Chrome painting

[wlhowell24]

It's it safe to just paint over chrome plating or do I have to remove it. I'm looking to black out all the chrome on my kit.

[NOBLNG]

Yes, it is completely safe, assuming you’re not breathing in any overspray….just not very durable in my experience. It is likely fine on parts that will never be touched, like sections of a grill. Entire bumpers etc. would be better off stripped and primed. 

[Mike C.]

I usually soak my chrome in simple green or spick and span (think it's Mr. clean now) and primer the parts so the paint has something to bite into. The paint wont want to bite into the chrome.

Edited March 15, 2022 by Mike C.

[Hagman]

Im an amateur modeler and usually soak the chrome parts in Super Kleen, scrub with a brush.  When rinsed and dried, I paint with gloss black and then spray with Rustoleum Metallic finish.  It works just as good, if not better than spending the $$ on Spaz Stix stuff for the finished product.

[Dpate]

4 hours ago, Hagman said:

Im an amateur modeler and usually soak the chrome parts in Super Kleen, scrub with a brush.  When rinsed and dried, I paint with gloss black and then spray with Rustoleum Metallic finish.  It works just as good, if not better than spending the $$ on Spaz Stix stuff for the finished product.

lol

[TarheelRick]

5 hours ago, Hagman said:

Im an amateur modeler and usually soak the chrome parts in Super Kleen, scrub with a brush. 

That is pretty much the way I do it and I have been building models since 1959.  The original post seemed to imply they were wanting no chrome, so the process would be to strip it and paint it whatever color you wanted.

[Hagman]

I must of misread it-  I'm glad I'm not the only person that does it that way-

[NYRich72]

So many good products available to strip chrome quickly that I always strip it before painting. My favorite is EasyOff in the yellow spray bottle as it can simply be poured into a small container with no waste and much better control than the aerosol spray can.

[stavanzer]

I've been using the aerosol spray Easy Off. I did not know about the bottle kind.

I'll have to look for it.

[Can-Con]

On 7/18/2022 at 9:57 AM, NYRich72 said:

So many good products available to strip chrome quickly that I always strip it before painting. My favorite is EasyOff in the yellow spray bottle as it can simply be poured into a small container with no waste and much better control than the aerosol spray can.

 

On 7/19/2022 at 11:54 AM, stavanzer said:

I've been using the aerosol spray Easy Off. I did not know about the bottle kind.

I'll have to look for it.

That's what I've been using for decades now. 

Much thicker than the spray can, almost a jell so it stays on the parts and bodies better , ,  and a lot less fumes to try to avoid. 

[Zippi]

Any time I need to remove the chrome to paint, I just grab some of the wifes bleach off the washer.  Strips it clean in a couple hrs.

[slusher]

Nice to know about the easy off in the bottle! I want too try some, I use Super clean in the bottle so I can spray it Tn my small glass jars. 

[slusher]

16 hours ago, Zippi said:

Any time I need to remove the chrome to paint, I just grab some of the wifes bleach off the washer.  Strips it clean in a couple hrs.

Bob, I never could get bleach to work for me. Always enjoy these discussions you always learn something..

[Zippi]

7 hours ago, slusher said:

Bob, I never could get bleach to work for me. Always enjoy these discussions you always learn something..

That's odd.  I've tried it twice Carl and it worked both times.  Guess I got lucky.  

[ksnow]

I have decent results with whitewall cleaner. Pretty sure it has bleach in it. Takes the chrome off well, most of the time it also takes off the "primer" underneath. 

[jaymcminn]

Removing chrome properly should involve removing the clear lacquer underneath, which is where a lot of the thickness of the plating and its tendency to obscure detail come from. The best way I've found to do this is Easy-Off. I've never seen the spray bottle, always used the aerosol cans.

[V8tiger]

On 7/17/2022 at 3:27 PM, Dpate said:

lol

You're right...!

 

[Bugatti Fan]

Once chrome is stripped that is a good time to make good any other imperfections it any on the parts before proceedong.