Flexible spray chrome formulation and problems

A. Hi ERICK K

I have a spray chrome system like you're talking about. I can chrome anything except Jello - HAH
It's an intense and expensive process that takes around six months to learn. It took me seven - LOL, but the effort and results were worth it. It's stunning.
I'm a hobbyist like you and wanted something that was better than anything currently available. I do a lot of competing in my hobby and wanted to keep that edge and wanted to step up to the next level of my building and winning.
I redesigned the system I use, and as far as I know, I am the only one in the U.S. who does this kind of chroming on small parts with a dual-nozzle air brush I designed and built.
Anyway, good luck on your search - Dave

A. Hi Robb,
I'm not sure what you're asking for or how to communicate with you other than on this site. I'll keep checking back to hear from you.
All the best - Dave

A. Hi Chantelle
Yes I have experienced the gold color problem and got rid of it. The problem is probably two-fold, just like mine was. I'm assuming this is a water-based chrome system.

FIRST - I had to reformulate the water to chemical ratios, as there was too much chemical being used. Way too much silver causes the gold, but your whole system may need to be re-formulated. I don't know what your friend's system is [but] I believe that the different systems out there are pretty much alike and can work well, but the major thing that is vital is the Tech support from your supplier. My supplier has done a great job and I am a repeat customer. I hear stories like yours often. In fact my supplier started his business because of the very same thing. Bad customer service. It will make or break you.

SECOND PROBLEM - The top coat tint color that most suppliers provide, purple for me, doesn't work well to neutralize the inherent gold color that is lurking there to bite you, even when you achieve a bright chrome finish. All metal chrome has an inherent blue tint to it. So I decided to tint my top coat blue- I use a different clear, different than what comes with the system I use, that I tint blue. Three light very wet coats. I use nearly twice the reducer, but this is something your friend will have to experiment with.

I hope this helps.

All the best -

A. Hi Abed. Dave S already answered that question. Please try to frame your question in terms of what has already been said. Thanks :-)

Regards,

A. Hi Muhammed. The two chemicals are probably basically silver nitrate ⇦this on eBay or Amazon [affil links] and a reducing agent. Study the Brashear process for making mirrors and I think you'll have it.

But the thing is, the companies which sell these supplies have invested lots of money and years of time in determining the ideal concentration of silver nitrate, the ideal reducing agent formulation, any necessary additives, the ideal pre-coats for good adhesion and mirror smooth surface, and the ideal top coats for durability and non-yellowing.

No one is going to give away for free the results of years of costly development efforts, so you either buy the proprietaries or you develop your own from the general theory. Good luck!

Regards,

A. Hi Andy. Gold Touch [a finishing.com supporting advertiser] and G.J. Nikolas [a finishing.com supporting advertiser] are two suppliers. You can google for other suppliers using search terms like "chrome-like paint" and "chrome-look paint" -- there are a half-dozen or more.

Making your own base coat, shiny layer, and top coat is not impossible, but developing it will be the work of months or years. After searching this site for a dozen dialogs on the subject, perhaps go on to a patent search using those same search terms. Did you find informative links using the search term "brashear process" as was suggested? If so, please share them!

Regards,

A. Hi again Andy. For a general hint on the base coat, please see letter 56727 where Marvin Sevilla explains why he feels it is best to use a "transparent base coat (both 2k and UV cured) which is basically a pigment free base coat"

Obviously, making money in any business is hard, and successfully formulating your own chrome-look paint system without investing the years of development time that others found necessary doesn't sound promising, but best of luck with the venture.

Regards,

Thanks Ted.

A. My name is Marvin from Nicaragua, and I have spent many years perfecting my own spray on chrome process as a D-I-Y for others to do so -- so much that the company I initially obtained my "silvering mirrors" chemicals now sell their own "spray on chrome kit". So if you are located in the USA you can spend like $150 and "spray on chrome" about 80 square feet; now if you are not located in the USA things are much harder as things are not so user friendly.

I have tested many base coats for my silvering process, and oil based coatings are just bad as they leak chemicals as heat and temperature rise. While this is not bad at all for iron/steel or other metals, the thin silver layer tarnishes very quickly, so I have used automotive grade 2k Urethane high gloss clear coat as a base coat to provide a shiny surface for silver to stick to, and for Top coat I use 2k urethane colorless base coat which is not glossy but not matte either and will retain the silver reflective nature.

As for the silvering formula, a simple Tollen's reagent formula will work fine, or any other silver mirroring formula too; the reducer is what makes the difference, it needs to be quicker than the normal mirror formula because it's sprayed rather than poured.

Thanks Jeffrey. I've said the same on a dozen threads, so, yes, it was your turn :-)

Regards,

A. Hi Nilesh. I suppose there is no harm in asking, but I don't think formulating a chrome-look spray paint is as simple as that, and those whose research has produced workable formulations can't afford to just give that expensive and hard-won knowledge away. But we do have about 20 threads on the subject and if you spend a couple of hours picking through them for pointers, I think you'll learn enough to get started. Even still, you should perhaps buy kits from two or three vendors to track how well you are progressing versus what they have already accomplished. Good luck.

Regards,

Hi Angela. You tried to post this on topic 2586, "Can you make your own chrome stripper and nickel activator?", but we moved it here because I think you are talking about "chrome-look paint" rather than reworking rejected nickel-chrome electroplated items. Sorry if I have misunderstood.

Regards,

A. Hi David. It is certainly possible to legally reverse engineer a competitive product as long as the proper protocols are followed, but it would obviously be illegal to "crowd source" industrial espionage in a "no registration required" public forum. So I'm not sure if there is anything any poster would be able to tell us which would be legitimate to share here because we'd have no idea whether it was independently gained knowledge vs. theft of trade secrets :-(
So I think a better plan would be for you to tell exactly what formula you're trying and what problems it is giving you ... and see what suggestions people have along those lines. Good luck.

Regards,

A. Hi Arivalagan. This thread is long and starting to run in circles: Marvin Sevilla already answered that question in good detail. Good luck!

Regards,