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Custom Vehicle Discussions => Screamin' EagleĀ® Road GlideĀ® => Topic started by: Sprintkid on September 08, 2019, 10:34:25 PM

Title: Disappointed
Post by: Sprintkid on September 08, 2019, 10:34:25 PM
 2011 FLTRUSE. I was cleaning up after a trip and have chrome delaminating from both wheels. I have almost 70,000 miles and have done the camchest , lifters , oil pump, etc. and all of the other things to keep her on the road. This is just heartbreaking. But I guess why would you expect a $ 40,000 motorcycle to last 8 summers before it starts to turn to Sh&@t!. Heck, there are cars from the 50s with the chrome still on them. Come on man!!! Sorry for the rant.
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: Rooster on September 09, 2019, 09:55:03 AM
Not sure but I think the chrome process now is different than it was some years ago due to government changes. The old process made better chrome. Someone else may know better than me.
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: scottt on September 09, 2019, 08:22:23 PM
Not sure but I think the chrome process now is different than it was some years ago due to government changes. The old process made better chrome. Someone else may know better than me.
Harley is buying chrome parts from other countries. Look at the chrome accessories at your local HD dealership. The package will show country of origin. I've yet to see USA, generally it's China. Proper chrome plating is expensive, Harley's focus is return to shareholders. It's not top quality.

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Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: CVODON on September 10, 2019, 08:39:54 AM
Part of the problem is that chroming in the USA has become almost impossible due to EPA regulations. We used to have a small chrome shop here in town, guy was confined to a wheel chair and did small to medium stuff. He finally had to close due to costs to upgrade exceeded his income. Not saying safety is a bad thing, but you can not compare chrome on a '62 Chevy front bumper with what they are allowed to do & use on a Aluminum wheels today. Also wheels have it double tough as the brake dust just eats the chrome up, constantly. Also most chrome wheels are made out of this country, not just HD.
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: grc on September 10, 2019, 09:03:57 AM

Aluminum is a difficult substance to plate compared to steel, due to the reactivity of aluminum.  It can be done well but it takes a much better process and process controls, which you aren't going to get when you base your purchase decisions strictly on price.

Health and safety regulations have affected many industries in the USA, chrome plating is just one of many.  Would we rather go back to the days of toxic rivers with no life forms and air you can see and feel as it destroys your lungs?  I don't think so.  The only reason we don't have much of a chrome plating business left is due to the policies that allowed American companies that enjoyed all the benefits of operating in this country the unfettered ability to outsource their plating to countries with no environmental rules and pay scales reminiscent of the days of lords and serfs.  Lots of dirty jobs were shipped to Mexico, where many factories still have large open ponds of highly toxic waste leeching into the ground and water table.  Thanks to politicians, those companies in the USA were allowed to export the jobs and then import the finished products duty free.  Then the politician who signed the NAFTA bill decided to really help out those American corporations by handing favored nation trading status to China, an even cheaper source than Mexico that had even less environmental regulation.

Btw, Harley is fixing their lousy chrome problem.  They got away with blaming the customers and environment to avoid paying for the bad parts, now they've decided to do more and more blacked out models (no chrome).

JMHO - Jerry
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: scottt on September 10, 2019, 10:13:55 AM
Aluminum is a difficult substance to plate compared to steel, due to the reactivity of aluminum.  It can be done well but it takes a much better process and process controls, which you aren't going to get when you base your purchase decisions strictly on price.

Health and safety regulations have affected many industries in the USA, chrome plating is just one of many.  Would we rather go back to the days of toxic rivers with no life forms and air you can see and feel as it destroys your lungs?  I don't think so.  The only reason we don't have much of a chrome plating business left is due to the policies that allowed American companies that enjoyed all the benefits of operating in this country the unfettered ability to outsource their plating to countries with no environmental rules and pay scales reminiscent of the days of lords and serfs.  Lots of dirty jobs were shipped to Mexico, where many factories still have large open ponds of highly toxic waste leeching into the ground and water table.  Thanks to politicians, those companies in the USA were allowed to export the jobs and then import the finished products duty free.  Then the politician who signed the NAFTA bill decided to really help out those American corporations by handing favored nation trading status to China, an even cheaper source than Mexico that had even less environmental regulation.

Btw, Harley is fixing their lousy chrome problem.  They got away with blaming the customers and environment to avoid paying for the bad parts, now they've decided to do more and more blacked out models (no chrome).

JMHO - Jerry
Chrome is nice on some parts, not so much on others ( in my opinion  ).

When you chrome metal, you weaken it. Prefer polished aluminum wheels or paint coated. Don't like chrome wheels on cars either.

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Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: Sprintkid on September 10, 2019, 01:07:13 PM
I hear everyone and understand your comments. It just bums  me out that this is happening to my beautiful motorcycle . I worked so hard for it and take such good care of it!
I have a chrome shop in town. I wonder if it will be cost affective to have them rechromed and if their process will have better results?
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: deldago on September 10, 2019, 01:40:11 PM
Probably be cheaper and hold up better having them powder coated.
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: J.D. on September 10, 2019, 03:42:12 PM
Harley now "flash" chromes the hastelloy.  A proper 3rd party chrome job has copper, nickel, then chrome.

Good luck powder coating over flaking chrome.  Need to be completely stripped of chrome before refinishing.
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: scottt on September 10, 2019, 05:12:15 PM
Harley now "flash" chromes the hastelloy.  A proper 3rd party chrome job has copper, nickel, then chrome.

Good luck powder coating over flaking chrome.  Need to be completely stripped of chrome before refinishing.
Your right. Some of the trim appears to be thin chrome over pot metal. Never holds up long term.

In my opinion, i would not re-chrome rims, buy new ones or live with imperfections. Doesn't  really effect function.

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Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: ultra13 on September 12, 2019, 09:30:04 AM
Gotta agree with CVODON. I used to have a show car in the 80's and you could have anything chromed anywhere for cheap. And I did lol!
Question for Sprintkid...Is that the price you paid for your bike in 2011?
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: grc on September 12, 2019, 01:49:06 PM
Probably be cheaper and hold up better having them powder coated.

Yup.  No matter which option you choose, the wheels have to be completely stripped of all previous coatings.  Also, aluminum is no easy thing to paint or powder coat, for the same reasons it is hard to plate, so any powder or paint job will require the same meticulous preparation as the chrome plating job.

Jerry
Title: Re: Disappointed
Post by: 2018_FLTRXSE on September 12, 2019, 06:45:40 PM
Everything said here is true. The local plater (Honolulu) closed shop over 10 years ago because they became a SIU (Significant Industrial User) to the wastewater industry, discharging heavy metals into the wastewater system. (My field of expertise) Despite my best efforts to help him optimise his process you can only ward off the regulators for so long.

Now, there is spray on chrome products like "Cosmichrome" and the like.. but I've never seen the product in person, but I have seen pictures and it looks pretty nice. and you can make is in different colors, like how people used to spray candy colors over chrome, without the alleged fade.

It takes a special training and application process which I'm sure means it isn't cheap, and like painted surfaces, preparation is everything.

So we aren't done yet, we can still make things shiny if we want them... we just use a different approach.

Now I just need to see if there is someone I can ship my 1970 pontiac bumpers to to do that application process to.