Newbie Question

[hearse71]

I am about to begin restoration of a 1967 cadillac hearse and need some advice. Most of the chrome is very badly pitted. I think that I will go with the copy chrome setup but.
1. Can I use an old 75 gallon fishtank as a plating tank for the larger pieces like the Landau bars.
2. Can I gold plate pot metal, from some original brochures it seems that some of the emblems on the hearse were originally gold plated but all of that has worn off the car now and shows little signs of every being gold.
3. all of the stainless trim looks perfect but really dull, and will stick out when the rest of the car is redone, is there a way to easily bring back the luster to the stainless.

Thanks in advance.
P.S A plating shop in my area quoted me $10,000 to replate everything for me. I hope I can do a good job myself.

[mcaswell]

Yes, you can probably use the fishtank for the larger items, but please ensure that it's watertite and that the joint sealant is intact and will hold. Alternatively, you can go to a hardware store and buy a large rubbermaid keeper box and use that. They don't have joints, so are a bit safer.

Yes, you can gold plate pot metal. You'll need to flash copper plate it first, then nickel plate (or copy chrome), then gold plate it.

Polish the stainless with a polishing wheel and some compound. That will restore it's shine.