Best way to remove chrome from plastic
 

Hi I have a bumper here that has seen better days and the chrome paint is flaking badly. I just wondered what the best way is to remove it and are there any ways to re-paint it? Thanks in advance :smile:

Yes I would like to know if this can be done without damaging the plastic too. I have a set of wheels that would look really cool in flat or satin black instead of chrome. I would think any chemicals would damage the plastic and sandblasting might scratch the plastic. I was thinking of just doing a light sanding and then spraying primer and then painting the wheel. I would guess that it would be the same for your bumper.

Haven't tried it myself but maybe Acetone?:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_X7aK9XgkuI

you don't think it will ruin the plastic?

Not making any promises but I know it's a commonly used method for removing tires from wheels.

Yes you are right. I think I have seen that somewhere, and the wheels were fine. I just wish I had an old wheel or something I could test it on.

try some Brakleen (brake clean)

This might sound crazy,back in the day when i was building model cars i use to vinager
to remove the crome on bumpers and some crome wheels.Just let it soak for a couple
of hours or let it soak overnight.The crome will come right off with out damaging the plastic.

I stripped the chrome off a set of Proline wheels. I used Easy-Off oven cleaner to dissolve the chrome. Spray it on and leave it until you see the chrome dissolve. Then I used a scrub brush to get into the cracks. Under the chrome is a yellowish coating. Im guessing the coating is used to make the plastic conductive so it can be plated. I can't remember if I used the oven cleaner or simple green to get the yellow coating off. I tried one and it didn't do anything, but the other stripped it right off. after that I tried to dye the wheels bright yellow and they looked like crap, so I dyed them black. They came out looking pretty good. The dye job isn't as good as a fresh set of white wheels. I've also never had any problems with the wheels as far as durability etc.

What did you use to dye them?

Rit dye, liquid or powder.

Yeah most people seem to use that and get pretty good results :mdr:

I tried dying chrome Proline rims once, the chrome came off and they were semi-gloss black and they looked great.