L
Laika
Guest
This isn’t really a ‘how to’ on stripping chrome back to brass, its more like some notes, what I picked up off the net and my own experiences on the topic.
Before you get stuck in make sure you can do the job safely or don’t do it all, I don’t want to scare anyone off but the acid used is a bit nasty if you splash it about. I worked with the stuff for 10yrs and had no problems but basic safety equipment is a must … Safety Glasses, Rubber gloves and a clear work area. A bucket of water handy for flushing is a good idea as well. Also read and re-read the safety warning on the acid container.
Now hopefully now I’ve got my ‘get out of jail free card’ so read on
Certain types of chrome can be stripped with acid. I heard about it on 'beststuff Russian forums' when I was toying with stripping and painting a FED. I had a background working with acid as a cleaner for brass and copper parts in the automotive radiator industry (10yrs+) and my FED was cheap so I figured I had nothing to lose. The acid is ‘hydrochloric’ that you can pick up at your local hardware store (often used for pH adjusting swimming pools, cleaning, etching etc.). Once you strip the parts down and give them a very good clean and make sure you remove all the paint from the engravings (if the acid cant get at the chrome it will produce an uneven finish or worse) your ready to go, add enough of the acid to plastic dish (old takeaway container in my case) to cover the plates and place them in. The chrome should start to turn grey and bubbles will form quickly (like a dissolvable aspirin). Every few minutes I would carefully lift out the covers to see how they are coming along and lightly rub an area with a cheap paintbrush if it wasn’t dissolving like the rest. After about ten minutes brass started to show on the edges where the chrome was the thinnest, after 15-20min I had bare brass covers with a slightly etched surface (great for painting). Wash the covers in water and then soap/water and your ready for the next step .. painting or polishing etc.
Notes: Not all the chrome will strip back to bare brass very well. I’ve found the old model FED2’s work great. I tried it on the late dual logo FED2 and the chrome did come off but left a shiny under plating the acid wouldn’t touch (looked like nickel?). Extended time in the acid is not an option as some part may have exposed brass and the acid will eat at it destroying the cover in places but leaving some parts looking untouched. Time wise if it take much more than 30min with fresh acid something is not right and it time to clean up and resort to wet and dry sandpaper. I’d think an hour or two would just about dissolve the cover into something resembling a thin piece of coral.
Safety again: I shouldn’t have to say it but be careful working with acid!! Rubber gloves (A new pair of dishwashing type are ok) and safety glasses are a must. I put a few plastic cable ties thru the hole in the covers to make handling safe and easy. Work in a well ventilated area (outside preferably) and have a hose or at least a bucket of water handy should you spill any of the acid, it will etch brickwork and concrete quickly.
The photo’s are of my FED2 before and after the acid strip followed by a few coats of automotive gloss black in aerosol can and a touch of car wax. The black J8 was bought to finish it off. Aside from the lens I thought it was a nice makeover for about the cost of a home delivered pizza
Before you get stuck in make sure you can do the job safely or don’t do it all, I don’t want to scare anyone off but the acid used is a bit nasty if you splash it about. I worked with the stuff for 10yrs and had no problems but basic safety equipment is a must … Safety Glasses, Rubber gloves and a clear work area. A bucket of water handy for flushing is a good idea as well. Also read and re-read the safety warning on the acid container.
Now hopefully now I’ve got my ‘get out of jail free card’ so read on
Certain types of chrome can be stripped with acid. I heard about it on 'beststuff Russian forums' when I was toying with stripping and painting a FED. I had a background working with acid as a cleaner for brass and copper parts in the automotive radiator industry (10yrs+) and my FED was cheap so I figured I had nothing to lose. The acid is ‘hydrochloric’ that you can pick up at your local hardware store (often used for pH adjusting swimming pools, cleaning, etching etc.). Once you strip the parts down and give them a very good clean and make sure you remove all the paint from the engravings (if the acid cant get at the chrome it will produce an uneven finish or worse) your ready to go, add enough of the acid to plastic dish (old takeaway container in my case) to cover the plates and place them in. The chrome should start to turn grey and bubbles will form quickly (like a dissolvable aspirin). Every few minutes I would carefully lift out the covers to see how they are coming along and lightly rub an area with a cheap paintbrush if it wasn’t dissolving like the rest. After about ten minutes brass started to show on the edges where the chrome was the thinnest, after 15-20min I had bare brass covers with a slightly etched surface (great for painting). Wash the covers in water and then soap/water and your ready for the next step .. painting or polishing etc.
Notes: Not all the chrome will strip back to bare brass very well. I’ve found the old model FED2’s work great. I tried it on the late dual logo FED2 and the chrome did come off but left a shiny under plating the acid wouldn’t touch (looked like nickel?). Extended time in the acid is not an option as some part may have exposed brass and the acid will eat at it destroying the cover in places but leaving some parts looking untouched. Time wise if it take much more than 30min with fresh acid something is not right and it time to clean up and resort to wet and dry sandpaper. I’d think an hour or two would just about dissolve the cover into something resembling a thin piece of coral.
Safety again: I shouldn’t have to say it but be careful working with acid!! Rubber gloves (A new pair of dishwashing type are ok) and safety glasses are a must. I put a few plastic cable ties thru the hole in the covers to make handling safe and easy. Work in a well ventilated area (outside preferably) and have a hose or at least a bucket of water handy should you spill any of the acid, it will etch brickwork and concrete quickly.
The photo’s are of my FED2 before and after the acid strip followed by a few coats of automotive gloss black in aerosol can and a touch of car wax. The black J8 was bought to finish it off. Aside from the lens I thought it was a nice makeover for about the cost of a home delivered pizza
