Removing chrome plating

[RogerP]

I have some solid brass items with extremely worn chrome plating. I would like to remove the chrome.

What's the easiest way please?

 

[n0legs]

Try a soak in thick bleach. My mothers bleach fetish has ruined many a plug hole and a bath tap once.
Do it outside though.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Caustic soda or drain cleaner might be worth a try (see above) but be careful.

 

[xy mosian]

This is so strange I hardly believe it myself.
In an industrial environment, many years ago, we were looking for PVA glue dispensers.
One was a chromium plated syringe. The PVA stripped the chromium in fairly short time.

I told you it was strange.
xy

 

[RogerP]

So if I mix some bleach and drain cleaner into a paste with PVA that should do the trick!

Not really ... but I'll try each of the suggestions and get back with results. Thanks.

 

[Chrispy]

I think it's an acid you need, but one that won't eat the brass! Acid catalyst is I believe dilute hydrochloric so might work is you have any, best check the brass though, For what it's worth many years ago some one down the pub who worked in a plating works offered to re plate an old RAC car badge for my father, he stuck it in an acid bath to remove the old plating left it to long and dissolved the brass casting, it ended up looking like a 10 year old dead rat.

 

[porker]

Try Muriatic acid (brick cleaner). You can get it from Wickes. Take the usual precautions with acid though. Never used it for this myself but cleaned other stuff with it.

 

[chipmunk]

Hydrochloric acid I think is the way to go as this will have minimal effect on the copper and zinc of the brass.

https://www.webelements.com/chromium/chemistry.html
https://www.webelements.com/copper/chemistry.html
https://www.webelements.com/zinc/chemistry.html

...HCl is available on amazon pretty cheaply.
Jon

 

[rafezetter]

For scale modelling removal of chrome plating on parts is required - and it's proper chrome plating albeit thin and the easiest way is bleach as suggested before. My taps also had some plating stripped when I used a thick gel type limescale remover on them.

 

[Benchwayze]

I once refurbed a Record No. 4 on which the cast body had been chromium plated.

I thought about sending it away to a plating firm, because I was pretty sure they removed old plating before re-plating.
I changed my mind, and as I don't like messing with acids, resorted to good old friction. I used 100 grit emery cloth. Quite a few sheets of it!

 

[CHJ]

Try electrolysis, with a bit of copper wire as the cathode, should strip back to brass quickly.

 

[Favino]

Try electrolysis, with a bit of copper wire as the cathode, should strip back to brass quickly.

Would this work on a nickelplated brasspiece as well?

 

[CHJ]

Should do, it's the opposite of plating.

 

[Benchwayze]

Before you go any further, I should have a look at the link below.

http://www.wikihow.com/Remove-Chrome-Plating

There are also a couple of chemical solutions available fully explained on the page.

HTH.

John