VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1929-1932 Chrome Plating

I will need to have quite a bit of plating work (chrome and nickel) done on my '31. Has anyone any recommendations? I've asked several different people (outside the VCCA.) Each has his own opinion as whom to recommend and each seems to contradict the other. Clearly, plating is not cheap but one wishes to find the best match where price and value intersect. I'm looking for the lowest possible price provided the work is reasonably acceptable. I'm not making a show car but one to be driven, shared and enjoyed.

Best Regards,

Tom

How far from Toronto are you?

Where in Toronto is there a good plating shop?

I recently had some plating done by New England Chrome Plating Inc. located in E.Hartford Ct. Some of it was pot metal and all of it came out excellent. Their turn around time was as quoted and I was very satisfied with their service. You can find them on the web at www.newenglandchrome.com. As far as pricing I don't believe there is anyone that is inexpensive but I felt that N.E.Chromes pricing was fair .

The Plating House of Canada. Thay have done great work for me.

http://www.theplatinghouseofcanada.ca/

Have you considered doing some of the small pieces yourself? Caswell (www.caswellcanada.ca/ and www.caswellplating.com/) sells kits that work well. I just got into it myself and so far I've done more than 30 small pieces at a cost of a little over $300. I can do a lot more at no additional cost and I'm having a lot of fun and satisfaction doing it. Some of the pieces are pot metal and some are aluminum and the rest are plain steel - hub caps, motometer, bezels, hood hold-downs, door handles, etc. I bought small flash copper and copy chrome kits. Copy Chrome is a nickel alloy that looks very similar to chrome. Caswell sells all kinds of kits including Chrome and I found their service excellent so far.

Have you looked into http://www.paulschrome.com/ they are in PA. I have used them not sure about price compared to others but they are good to deal with.

Check with the local motorcycle shop and find out where they send their stuff. Bikers are very particular.

If you are not a purest, instead of replating, I found it less expensive to purchase reproduction inside and outside door handles.
The advantage of reproduction is that they are made of better metals that won't self destruct(chemically) as the old ones do.
The disadvantage is that the inside handles are chrome and not nickle finish. For the cost of the reproductions versus replating the old ones, I can live with chrome.

I agree about the chemical effect on old handles. I had mine rechromed and while they look great the splines were weakened and completely useless after just a few uses.