can.
Dink

[KEITH KRAUSE]

I had some plastic re-chromed (turn signals)and it came out looking fine.
But a word of caution,some chromers will use a layer of copper under the nickel/chrome.This layer is thicker than you think and can cause fit problems. It interfered with my rubber seal between lens and signal body.The extra layer on the lip that seal rests in won't allow lens to tighten down water tight. I later changed to mini-stalks so it does'nt matter. But I bet your tail trim would possibly give you trouble too. You can tell the chromer to not use the copper layer.The copper makes the chrome more resistant to wear,etc,I believe. But it's not necessary for your needs.
I'm glad I found this out before I had some carb/petcock parts done,they would have been ruined or I would have had to get them all stripped. Also,be real carefull not to 'flex' the trim when you put it back on,the chrome can crack. They wanted $25 to do each signal,to give you an idea of cost.Sometimes if you have several parts to chrome you'll get a 'bulk' discount,so if you're considering doing other parts now is best time. Hope this helps! KK.
PS:If your trim is partly secured with 2 'snap-fit' clips like mine,the extra layer would almost certainly interfere with how they snap onto trim also.

[Anonymous]

Eastwood makes a spray paint called Reflective Aluminum p/n 1283z. I picked some up for the Volkswagen resto but never used it. I plan on using it on the GS1100 plastics.

I sanded down the edges on the front reflectors in the headlight housing and will try it sometime tomorrow. I'll let you know how it looks, maybe post some pics on JB's website. The cap cover looks good (nice and shiney) so if it looks this way when sprayed it will be perfect.

[crag antler]

Eastwood makes a spray paint

Hey Swanny, I just got an Eastwood's catalog in the mail. It seems to be full of some good stuff. What is your input on their quality of product?
Thanks, Doug

[Anonymous]

You might just want to head down to autozone or whatever your local store is. They usually carry chrome-in-a-can. It worked well for my buddys rearend on his truck (well, it looks stupid, but thats his own fault for chroming an ENTIRE rear end on a broncoII).


-=Whittey=-

[mcycle-nut]

You might just want to head down to autozone or whatever your local store is. They usually carry chrome-in-a-can. It worked well for my buddys rearend on his truck (well, it looks stupid, but thats his own fault for chroming an ENTIRE rear end on a broncoII).


-=Whittey=-

Eewwww! 8O

[Anonymous]

I tried the Eastwood stuff and the ruslts were less than desirable. I may just paint all of the crome parts black and forget them. If you are looking for the original look this may not be for you.

[Anonymous]

I've posted this before. A company in California that can put a chome plate finish on ANYTHING!!!!!

http://www.alsacorp.com/

Just email them. They answered me within a couple days. Send them pictures of what you want chromed and they will send you a price quote for the work.
Real Chome plate is clear. Copper is needed as a base to plate the nickel to because that is the "color" you see. The thickness of the nickel will make a difference on the lasting quality of your chrome plate. The copper they are putting on the plastic is a copper based paint that can be several mils thicker than the plating on top of it.

[Anonymous]

We had that plastic chrome problem on my brothers virago. We sanded it down and sprey painted the rings the same color as the bike.

[Doze]

Steve, sand off all that nasty chrome with some 600 grit sand paper then go back over it with some 1000. Wipe it down with some wax and grease remover or alcohol and spray it with a good quality rattle can semi-gloss black paint. You'll be much happier with the results than chrome in a can, trust me on this one.
Doze.