Finnthedude Posted August 20, 2015 Share Posted August 20, 2015 Just bought the 1/24 Revell Audi R8 Spyder and it has chromed wheels. I'm not really a fan of this style so was wondering will any paint go over the chrome or am I best trying to strip it? I use mainly acrylics (Revell Aqua Colour). The other issue is the front grille. It is a chrome part but the grille holes are also filled in and chromed. I could strip it, paint it black and drybrush the grille but it wouldn't look right, or I could wash it and wipe it but with what? I don't want to drill it out as it would take a lifetime and I would definitely make a mistake at some point. Never stripped chrome off a plastic part before so will Dettol work or do I need something else? Thanks in advance. Finnthedude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotorheadtx Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 (edited) Painting over chrome is a recipe for disappointment, as paint flaking off is inevitable. For stripping chrome, I use house-hold bleach. Works a treat normally; I've only had problems with Polar Lights sci-fi kits and their meter-thick plating. Edited August 21, 2015 by rotorheadtx 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willie fixit Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 hi,i use mr muscle oven cleaner in an old frey bentos pie dish overnight then wash in soapy water use an old toothbrush then rinse in warm water lay on paper towel or dry with hairdryer (an old one not her new one) when dry fill,sand then prime,be sure to leave dish in well ventilated area as it pongs a bit 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 5 Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Normal bleach works for me and have never had to wait more than 10 minutes for it to work its magic , if you opt for this method when stripped wash parts with warm ( not hot ) soapy water . Richy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vince14 Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 You could just use a can of Coke... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-cNTb_KeCY 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 Use a dilute solution of household bleach to strip chrome, works fine. Link below: http://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/9408-suzuki-rgv-xr89/ Once stripped, repaint with Alclad or similar, much better than the finish on kit chrome plating. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnthedude Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 Thank you everyone, that is all useful advice. Finnthedude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmatthewbacon Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 The quickest, most reliable, way to strip chrome in minutes, rather than hours, is caustic soda. It's an easily available household cleaner, but it is a strong chemical, and needs to be treated with respect. You'll need rubber gloves, and some eye protection to be on the safe side. Work in the kitchen sink, if you can. Buy some caustic soda crystals from your local hardware store or Wilkos. Get a jam jar, and 2/3 fill it with cold water. Get a large bowl of cold water standing by. Slowly, stir about two tablespoons of the crystals into the water, always adding the crystals to the water, not vice versa. It will heat up, and you don't want to sniff too closely over the jar as it's dissolving. The jar and water will get reasonably warm. Once the crystals have dissolved, you're good to go. Drop the chromed parts into the solution, and stir. Within seconds, you'll see the chrome start to "fizz," and in a minute or two it will be gone. Some chromed parts have a gungy layer of orange-ish varnish under the chrome, in which case leave it a few minutes more, and that will peel off as well. Once the chrome is gone, and the bare plastic visible, pick the parts out using long stainless steel tweezers, and drop them into the bowl of cold water. When you've finished,turn on the cold tap, and slowly pour the caustic soda solution down the plug (where it will clean your drains and U-bend). Swirl the nude plastic parts in the clean water in the bowl, and pluck them out to dry on a paper towel. If you have the slightest suspicion along the way that you've scattered solution anywhere (the burning sensation on you forearm is a clue...) run lots of cold water on it quickly (that's why the kitchen sink is a good workbench). It's not as scary as it sounds, especially if you did chemistry in the years before Health and Safety and have learned a healthy respect for "chemicals"... It's BY FAR the quickest, cheapest and most reliable way to take off chrome plating, honest... bestest, M. