Recommendation for Plater

[tbirdman]

I wanted to share a positive experiences I have had with Paul's Chrome Plating I just got back the top for the battery box and great job. It had replated once by someone else but the job had issues with pitting in the grooves. It was a very difficult piece to do. They also did a very nice job on my plating next year. Had a small issue but was quickly resolved with a rework. Also the parts come back double boxed. All parts are phtographed when received and a contract must be signed before work starts. Only downside is Pauls requires payment up front.

For those looking to do plating on a budget, Pauls won't be for you but excellent high quality work. This is not to knock any other plater, but just in case any one is looking at Paul's.

[Guest imported_Speedster]

I've been very happy with 'Quality Bumper' in Dallas. Even tho their name implies they only do bumpers, they can plate any parts. I can't talk them into doing German-silver plating, tho.

They have a 'rework if not happy garantee' also, and you only pay when you're happy with it. I had a '56 hood orniment that they plated 3 times and never could get it without bubbles in the base metal, so they did Not charge me for it. I took them another one and it went thru the first time.

Their prices have about trippled in the last 5 years, but so have all the other plating shops around here. But I do a lot of the prep work, so they reduce the price accordingly.

[tbirdman]

This item was giving Pauls fit, and sat for awhile as the workers were discourage but it finally got through. The problem with chrome it cost the same no matter if it's high or low dollar car. The only thing you can do if you want to deduce cost is request less quality. Places like Paul will only do show chrome but some will do less than show for less money.

What kind of prep work do you do to reduce the cost?

[Guest imported_Speedster]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: tbirdman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">What kind of prep work do you do to reduce the cost? </div></div>

Well, on pieces like headlights, taillights, I work out the dents, solder up small cracks, sand and buff any scratches, etc. On large items like bumpers, I straighten any bends or dents, grind and sand out any rust pits, scratches, etc.

In other words, what ever is needed to prepare the pieces to be plated, so they can just do a quick buffing and throw them in the tank.

You have to remember, with most of my parts, I'm starting with Junk and making it usable again. That's REAL Restoration!

[Matt Harwood]

The prep work is why chrome is so expensive. The actual dipping process is [relatively] cheap, environmental and equipment considerations notwithstanding. A pitted piece will cost a fortune simply because the pits must be filled, polished, refilled, plated, polished, etc. Many cheap places merely grind down the piece until the pits are mostly gone, then build up layers of copper on the piece until the pits are no longer visible. Of course, detail is lost, too. The best guys will solder the pits and work them out before doing any plating, then the copper strike coat is just to fix very minor imperfections. This is all 100% hand labor. A perfect piece may require fifteen or twenty hours of work, depending on size and complexity. Big pieces maybe more.

This is why I always look for the best base stock I can find before sending it off to the plater. Right now, I have about 10 '41 Buick grilles, buying them hoping that each will be better than the last. Some are crap, but I now have 2/3 of a '41 Buick grille that has <span style="font-style: italic">never been plated</span> or installed on a car. The pieces are flawless. It should be very economical (relatively) to plate. Now if I could only find that right side grille...

Dig this (photo from Bob's Caroholic.com site):

One was carefully repaired and plated, the other was simply ground down and coated with copper until the damage was gone, although you can still see some pitting. I guarantee you'll never be happy with anything but show chrome, and the costs aren't vastly different.

That's what you're paying for.

[Guest imported_Speedster]

Yes, Plating is like Painting.

Without a smooth surface to put it on, it's Not gonna look good.

Silver-solder is one filler that can be used on some parts to be chromed, but the plater needs to know that you have used fillers, so they won't etch it away during cleaning.