Vintage Double Hose

is anyone still rechroming cans? I have a Royal Aquamaster in need of some chrome work.

Not that I am aware of. Many of us were spoiled by the wonderful work of Dave Ali. A few of our members have had shops that specialize in motor sports complete work for them.

Greg

I just took mine to a local mom and pop chrome shop that did motorcycle and car parts. They had no clue what a regulator was. They did an excellent job!

M

What did they charge and do they do mail in orders? Im not sure if anyone does chroming in Oregon. I know where to get things galvanized.

I think it was $45/side, so $90 for top and bottom cans. Don't know about mail order. Here is a link to that shops info:

https://www.yellowpages.com/santa-ana-c ... -548573083

Did they Chrome the insides of your cans or just the out sides?

h2operations wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 23, 2021 1:54 pm

Did they Chrome the insides of your cans or just the out sides?

Hi Paul,

Two sets I had chromed only on the outside. Another set I had chromed inside and out. I just told them what I wanted and they did it. Took about 6 to 8 weeks each time because they wait until they get enough small stuff to chrome a bunch at the same time. Hope they are still in business. The shop was a hole-in-the wall in an industrial complex in a gang-infested area of town. Just my kinda place.

The price your motorcycle shop is charging is reasonable due to the work that is put into polishing prior to the chrome plating. I am surprised how many chroming places are in Cali with all the environmental issues surrounding the acid and chemicals used in the process. I am not sure if anyone has contacted the bumper boys in huntingdon park Ca to see if they will do them. I have car builder pals that use them for classic auto parts. On a future note, I had old friend who passed away recently that got me set up with the process. He had been chroming classic airplane parts as a side business. I have been playing around with some plating for the past year or so and it is not that hard. I think as a product offering it may have to wait for me to retire .. again...

One problem with re-chroming parts is that most chrome guys want to make the parts perfect. They want to charge you big bucks for that, as well.

The regulators we are dealing with had less than perfect surfaces, and if we are going to restore these regs correctly, we need someone who can recreate the original finish.

I am a fan of thick shiny nickel with a chrome overlay, but this isn't what all of the originals looked like. The spun cans often have marks left in them (HW in particular), as well as other turning remnants in many others.

I'd love to find a plater that would work with the original surface.

Vancetp wrote: ↑

Sun Apr 25, 2021 7:41 pm

One problem with re-chroming parts is that most chrome guys want to make the parts perfect. They want to charge you big bucks for that, as well.

The regulators we are dealing with had less than perfect surfaces, and if we are going to restore these regs correctly, we need someone who can recreate the original finish.

I am a fan of thick shiny nickel with a chrome overlay, but this isn't what all of the originals looked like. The spun cans often have marks left in them (HW in particular), as well as other turning remnants in many others.

I'd love to find a plater that would work with the original surface.

Well that's not true at all.
I think I was very reasonable in price and sometimes would even do pro bono depending on the situation.
The difference was, I understood the plating of the originals and the processes they used: custom baths, custom anodes, etc.

Dave did all my work, including my NONMAG to original specs and it was amazing. Maybe we can convince him to do so again

Nobody, and I mean nobody, can match Dave’s expertise in plating. He worked his magic on five of my regulators, and they will remain in my collection until I pass on.

Greg

As far as making the plating match the original finish, I’ll pass on that idea. To me, that’s like a restoration job on a vehicle. My brother restored muscle cars for select clients for many years. His finished product had a paint job that was far superior to the original. If Dave decides to resume his service, I’ll be shipping regs to him.

Greg

+3 from me! Dave did a set of round label cans and internals for me however I requested satin instead of the bright and shinesty. That chrome job is still holding up BETTER than any chrome scuba parts you will find today as far as I can tell. The craftsmanship he did on my reg is top-shelf, trophy-worthy. I wouldn't hesitate one second to have him do another re-chrome job.
Cheer Dave!

Well, I wasn't criticizing good work. I love good, smooth, thick plating jobs. I was only pointing out that a true restoration would copy the originals, which weren't the best in many cases. I suppose there's no reason to go that far, and a good plating job is preferable.