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan1302 Posted August 22, 2015 Share Posted August 22, 2015 ... It's BY FAR the quickest, cheapest and most reliable way to take off chrome plating, honest... bestest, M. Or just use bleach which is also BY FAR the quickest, cheapest and most reliable way to take off chrome plating Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmatthewbacon Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) A little experiment: {L} Morrison's Thick Bleach, diluted 2/3 bleach, 1/3 water; {R} Mangers Caustic Soda, two teaspoons crystals dissolved in water. Chrome from a spare Heller kit. T= 60s T= 90s T= 2 mins. You can draw your own conclusions. It's not like I haven't TRIED other methods, including Coke, Easy-Off Oven Cleaner and bleach... ;-P bestest, M. Edited August 23, 2015 by cmatthewbacon 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A5h Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 Caustic soda sounds like a fun experiment and adds danger too, which is never a bad thing! I use B&M bleach for 39p, I have had AMT parts needing an overnight bath in bleach but Tamiya stuff comes off in minutes.. (may purchase some caustic soda at some point though just for the fun of it and the mrs cant steal that for the toilet like she does my bleach) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan1302 Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 You can draw your own conclusions. It's not like I haven't TRIED other methods, including Coke, Easy-Off Oven Cleaner and bleach... ;-P bestest, M. Why dilute the bleach though? When I've used it I've always used it neat from the bottle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmatthewbacon Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) ...edited because I was being a twit... M. Edited August 24, 2015 by cmatthewbacon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnthedude Posted August 24, 2015 Author Share Posted August 24, 2015 Thanks for all the advice everyone, it is all appreciated. I don't need to strip it in minutes so I'll avoid the caustic soda method but it's welcome advice if ever I need to strip chrome in a hurry, which if you see my model build rate I never will It's not a race lads. It was just a question. Finnthedude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazdot Posted September 5, 2015 Share Posted September 5, 2015 Tried part of a sprue from my lotus in thick bleach overnight and nothing not a thing. Washed it scrubbed nothing at all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarnish One Posted September 5, 2015 Share Posted September 5, 2015 Mr Muscle Oven Cleaner aerosol was very effective in stripping chrome from a Heller kit for me. Left it overnight (in an Ikea freezer bag), so don't know exactly how quick it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazdot Posted September 6, 2015 Share Posted September 6, 2015 Used caustic soda tonight choked the kitchen out. Sort of worked Ok Still not the 2 minutes mind you it took a good hour to xlen the majority of the bits I'm going to have to go back next weekend to finish stripping the rest strong stuff however but still not totally successful. I wonder if tamiya have changed their coming process the kit was released last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanroon Posted September 10, 2015 Share Posted September 10, 2015 A point on stripping 'chrome' from parts. The metallic plating is applied over a primer, usually a lacquer on the plastic. Often blurrynesses associated with chrome parts is actually the primer. Holidays, where the coating didn't deposit usually won't be plated. If you do a slow strip of plating you may observe an uneven coating. Thick coats and runs usually show amberish, like yellowing varnish. Drain cleaner for mine. G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natter Posted September 12, 2015 Share Posted September 12, 2015 I have used bleach for the chrome and have found at least one set of plated parts where the varnish underneath was very thick, as Vanroon notes . I shifted that with Fairy Powerspray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Long haired david Posted September 13, 2015 Share Posted September 13, 2015 hi,i use mr muscle oven cleaner in an old frey bentos pie dish overnight then wash in soapy water use an old toothbrush then rinse in warm water lay on paper towel or dry with hairdryer (an old one not her new one) when dry fill,sand then prime,be sure to leave dish in well ventilated area as it pongs a bit I agree. I use Mr. Muscle oven cleaner in a tin tray made up from kitchen foil. BTW, I have found that 10 minutes is enough on most kits. Certainly, the chrome parts on my recent build of a Tamiya Mk.II Jag only needed that short time to clear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dazdot Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Word of Warning if you use caustic soda. Don't use a metal or aluminium pan. Take it from one who knows With an aluminium pan without a bottom!!!!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beardie Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 How do you deal with the lacquer under the chrome? I have been battling my way through a Revell Triumph Tiger and, after stripping the chrome off with bleach I was left with slightly translucent parts which appeared to be covered in a pretty thick, hard, clear lacquer that wouldn't glue/dissolve with poly cement and was even reluctant to stick with CA. I got by by scraping the parts at the point I wanted to glue but I would like to know for the future how best to deal with this lacquer as I am planning to get my hands on a few old British bike kits at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Knight Posted January 30, 2016 Share Posted January 30, 2016 I find that caustic soda solution dissolves the lacquer as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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