Chromed Copper Pipe

You can get chromed steel pipes in (IIRC) 19mm and 25mm dia with various end fittings for making up wardrobe clothes rails etc. You can use it for shower rails too but I suggest you apply a lacquer or varnish as it does tend to go a bit rusty if the water gets to the steel.

It will bend quite easily too with a slight tug on the curtain.

Ordinary 22mm copper tube of the type you get today certainly wouldn't, IMHO.

Never use copper for structural works. Thats not its best feature.

It is a great conductor of elecytricity and heat, looks lovely when polished, and many say when covered in verdigris. It lasts longer than steel outdoors..and its malleable and forms well in sheets.

There is a reason the bronze age gave way to the iron age though, and that is that in weapons and tools terms, and structural terms, iron and steel are simply far far better.

So chrome steel pipe is what you want. If you want curves, well I am tempted to say use mild teel pipe heated up and rolled, and get it chromed afterwards

Any decent (old) motorbike enthusiast will tell you where to get steel chromed locally.

You might also care to consider stainless steel tubing.

In message , The Natural Philosopher writes

Not any more

Since the EU regs came into force a few years ago, it's become too expensive for a lot of platers to meet the anti pollution regs