Anybody have experience with chrome plating?

[Corrupt_rev]

I'm almost finished up with the paintwork on the play field features of my machine. Each time I finish a piece and put it back on, I'm bothered more and more by the chrome frame.

I was able to polish out the outer door frame, but the inner frame and lower panel (where the feed tray is) are pitted beyond the scope of my abilities. Initially, I was just going to paint these parts, but I have a feeling that I just won't be happy with the results.

The pitting is to the point where I'm fairly certain that they will need to be copper plated and polished before they can be chromed.

Has anybody gone through this? I tried googling to get an idea of price but all my search results pertain to bumpers and wheels. I know I could probably look around and wait for the opportunity to buy replacements, but if cost isn't too horribly prohibitive, I'd rather re-plate what I've got. There's just something about refurbishing the original parts that is very satisfying to me.

I believe there is a plating place in the next town over but it would be ideal if I had some sort of baseline to go off of to make sure that I don't end up paying more than I should.

Thanks in advance for any input you may offer,
~Rev

[MrGneiss]

I'm no vintage expert but I do believe a few have re chromed frames, but I think it was in the hundreds of dollars.. I'm sure others that actually know will be along to post soon..

If its a fairly common pachi then its probably best to just try to find a cheap machine that has good chrome that you could use.. Of course once you get another machine just for parts you'll probably end up wanting to fix that one up too!!

[Rival]

Yeah, the best I could find was a few hundred just for a frame. Oh, and it needs to be unwelded as well if the swing door or hinges are attached.

Smaller parts are cheaper, your best shot is going to a motorcycle shop locally that does custom stuff and ask them where they get their stuff done.

[The13bats]

There are lots of types of chrome plating, in some car stuff we have what I call "flash" chome they take the raw metal part 1/2 ass clean it then flash it with chrome, they might put a very thin base on it first either way it rusts fast.
Then the best is the multi layer,
Take a look here Chrome Plating Process | Nickel and Copper Plating, Polishing and Buffing saves me typing it.
From what they look like to me most frames on our machines are only slightly better than flash chrome to start with hence why they do rust the way they do,
So with labor rates and the work involved it could very well be into the 100's
One option to just look at, powder coating, they have many silver colors and even a chrome, not like real chrome but darn close and far cheaper than real chrome.

[browne92]

I wonder if it's not nickel plate instead of chrome? Properly polished, I doubt you could tell the difference. Most of the stuff in your kitchen drawer that you think is stainless steel is nickel plated.

I've heard of home brew plating setups, but the chemicals you have to deal with are quite nasty, and there is some specialized equipment involved.

Not sure how, but if you could remove the remaining plating, polish up the underlying steel, and clear coat for protection, it would probably look pretty good, but would be a huge undertaking.

[Wayne-Ooo]

Your post doesn't state what type of of frame you need, but there are some for sale on Ebay. Maybe one of these will work for you.

Nishijin Pachinko Machine Parts Chrome Frame | eBay

Sankyo Pachinko Machine Parts Chrome Frame | eBay

Sankyo Pachinko Machine Parts Chrome Frame Door Feeding Tray | eBay

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[mxfaiman]

I have gotten a frame replated before. Cost me around $250 to get done. A little high priced as I went to another shop and he said he could do it for less but it would still be around $200. Also turned out the guy I used didn't plate on site he sent it out so all he did was prep and polish, So look for a guy who plates on sight. Also you can get another slight decrease in price if you bring it in ready for plate, meaning you sanded it down to bare metal. So start with some 300 grit sand paper and work your way up to about 2000 grit I think it varys on plating shops ask what they would want and see how much they would drop the cost before you go through all the work.

Also you want to get chrome plated not nickel. Chrome will hold its shine longer than nickel plate also it doesn't cost much more to have it dipped in one more tank for chrome.

[mxfaiman]

Oh, and it needs to be unwelded as well if the swing door or hinges are attached.

I didn't have to unweld mine. It all depends on how big of a tank they have to plate in. If you go to the bumper guys they have big tanks so you don't have to unweld it. I did take the frames out of each other though and drilled out the pop rivets in the front panel.

[luckydog]

in the 60's I had a 45 automatic chrome plated for 40 bucks, times have changed

a lady in her 60's working at a gun shop did a beautiful job, she even plated the barrel and clip

I put plasitc white pearl grips on it, I wish I had never sold that gun

[Corrupt_rev]

Thanks for all the input. Looks like chrome plating is not a feasible option. Thanks a bunch to the13bats for the powder-coating suggestion. I can't believe I hadn't thought of that. One of the companies we do a lot of stuff for/through where I work just got powder-coating facilities. Gonna talk to a few people tomorrow to get a quote.

Thanks again to everybody!
~Rev

[mxfaiman]

Gonna talk to a few people tomorrow to get a quote.

When I got quoted for a frame it was about $80 to powder coat. But seeing you might get a slight discount it makes more sense. But if it is over $80 I'd find a different shop.

[browne92]

Can they powder coat over existing chrome? That stuff pretty slick. Not sure how well it would adhere.

[mxfaiman]

Can they powder coat over existing chrome? That stuff pretty slick. Not sure how well it would adhere.

No they can't go over the chrome but most powder coat places do soda or sand blasting on site so it isn't a problem to remove it.

[Corrupt_rev]

No they can't go over the chrome but most powder coat places do soda or sand blasting on site so it isn't a problem to remove it.

I'll second this as it's my understanding as well. I'll probably just soda-blast the frame myself at work and then send it out for coating.

[Moparformances]

I'll second this as it's my understanding as well. I'll probably just soda-blast the frame myself at work and then send it out for coating.

i have never soda blasted anything my self but im familer with how it works.. I dont think it will have much effect (if any( on the chrome... if ya can sand blast it, i would blast it with fine media like 60 or 90 grit

[browne92]

i have never soda blasted anything my self but im familer with how it works.. I dont think it will have much effect (if any( on the chrome... if ya can sand blast it, i would blast it with fine media like 60 or 90 grit

I've never used soda either. I wonder if the silcon carbide I use to etch glass would do it? No matter what you use, you'd have to use a light hand. If it can eat chrome, it can sure eat the underlying steel.

[jodini]

If it was a common machine, I would either buy one of those used frames on ebay for $28.00 or just paint the sucker (beats spending hundreds on chroming) Unless it's a hard to find model...I guess you could justify spending some cash.
And which model is this for?

[Rival]

I would be really cautious about getting a used frame. They can vary quite a bit from year to year, even if they look similar. Honestly, when considering a common machine for restoration, the chrome is usually the #1 factor determining if it gets restored or becomes a parts machine. The rest is pretty much cut and dried.