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Chrome plating, holy crap!

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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 02:17 PM
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Default Chrome plating, holy crap!

This stuff is expensive! Just to chrome plate my two LT1 exhaust tips costs $150!!!!! I guess powder coating is next.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 02:41 PM
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Originally Posted by Strick
This stuff is expensive! Just to chrome plate my two LT1 exhaust tips costs $150!!!!! I guess powder coating is next.
HARD TO SIT DOWN AFTER THAT!
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 02:48 PM
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Tell me about it. That is why this was done over years. I even got to know the plater and his family.

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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 03:16 PM
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Nice engine....
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 04:24 PM
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Originally Posted by 1bdvet
Tell me about it. That is why this was done over years. I even got to know the plater and his family.

Only exaust tips cost 150 and you had your whole engine done? How much money did that cost you? A couple grand I would imagine.

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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 04:32 PM
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Beautiful engine. And I was worried about a measely $150. I priced a few chromed tail pipes at AutoZone and they were cheap, just the wrong styles. I wonder why the huge difference. I'm looking to go with powder coating as they have a shiney coating at a MUCH lower price.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 05:13 PM
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Polishing is a much cheaper alternative. It looks good and can't flake off over time like chrome.

I polished 95% of what you see below for just a little over what you paid to chrome your exhaust tips.

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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 05:20 PM
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Chrome, polish, whatever...they both look very nice!
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 05:43 PM
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Originally Posted by 86PACER
Polishing is a much cheaper alternative. It looks good and can't flake off over time like chrome.

I polished 95% of what you see below for just a little over what you paid to chrome your exhaust tips.

I don't think my OEM exhaust tips will polish up like aluminum. But I'll give it a try.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 06:19 PM
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I paid almost $1000 to get the bumpers on my 57 ford done last year.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 06:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Strick
I don't think my OEM exhaust tips will polish up like aluminum. But I'll give it a try.
I outsourced the job to someone who does this for a living. It's very labor intensive and time consuming to do it yourself. The only thing I did not polish was the intake base, because you can't see most of it anyway once the engine is reassembled.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 07:08 PM
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Originally Posted by Strick
This stuff is expensive! Just to chrome plate my two LT1 exhaust tips costs $150!!!!! I guess powder coating is next.
Well you get what you pay for
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 07:11 PM
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Paying a higher price does not alway mean better quality.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 07:40 PM
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Originally Posted by 86PACER
Polishing is a much cheaper alternative. It looks good and can't flake off over time like chrome.

I polished 95% of what you see below for just a little over what you paid to chrome your exhaust tips.

Nice!

I'm having cuisinartvette polish my LT1 heads and intake while he's got them for porting. I bought some crome GM valve covers to match. I'd like the polish the accessories so it all matches.

EDIT:
Here's the engine in his ElCamino

Last edited by BrianCunningham; Nov 21, 2007 at 08:16 PM.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 08:28 PM
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Originally Posted by 86PACER
Paying a higher price does not alway mean better quality.
Correct but the price he paid was not out of line either.

Last edited by Goldcylon; Nov 23, 2007 at 01:05 AM.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 09:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Jeffwilson34
I paid almost $1000 to get the bumpers on my 57 ford done last year.
Not surprising at all these days. Some restorers of heavily chrome-laden 50s cars such as Caddys pay $20K or more for the rechroming of all their parts.
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Old Nov 21, 2007 | 09:48 PM
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Here's my tips, polished along with the pipes, but muffler clamps where chromed. The price for two clamps where $75.00, that the first thing I chromed. Then I started chroming everything. Hope you like?

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