I don`t work in this industry but I have family and close friends who do, and have for many years. Chroming factory alloy wheels may be a freak occurance in the Northeast but it`s quite common in places like So Cal. Virtually every new car dealer has cars on their lots with the OE wheels chromed. It`s a popular accessory and big business. If a car has an aluminum OE wheel on it, it can be chromed.
Usually the easiest way to get chrome wheels is to get "take offs". These are the identical OE wheel to your car but came from someone else and have been chromed. Platers will buy sets of various wheels and plate them. When someone (like a dealer) wants a set of chrome wheels in that exact style, the plater gives the dealer the already chromed wheel and takes the non-chromed wheel, starting the process all over again. There are platers that focus their business on dealers and wheel/tire shops and have dozens of wheels in stock, already plated. You can certainly have your own wheels plated but expect a delay. It`s a good idea to contact local platers to see if the do "take off" business with dealers. If so they may have a set of wheels for you ready to go.
Cost on plating wheels varies with the quality of the job. The typical price for plating wheels is $100-150/wheel. Dealers pay close to the $100/wheel price, maybe less if they do a ton of volume with one plater. The bigger and more elaborate the wheel, the higher the price to chrome it. Don`t pay more than $150/wheel unless that particular plater does work that is wayyy better than their competition. Or you`re having a set of 20" wheels plated.
As far as the process goes, in simple terms your OE wheel is stripped, cleaned, and polished. It`s then plated in copper, then polished again. Next step is layers of nickel. The white/blueish shiny look of "chrome" wheels isn`t chrome at all, it`s nickel covered by chrome. Cheap platers apply one layer of nickel, polish the wheel, and ship it. But the best platers do a three-layer plating in nickel. Then they do a final layer in chrome. Chrome has a blueish tint that offsets the yellowish tint of nickel. This leaves the whiteish mirrory final appearance. Think of chrome as the protective layer over the nickel.
You`ll hear the terms "three step plating" or "show chrome". Basically they mean the same thing. The wheel has gone thru three steps of plating (copper, nickel, and chrome). And the wheels has received multiple layers of nickel and chrome, typically three. The best chrome plating jobs on show cars have gone thru this three step process.
As far as losing their look or bubbling/pitting/rusting, a poor quality plating job will cause this to happen eventually. But a top quality plating job and careful maintenance will keep chrome looking great for decades.
Does chrome have a build up that affects hole sizes and the like? No. Chrome plating for decoration (which is essentially what everyone wants/gets) is millionths of an inch thick. It has no practical impact on the dimension of holes or whatever.
Hopefully this primer to chrome plating helps. Best thing to do IMO is ask other car nuts if they know of good local platers. Ask at car shows too. Many car show people have relationships with their platers so they know the good ones. You can always ask your dealer who they get their chrome take-offs from as their probably is a local plater that does alot of biz with dealers. Yellow pages, internet search, even Hemmings Motor News will clue you in to good platers.
<blockquote class=`ipsBlockquote` >
<em class=`bbc`>Originally posted by rd_volvo [/i]
<strong class=`bbc`>I was also toying with the idea of chrome dipping my
existing 5 spoke clear coat mags but have some concerns :
1- Is chroming impossible with certain alloys?
2- I have winter mags so these would not see snow and salt.
Do dipped rims start to lose their look after a while?
3- Do dipped rims bubble or pit after time?
[even with a lot of polishing]
4- Do dipped rims have problems with lug hole and mount
hole size after dipping. Another words, are your holes
going to shrink?
5- Cost of a high quality dip? A friend in racing said there is
some kind of 3 step nickel coating procedure for a quality.
Or is it better to just go and get after markets.
5- Any other possible nasty surprises I might have concerns
about?
TY
RD [/b]</blockquote>