Hi. I have a couple of lamp fonts that I am considering having rechromed. Could anyone make some recommendations for companies they have used preferably in the UK?
So far as getting quotations goes I've now had three replies... One company charges £30 + VAT each, another said that they wouldn't do it and a third quoted £95 + VAT + insurance each Personally I didn't think the £30 was too bad.. I know I can buy a new font for around £60 but that's not really the point of restoration IMHO
In a corner of my brain I seem to remember seeing car badges re-chromed. They looked okay but if I remember correctly they looked a bit heavilly chromed and a little bit orange peel. Maybe that was the condition of the metal underneath. Might be worth a sample first and then haggle over the price as a job lot!
I will probably start with the tattiest font on the basis that it can't look much worse than it does now...
I don't know about chrome, but nickel plating requires the surface to be plated be as blemish free and shiny as you want the result. I've had a few things nickel plated here in Copenhagen with good results. Nickel is pretty much standard for most Swedish lamps.
Hi Nils, looking on the various websites offering the service I found out quite a bit about the process. It seems there are considerably more steps including an acid wash. They actually apply a nickel coating as one of the stages...
I was thinking of enquiring how much to chrome a fire bowl reflector. Seeing as I live near Watford I typed in 'Watford chrome plating' and a likely looking company called Ashford chroming came up. Trouble is it turned out to be in Kent!! Anyway, they look like they do small items? Here is the link... http://www.ashfordchroming.com/ It turned out the fire bowl reflector was pretty good after a clean and polish so I never bothered finding out how much it would be. Steve.
Here's one Castle Chrome I haven't used them but I know someone that has and they were pleased with the result.
Hi Mathew, I've sent of for a quote from them too... ateallthepies, thanks, but Ashford chrome were the company that came in with the higher quote...
Just had another quote that almost exactly splits the difference between the first too... That's quite a variation.!
Traditional automotive chrome plating was a labour intensive and costly process. e.g. bumpers on British/American cars from the thirties to the late sixties were obviously formed in steel, then: 1)Polished, cleaned, washed then copper plated, washed, dried. 2)Polished, cleaned, washed, then nickel plated, washed, dried. 3)Polished, cleaned, washed, then chrome plated, washed dried, polished! Hence it was called triple chrome plated. And that's why the OEM bumpers/over-riders kept their shine for so long with regular cleaning and polishing. This was done, so there was a gradual step in electron potential charge change over the different layers in the finished product. "Chrome plated steel" tends to shed it coatings relatively quickly because it has big changes of electron charge potential. "Hard Chroming" is different again. Door handles etc., which were chromed zamack(UK, typically 1950-60s), eventually bite the dust as they are attacked by the atmosphere at the relatively unprotected/ unpolished underside. I've seen Daimler SP250 and Jaguar people have their mascots/door handles etc., redone in brass in New Zealand - due to frustrations with the OEM Zamack castings disintegrating when exposed long term to the "salt laden sea air" prevalent there. Total restorations are let down by crumbling OEM parts. In Coleman Canada lanterns, many are nickel plated over brass founts, with steel base plates till the late sixties/early seventies. (Which is why I like them - but the base can still corrode with neglect!) Coleman USA's original 200 had a brass-top/steel-base fount. Then the replacement 200A had an all steel fount with some form of internal coating to try to protect against internal corrosion. This wasn't always successful! Try checking the items' materials composition with a good strong ceramic magnet, say, on the fount(top and bottom) or any item in question that you're considering "chroming plating". Magnets won't hold to nickel plated brass, copper etc. Cheers ThomasL
Hi all good queastion Gneiss and good link Mathew, i think the quality and finnish of there work and cost will be down to the prep of the parts that are sent. I have thought about having the Tilley Guardsman and the PL53 cages replaited,but to get a good finnish and keep the cost down, a lot of preperation would be needed to remove 100% of surface rust, which the plaiter would do with a acid bath, but any inperfection of the surface would be highlighted once the part had been plaited,so to get a good job will be down to getting the parts prepared our selfs to a high standard, to keep the cost down and the finnish result, would be down to the preperation of the parts being plaited. It may be best to wait untill you have several items that needed to be replaited,too help keep the cost down
This doesn't answer the plating in UK question but may be of interest to Canadians looking to get similar done. Victoria Plating in BC Canada recently quoted $180 for nickel plating a font. The fellow I spoke with said he has done several. www.victoriaplating.ca/ These Caswell products may do as well at a fraction of plating shop cost. http://www.caswellcanada.ca/shop/plating/
