Curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
The authoritative public forum
for Metal Finishing 1989-2025
-----
Etching Primer for Chrome to Enable Paint to Adhere ?
I am restoring an antique car and having trouble getting paint to stick to the background of a newly chrome plated badge despite lightly scuffing it with 600 wet paper. Can anyone tell me of an over-the-shelf product I can purchase in a small quantity to etch or prime with, for adhesion of my paint?
Help!
- Toronto, Canada
2000
Hydrochloric acid, available everywhere as
muriatic acid
⇦ this on
eBay or
Amazon [affil links] , will easily etch the chrome. Be very careful of over etching and you will need to very careful of dissolving the chrome completely if the acid is undiluted.
A fine airbrush with an abrasive will provide a good mechanical surface for adhesion, and there are many precision airbrushes around that will accept fine carbide or carborundum abrasives. Again, be careful and use a stencil mask to help avoid damaging your item.
SCSC - Bellefonte, Pennsylvania
2000
Well actually I'm asking this question on behalf of a friend who's into automotive body repairs. Can epoxy primer(automotive)be applied on chrome? If not what's the recommended primer. Thank you!
Donnel CharlesPaint Mixer - Grenada, West Indies
September 15, 2008
Q, A, or Comment on THIS thread -or- Start a NEW Thread