copy chrome

[79-GS550-L]

It has a generic name, but I don't know it. Caswell plating calls it "copy chrome". Whereas real chrome plating is copper, then nickel, then chrome, this stuff is copper, then nickel doped with cobalt (among other things). It is supposedly just as strong as chrome, and just as reflective and bluish, almost impossible to tell apart by eye. It apparently tarnishes a bit more easily but the tarnishing can be buffed out with a bit of polish, whereas chrome tarnish has to be stripped out and re-plated. That's all according to the Caswell forums though, so I take it with a grain of salt.

Has anyone ever used this stuff, or seen it? It is MUCH cheaper than real chrome, and I'm seriously considering buying a plating kit. Caswell sells 4.5 gal triple chrome (copper+nickel+chrome) kits for $940 and copper+Copy Chrome kits for around $500.

[Jd Powell]

Dunno how much of your bike your trying to chrome, but that dosent sound cheaper at all. Plus the reduced lifespan would make me steer very clear.

[hampshirehog]

Why not just knock up your own nickle plating kit for a fraction of the cost (you can get all the stuff from your local chemist & hardware store). You can either go straight nickle (which means you have to polish the object really well before plating) or do a 2 stage process with copper plating first (easier polishing involved as the copper evens out some imperfections). Without the polishing you can still get a nice finish - a sort of 'matt chrome' if that makes sense.

I used to do my own plating years ago and keep meaning to do the same again. If I can do it, it must be easy - we did it at school with a battery, a beaker of solution and a coin. If you put the effort in you can nickle plate a very shiny finish. Yes, it tarnishes (but not as quickly as aluminium) and you can buff it back to a shine quickly.

Oh yeah - the part must be 100% grease free (not even finger tips allowed) or the plating falls off. No need to ask how I know!

Wally

[79-GS550-L]

Hmm, well $500 is roughly half the price. If you meant it doesn't sound cheaper than having a pro do it, then you're right, except the 4.5 gal kit is supposed to cover 45000 sq ft! I've got some friends who want some parts plated too, so I'm sure I can dig up enough parts to make this pay for itself quickly. Plus I can do my own repairs & restoration, which is cool.

I thought about doing just nickel plating, but I have a nickel plated guitar (national resophonic) and it's absolutely gorgeous but requires polishing every time you so much as look at it. If you put a fingerprint on it and don't wipe it off, the print will turn to tarnish a few weeks later and you need to use chemical chrome polish and lots of elbow grease to restore it.

As for putting my own kit together, I don't know what kind of results/consistency I could get. The kits also come with tech support (which is supposed to be very good). I'm thinking since I have no experience with this I should bite the bullet on a premade supported kit, and then just go the chemist route to replenish solutions or upgrade the size

So back to this nickel/cobalt thing... anyone know it's generic name? It looks terrific on paper, but I'm still curious about real-world performance (tarnish resistance, durability). Oh and it has the advantage (like plain nickel) of being much less toxic than chrome plating, so I wouldn't need to worry about fumes.

[lecroy]

I have not heard of it but would be interested in hearing how it holds up to heat.

I had an exhaust stripped and plated with the ceramic aluminum a few years ago and it is holding up very well. Its not rated for the temperatures that this bikes exhaust reaches, but so far it still looks new. This was the company I used:

http://www.airborncoatings.com/aluminum.html

[79-GS550-L]

heat! yeah that's a good thing to check, I forgot about that I'll inquire with the caswell people about that. Although I don't even know if any parts of the exhaust would fit in a kit that small.

Does anyone know anything about brush-plating kits? Basically you brush on the solution and electroplate on the spot instead of submerging the whole part. It's useful for large parts that can't easily fit in a tank or for complex parts you don't want to do a butt-ton of masking on (for example, chrome plating the very tips of the engine fins). It's supposed to not leave any brush marks. Are there any disadvantages? It sounds almost too good to be true.

[79-GS550-L]

I have not heard of it but would be interested in hearing how it holds up to heat.

I had an exhaust stripped and plated with the ceramic aluminum a few years ago and it is holding up very well. Its not rated for the temperatures that this bikes exhaust reaches, but so far it still looks new. This was the company I used:

http://www.airborncoatings.com/aluminum.html

That stuff looks quite nice. How much did they charge to do your exhaust? And how does it look in person? Would it look out of place against chrome (fenders, etc)? I haven't been able to find any info yet on whether the copy chrome withstands exhaust temps. And I'm not sure whether I could even fit one of these megaphones in 4.5 gal of liquid!

[dardoonk]

the 4.5 gal kit is supposed to cover 45000 sq ft!

Really?? That's like 10,000 fuel tanks :shock:.... barely one penny per square foot. :?

[lecroy]

That stuff looks quite nice. How much did they charge to do your exhaust? And how does it look in person? Would it look out of place against chrome (fenders, etc)? I haven't been able to find any info yet on whether the copy chrome withstands exhaust temps. And I'm not sure whether I could even fit one of these megaphones in 4.5 gal of liquid!

They rated the plating for 1200F and I was a little concerned about using it. I explained to them I was running about 1300F for a very short time and they said it would be no problem. Looks like they now have an intermittent temperature called out. It's holding up good. I heard of a few guys using their product on street bikes with good luck.

I had the header, crossover and exhaust pipe all done. It wasn't over $200. Considering they had to strip the old chome and the rust, then plate them. It's been a few years, so I would just call them for a quote. They give a rough price sheet too. http://www.airborncoatings.com/index3.html

The picture is not the best. We had the kids sidewinder done at the same time by another company and it looks more like that silver spary paint than anything (similar to the hot jet jobs I have seen). This coating has a much nicer shine to it. But sha ain't no show bike...

[renobruce]

They rated the plating for 1200F and I was a little concerned about using it. I explained to them I was running about 1300F for a very short time and they said it would be no problem. Looks like they now have an intermittent temperature called out. It's holding up good. I heard of a few guys using their product on street bikes with good luck.

I had the header, crossover and exhaust pipe all done. It wasn't over $200. Considering they had to strip the old chome and the rust, then plate them. It's been a few years, so I would just call them for a quote. They give a rough price sheet too. http://www.airborncoatings.com/index3.html

The picture is not the best. We had the kids sidewinder done at the same time by another company and it looks more like that silver spary paint than anything (similar to the hot jet jobs I have seen). This coating has a much nicer shine to it. But sha ain't no show bike...

That's really nice! I just emailed them regarding any other colors, such as a glossy black. Thanks for the link!

[79-GS550-L]

Really?? That's like 10,000 fuel tanks :shock:.... barely one penny per square foot. :?

lol. Ok, I read it a little more carefully now. It said " The Chrome solution will plate over 1000 sq. ft/gal of decorative chrome, & for most operations should not need replacement." But they're talking about the liquid itself. The anode will need replacing much more frequently. They don't say how often for the chrome anode but the copper and nickel will plate 60 sq feet before the anode needs replacing. Of course the anodes are much cheaper than the chemical kits, being simply chunks of copper/nickel/chrome I believe.

Guess that's what happens when you skim... :-D