where to go for a really good chrome plates

[mo goldie]

Hi do any one Know where to go for Chrome to be done.

as I have a right hand Kawasaki KH400 Exhaust Now it Not full of oil like some people don`t like to do them as they mess up the Acid Tanks But the one that I have has Not been of a bike for over 20 years or More so Not bad at all...... and if you don`t know standard Exhausts are like hen`s teeth to get hold of for a KH400 so need to go to someone who can be trusted if you know what I mean   

oh and we are talking Triple Chrome Not just a flash in the pan if you get my drift 

Cheers Mo

[AshimotoK0]

Lots of places won't touch exhausts Mo. I don't think any Japanese exhausts were triple-plated originally  as the heat lifts the chrome if there is a copper layer. I stand corrected if I am wrong though as I have no knowledge of Brit/Euro stuff only Honda Jap. exhausts

Prestige in Mexborough will do them if they pass their 'water drain' test. That is, when plugged and filled with water, then drained, the drain time is only a few seconds. My friend took a pair of CB160 silencers in there and they passed the drain-test without the baffles in. They have stripped them so we can do cosmetic repairs and we are picking up (to repair) on Friday this week.  A typical price for silencer only (i.e. less down-pipe)  is £150 plus VAT from them. Their lead-times are quite long but whatever they quote you they seem to always stick too. Other places can lead you a merry dance with their empty promises.

The local guy near me ( Quality Chrome)  does two-stroke exhausts and not bothered about the drain time but I always travel and use Prestige if I can. Nuff said although I have seen Kwak Z1 & GT750  pipes in there that looked a decent job. They farm any repairs out though and the guy they sent mine to wasn't great.

Agbrigg in Leeds do exhausts too but never used them and they are very expensive for exhausts and I have heard mixed reviews about them. Last time they quoted me for a single exhaust it was £350 and that was over two years ago.

Hope this helps.  ...  Perhaps other members closer  geographically to you can chip in with local chromers advice.

[SteveW]

Check out my post:
http://www.sohc.co.uk/index.php/topic,31074.msg299516.html#msg299516

I have booked a place in the queue for these guys, hopefully I’ll be sending my bits off in a little while.

They have a YouTube channel with some examples of their work.

[mo goldie]

Thanks guy`s

Just found them but they seem to be a lot of money..... they want £250 for the Exhaust plus Vat ..... and £28 plus Vat for the rear brake Leaver.

 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8NKA-DmhZ8ShiYykNgaJHw

Are I think they are the ones that Steve said about too ?

[AshimotoK0]

Thanks guy`s

Just found them but they seem to be a lot of money..... they want £250 for the Exhaust plus Vat ..... and £28 plus Vat for the rear brake Leaver.

 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8NKA-DmhZ8ShiYykNgaJHw

Are I think they are the ones that Steve said about too ?

Sadly a typical price Mo.

[Laverda Dave]

That is a pretty good price Mo. I was quoted £300 for a wheel rim by Ashford Chrome. They do a lovely job though but for that price you'd expect so!
To be fair to all the chrome platers they are not profitering, this is the reality of how much it now costs to chrome plate and the price of the licence, the cost of all the mandatory environmental inspections and the huge cost of the treatment plants they now have to install if they wish to continue to offer chrome plating.  This is before they have purchased any materials, labour the cost of energy etc......

[AshimotoK0]

I just got back from Prestige Electroplaters. Their current price for rechroming a rim is £165 +VAT. She says they hardly make anything doing them as they are so laborious and heavy on the mops.

I suppose it depends on the bike in question ... if it's original Kwak Z1 Takasago date-coded rims £300 is well worth it.

[Matt_Harrington]

My most recent choming was done @ S&T Electroplate (Bristol) £150 for the chainguard including repair and extra copper plating (a bit of work to be done) which I thought about right in the current climate. Turnaround was 6 weeks.

[Laverda Dave]

My most recent choming was done @ S&T Electroplate (Bristol) £150 for the chainguard including repair and extra copper plating (a bit of work to be done) which I thought about right in the current climate. Turnaround was 6 weeks.

That was one place I looked at Matt, they have a good reputation. I was lucky to find Ashford Chroming in the end located in Crayford, SE London so not such a hike for me

[AshimotoK0]

My most recent choming was done @ S&T Electroplate (Bristol) £150 for the chainguard including repair and extra copper plating (a bit of work to be done) which I thought about right in the current climate. Turnaround was 6 weeks.

That seems a lot Matt ..what are the repro ones like quality/ price wise? Pretty good turnaround though

[Matt_Harrington]

Dave, the quality was excellent and holes were filled from chain wear. Yes, expensive but I was pleased with the result - in fact it's almost too good to put on the bike!! 

[mo goldie]

oh just had this come back...what a shock 

Thanks for the enquiry.

With regard to the items that you wish to have re-plated, as you can appreciate it is impossible to give a precise quote
without seeing and handling the parts. So the best that we can do is give a starting guide price. The actual price will
be dependent on a number of things such as the quality of the base metal, type of metal, any repairs which may need doing and other factors.
With this in mind, a starting guide price would be:

KH400 Exhaust @ £325.00

Brake Lever @ £40.00

Current lead time @ 6 - 8 weeks

All prices are plus any Pack & Post/Courier and plus VAT at the current rate.

Kind Regards
S & T Electroplate

[AshimotoK0]

oh just had this come back...what a shock 

Thanks for the enquiry.

With regard to the items that you wish to have re-plated, as you can appreciate it is impossible to give a precise quote
without seeing and handling the parts. So the best that we can do is give a starting guide price. The actual price will
be dependent on a number of things such as the quality of the base metal, type of metal, any repairs which may need doing and other factors.
With this in mind, a starting guide price would be:

KH400 Exhaust @ £325.00

Brake Lever @ £40.00

Current lead time @ 6 - 8 weeks

All prices are plus any Pack & Post/Courier and plus VAT at the current rate.

Kind Regards
S & T Electroplate

Sadly ..those are typical prices Mo... the places I use would probably be about 30% down on those ...but they are all 'ooop north' and with exhausts you really need to take them in for them to do an assessment. Another thing is customers sometimes expect miracles and then complain if the parts are not perfect when they come back ... I always try to give them the best example of what I can find of the part in terms of minimal corrosion and damage and also do my own prep...like silver soldering slight imperfection etc ... 'cos repairs can really rocket a price up,  as often not  done 'in-house' or if done in-house can be very time consuming.

[Laverda Dave]

The problem with exhausts is the pitting they suffer. The BIL took his Z400 exhaust in for replating and the had slight putting. £650 later and that's how he got them back, re-chrome plated but the pits were still there.

[mo goldie]

well I did get a price of £250 ish so Not so bad ha.

But here is My Exhaust and Brake leaver and they don`t need any repair Well Not that I can see anyway.... and have No dents just need stripping and a light polish and re-chromed.