Make chrome dull ?

[jeffp60]

Never saw flat clear. Does it lower mirror finish at all ? 

Funny thing with it is : a plow(very good) ,cb radio,whip antenna,winch,(all chrome),gas can, 2 pair valve covers and all suspension parts/torsion bars. Inner doors are blank,only upper rad hose. Fit/flash is good.

[peteski]

Testors Dullcote is a flat clear that I have used for decades when I need flat finish. Glosscote is the glossy clear lacquer version. Should still be available in spray can and bottles.

There are other flat clear finishes available from pretty much every hobby paint manufacturer, both water-based acrylic, and stinky organic-versions.

Edited June 16, 2023 by peteski

[jeffp60]

2 hours ago, StevenGuthmiller said:

You didn't say that in your original post.

You said "take the sheen off".

That could be taken in any number of ways.

 

Then, in your second post you said, "Just looking for a not so shiny toy look".

That doesn't tell us anything about wanting a weathered result either.

 

It wasn't until you were well into your annoyance that we learned what effect you were actually looking for.

 

Not to beat a dead horse, but if you want specific answers, you need to ask specific questions.

 

Dulling the chrome is a simple operation that I offered you a solution for in my first response.

Dullcote........Done.

 

 

 

Steve

 

TITLE:How do you dull chrome

QUESTION: Any idea how to take the "sheen" off of the chrome ? 

pretty specific, my reason is irrelevant. 

And yes you did answer my question.  My annoyance was with the others comments, on Amazon its people writing "I have no idea ,never bought this"... KWT just responded with "flat clear" and posted his 78 gmc rust bucket. Little more than I plan though.

[peteski]

I would have mentioned using Dullcote, but I never envisioned someone wanting to do that to a part which is supposed to depict chromed metal.  If one sprays Dullcote over kit's chrome parts, they will look like dull aluminum.  Regardless of how weathered 1:1 chrome gets, it never looks like dull aluminum. It might have rust stains and be pitted, but whatever areas still have chrome left, the will still be shiny and reflective. That's just how I see it.  You might as well spray the chrome parts with flat aluminum paint.

 

[KWT]

Honestly, I guess it does give it more of a polished aluminum look than anything...

This was flat clear and then panel liner on top.

That's really the only insight I can offer as far as spraying the kit chrome with anything...

[StevenGuthmiller]

9 hours ago, jeffp60 said:

TITLE:How do you dull chrome

QUESTION: Any idea how to take the "sheen" off of the chrome ? 

pretty specific, my reason is irrelevant. 

And yes you did answer my question.  My annoyance was with the others comments, on Amazon its people writing "I have no idea ,never bought this"... KWT just responded with "flat clear" and posted his 78 gmc rust bucket. Little more than I plan though.

Okay, fine.

All I'm saying is that if you read your early responses in this thread, you'll see that I am not the only one who didn't understand what you were looking for.

 

Carry on.

 

 

 

Steve

[ctruss53]

I skipped over all the arguement.

Here are a few approaches to dulling chrome parts.

1. If you just need to accent seams or add a little detail to bright chrome parts, just apply some panel line paint. Panel Line Paint will darken seams and make chrome parts "pop."

2. If you need to dull the shine of chrome parts as a whole, apply semi-gloss or matt clearcoat. Mr Hobby makes excellent spray can clearcoats called Mr Super Clear. This clearcoat is availble in gloss, semi-gloss, and matte. Even the matte clear is not super flat, so this might be your best option, however I would test the semi-gloss and the matte clears on spare chrome parts or sprues first.

3. The third option is chrome paints. People are going to disagree with this, but nearly all chrome paints do not turn out like bright chrome. I can tell you from experience. I have tried nearly all the chrome paints, and they all come out dull when compared to chrome plating.

So to do this method, strip the chrome plating, then apply gloss black paint with a spray can, or airbrush, so you can get a smooth gloss black finish. Then apply your chrome paint of choice. Alclad, or Green Stuff World with an airbrush, or Spaz Stix or Revell spray cans. Any of them will give you a shiny chrome finish, but the finish will be duller than the chrome plating.

If this chrome paint finish is still brighter than you wanted, you can apply a GLOSS clearcoat. This will maintain the shine, but decrease the reflectivity.

 

The chrome paints to avoid because it gets closest to actual chrome is SMS Hyperchrome.  If you use this stuff properly it actually nearly duplicates chrome.

 

Having said all this, there are also two places that make chrome burnishing powder. C1 and Uschi van der Rosten. There could be other brands out there, but these are the two I know of.

Chrome burnishing powders give the most realisting metal finish I have ever found.  You paint your parts gloss black. Then when the paint is cured you rub in this powder and it gives a very realistic chrome finish. I have used these powders and I have not been able to get a finish as bright as chrome plating, but the results were pretty bright, very reflective, and I would consider them a very close match to a realistic polished metal finish.

[jeffp60]

Thanks Chad, if I ever do this again I'll  check out your suggestions