Back light - rechroming

sportfury1959
Tue, 05 Apr 2005 22:27:37 +0000

Guy,

I have removed the light bulb holders and I also tried to rechrome the taillights. When you remove the light bulb holders you must be really careful and patient, but it is possible. At first I made a little steel cylinder on a turn lathe just big enough to fit in where the bulb used to be. The cylinder stabilizes the walls from collapse while opening the folds. Use a fine sizzle to lift the folds up and do it only a little bit while turning it 360° around. You ought to work like an Swiss watch maker here, but its worthy. If you do it to hard it may bent the housing and later the bulb may not fit in anymore.

I guess you want to rechrome the taillights because the chrome is pitted? I’m afraid, here you will face the bigger problem.

If you try to remove the old chrome in a chrome bath (with the inversion of the normal chroming procedure) the housing will fall apart and grey dust is all that will be left !!!

If you rechrome it without removing the old chrome, it hardly will be possible to close the holes in the housing and the pits will remain.

To solve your problem I suggest you go to an galvaniser and ask him for a reliable advice. I did it the wrong way and then I paid a fortune to make a mold and reproduce a pair of taillight housings for my SF.

Take care!