Chrome Finish on Plastic- Did I Find the Answer?

How would the nail powder hold up in the car wash for the coated auto part?

Hi Pete, interesting video! would you be able reccomend which brand or where to get the resin and chrome powder? There is so many online, trying to find the same product to get similar results !

Wow, that nail kit chrome looks amazing! I'm going to put in an order to Amazon.

Alclad

I know this is OLD but hands down REVELL Chrome spray paint is your WINNER!!!!

I had great results with this a few months ago.
But now it has turned yellowish
anyone else have this experience?
I haven't tried sealing this with anything yet, but would like to know if anyone has tried.

Gotta get into the airbrush to get that true chrome

Having looked at alot of these videos, to get chrome finish without airbrush, Spaz Stix is usually #3, by far. #1 and 2 go to that Mirror bottle, and Revell Chrome paint. It's $35 for a small can, but nothing compares.

Plastic is vacuum plated with sheets of chrome material

The sizing should be squeaky to the touch. Like rubbing your finger on glass. Not tacky. Tacky is too wet. I've done a tone of silver and gold leaf. Polish after with cotton ball. Do not clear coat. Clear coat doesn't look good on leaf.

There are a few airbrush and hobby-grade paints that give very good chrome finishes. Alclad is one of them. Chrome finishes are tricky because they need to be applied on top of a super smooth high-gloss black base.

I just wonder if the nail or the last paint, can keep up with usage on a long run or peel off.
Can you say something about you test on the long run?
Thanks

Look into graphite powder. Mirror finish. I used it on Mandalorian helmet.

Thanks for this video.

chrome finish on good metal can last long.
chrome finish on cheap metal, like cheaply made (but not that cheap in shop) bathware and tapware, is terrible, and doesnt last long at all.
chrome finish on plastic, that i've come across as various small products..in my opinion..is one last step away from metal (usually wire) products coated in plastic.
all finishes fantastic on purely decorative pieces that see no water or use.

Look at all that particulates floating around. You should wear a respirator!

I saw the comments about the nail powder...but my jaw is on the floor after actually seeing it on the video.

Great video. I have some nickel plated microphones on chrome stands but the clips are black plastic. This gave me some ideas!

I used to work for a company that did vacuum metalizing. The process was to spray the plastic item with laquer and clamp them on a rack that goes into a vacuum chamber. the rack would spin the plastic items slowly. the rack had tungston wires that aluminum tabs would be placed on. After a high vacuum was achieved, a low voltage, high current charge was applied to the aluminum tabs instantly vaporizing them. The aluminum vapor would stick to the lastic parts leaving a beautiful mirror finish. So if you can find an outfit that does vacuum metalizing, they could hook you up.

What about putting another clear coat over the nail polish one? I would think that might bring out even more chrome-like shine, plus it would give it another protective coat.

I use this on my nails all the time 🤣 I love that you found a great use for it

I had heard nail polish was the best, looks like you proved it. Rub n buff gives a nice aluminum look.

What ya need is Vacuum Metalized Aluminum process.

That's pretty awesome. Score on finding the nail polish!

Great video!

Great tests! 👏👏👏

Just saved me sooooo much time, thanks for the video !

Thanks very much for sharing subscribed

Try polishing the one you did with the silver leaf, it should polish up to a mirror finish if done correctly.

Fantastic video on chroming plastics. Thank you so much for providing this for us Pete!!! 👌

Revel chrome spray looks like real chrome you can see your clear reflection in. It's about 30 bucks a can but goes a long way

Great video - though does the nail polish last? I suspect its not going to stay off, as it's not a paint.

The easiest way to chrome plate plasticis First; DO as you have to get the part to a glossy black finish. Next paint your part with a coat of conductive paint, cover the part completely a good thick coat let it dry for 48 hours lightly sand it with 1500 grit wet paper . Do not sand through the conductive coating. Next Nickel plate your part. While plating make sure your solution is atheist 130 degrees f. And keep the solution agitating. You can do this with an air pump from a fish tank or just move the solution back and forth with a stir stick. After you plate your part you can buff it to a high gloss and then apply the chrome. Caswell sels agood chrome kit that is reasonsble.

Thanks for the input with the resin and the nail polish, I ordered the exact same setup for a Mack R Model Semi truck i am putting together.

Wow Pete, I just found you. What a great video!! Thank you!

Can any of these be buffed to improve the finish?

Most of the chrome spray paints will actually polish with mothers. Just use multiple coats of chrome with a black base coat and then polish with mothers and a microfiber. Mirror finish.

Not criticizing your approach.....very methodical and fair and many (including me) have likely learned some tips and tricks but......a lot of these products may have given a far better result if the substrate were prepared better/properly. The old standby using real chrome is, "if you don't have a mirror finish before you dip it in chrome, you won't have one after you dip it in chrome. If you want that shiny mirror metal finish....your substrate must be FAAAAAAR smoother than these test plugs. Still....very informative and very good video. Just don't decide these products don't work because the results here don't look perfect.

How about giving electroplating plastic a try? You can spray the plastic with carbon spray aerosol which will make the surface conductive.

A Big Thanks for your time and efforts.

Have you checked out the alclad stuff that barbatos rex did?

Can anyone tell me how to get the old chrome off the plastic without using an abrasive? A chemical stripper? I’m about to do an entire set of RC wheels and half of the chrome is still there. I don’t want to go over it. I’ve spent too much on the new stuff!!

Wonderful stuff that nail powder, can you name me the brand and where to buy it, there are so many different brands on the internet. Thank you for your effort. Greetings from Rob

That nail polish is pretty impressive. Tempted to try it on some interior parts on a car.

Thank you for the nice links to what you used

How about they sell us whatever they are using on the plastic spray paint caps? It's 1000x better than what's inside the can.

I'd love to use that Nail polish stuff On my bike. But nail polish dries out and flakes off.....