Rechroming

[John Hertog <crossram@xxxx>]

Hi Hardy and all,

Rechroming = touchy subject. My 2 cents' worth as follows:

1/ Always start off with the best quality pieces you can find. Avoid pitted
and ugly items. If need be take a trip to AZ or NM or some other dry
Soutwestern state where chrome just doesn't pit. In a lot of cases you will
be able to find original chrome pieces that you can just clean up and put
right on your car. They will have that original factory look, with crisp
edges and detail, that gets lost with rechromed parts.

2/ As far as rechroming anything smaller than a bumper, I have had excellent
results dealing with Lemon Grove Plating in National City, CA ( get the
phone number from information) - their prices, comparatively speaking with
other outfits, are really LOW !
Turnaround is about the same as anywhere else - a couple months. Thanks to
Mike Laiserin for finding this place and recommending it to me. Once
again, though, I have only sent them "decent" pieces, not ugly, pitted,
cracked stuff. ; my dealings with them have always been pleasant, and in the
one instance when something went awry, they made good on the disputed item
without quibble. The big attraction with Lemon Grove Plating is their
price - very very cheap as compared to any other I have tried.
Promised deadlines are usually missed by a couple weeks - not a big deal.

2/ Bumpers: the best results bar none I have ever experienced are from AIH
in Dubuque, Iowa. Truly amazing results - perfect, flawless, show chrome
you can lose yourself in ! But good stuff doesn't come cheap. Call Steve
for a price quote. Get ready to spend a lot. Find their number from the
"Sources" page on our Web site. Lifetime guarantee and all that good
stuff. I do believe bumpers are an important item on our cars, visually
speaking, and I am always willing to pay a premium for getting quality work
as far as bumpers. I have an AIH bumper that was done years ago and still
looks perfect.

Anyway, these are my positive experiences. Negative experiences : Bumper
Boys from California - junk. Their bumpers turn ugly in less than a year.
Sure they are cheaper ( by half) than AIH, but not worth it at all. Other
negative experience : Frankford Plating in Philadelphia for small parts.
Promises, promises never kept, deadlines missed by a mile, not that great
work, expensive.

Shine on !

John