Metal plating.

[David Paste]

A while ago I saw an episode of American Hotrod (or the bike one, can't remember which) where one guy suggested instead of plating the trim in chrome, they should try another metal which has a shiny black finish. I can't remember what the metal he suggested was, does anyone here have any idea?

Thanks in advance,

David Paste.

[Spamlet]

I would imagine they were talking about 'black chrome':

more hits on google. Actually from my own schoolboy efforts at plating, the real art was in making any process *not* come out powdery black!

I did manage to make - by pot luck I have to say - a nice dark green marbled finish on some small pieces of aluminium alloy that I experimentally anodised, though. (The home user being severely limited by the amps per sq metre required, and, of course, the chemicals: many very nasty.). You could get a black anodised aluminium trim, commercially I would expect. Other metals such as niobium can also be anodised black (but generally in jewellery: not cars!)

S S

[Arfa Daily]

I think this is 'black chrome', but AIUI, not an easy process. My neighbour owns a metal plating works, and I remember him telling me about the black chroming that they used to do on the wheel nuts for a major UK car manufacturer. I seem to recall him saying that it was a very tricky process to get right, involving some very nasty chemicals like arsenic, and that his company was one of only a couple or three in the country, with the necessary equipment and expertise to carry out the process.

Arfa