Powder Coating Over Chrome?

[spliffy]

I just bought a used swingarm for my 4 Wheeler & it is chromed & looks good except for where it was cracked & was rewelded to fix the crack, I am thinking about powdering it just because I don't wanna spend the money on getting it chromed again.... what do I have to do to prep it for powder? Does chrome sand blast off?? I just don't want to start stripping it & make it look crappy & then figure out I should have just left it alone or paid & gotten it chromed. Thanks

[non-stick]

chrome indeed does strip off with sandblasting. You'll see it "peel" back and the layers will be exposed before you hit bare metal. It usually takes a little while as we all know... chrome is some tough stuff! Stick with it and I have no doubt you'll get a feel for it and make short work of the whole thing. Good luck with it,k? What are you going to powder coat over it, if I may ask?

[spliffy]

Well... I'm thinking either trans blue over chrome base or just straight gloss black like my frame I just got done... I won't make my final decision until I get the chrome off. Thanks for the reply I did a search also & came up with some other answers & was hoping that maybe I could just rough it up good & go over it with the trans blue... & use the real chrome for a base.. do you think that will work or do you suggest stripping all the chrome & doing it that way? The chrome that is on there is in good shape its not peeling or cracking or bubbling or anything like that, its just that were it was repaired its a raw weld & no chrome on it.

[non-stick]

if you "scuff" the surface with sandblasting and then coat a transparent over it... you will not have a bright reflective surface underneath. For you, Id suggest (if you want, anyways) to chemically "prep" the chrome by REALLY REALLY cleaning it well with a strong solvent and drying it VERY well..... then powder coat the transparent over that. I warn you now though... one spot of grease or oil and it will bubble. Coating directly over chrome is very tricky and fickle. I'd more than likely coat with chrome and then the transparent over that if I was you. You'd get better adhesion and crosslinking of the powders at that point.

[spliffy]

Cool, thanks for the reply I will just have to figure out what I want to do & I will show some pics when I get it done

[Stytooner]

I'm very new to this, so take my suggestion with a grain of salt. Why not do a dry run, so to speak. Find something else that is similar. Chrome parts are easy to find. A salvage yard might just let you have part of an old chrome mirror mounting bracket or some such. Get your technique down on a scrap part like this. Test the chipping and scratching and adherence afterward on the scrap part. Then this will give you an idea of what type of results you can expect.
I just got my Caswell kit last week. I sprayed some transparent red finish on some prepped aluminum tread plate. I got hooked right then and there on powder coating. Spectacular results. I have since done a few other parts. I am working out a couple of small bugs, but I am achieving great results. The only mistake that I have made so far was on a test part. I tried to touch up an already cured part. NOPE! That ain't the way to do it.
I know how to do it now. If you are gonna touch up, you better strip it or shoot another full layer on it.
Please post your steps and results when you get done. I am curious about this myself.
Thanks.

[non-stick]

sage advice. Test panels and parts are ALWAYS preferable when heading off in a new direction. The junk-yards are a great resource for doing these things. Not to mention... when they (junkyards) learn of what you are doing, they may know of people that would benefit from your services. Just a thought.

[spliffy]

Great Idea, Thanks!

[drfjr1976]

This part pictured below is a trans blue over chrome plating.
I took some scotch brite pads and lightly scuffed up the chrome. Than followed that by cleaning with acetone, than placed it in the oven to dry. Pulled the part, inspected for any residue from finger prints and what not. When I was satisfied that the part was completely clean and ready, I just coated it like I would any other piece.


This technique works really great on a cheap set of chrome engine dress up kit.

[non-stick]

this is why I love pictures so much. You just did what we were all talking about up there in one post and a few sentances what we were trying to describe all along. THANK YOU for posting that. Hey.... that picture and those comments are in the "album", right?