Chrome Plating

[Chase, Jim]

Dear All Can Anyone recommend a good chrome plating company, preferably reasonably close to Woking, Surrey, England. I need to get some of the small bright metal components re-chromed such as door handles and bonnet handles and also the windscreen frame and mountings. The door and bonnet handles are a zinc based alloy that suffers badly from pitting corrosion. Sympathetic polishing work is required by someone that realizes that a small amount of residual pitting is preferable to over polishing and obliteration of the original shape and MG crests. I have had some bad experience with re-chroming work in the past. A few years ago I wanted the radiator shell repaired and re-chromed and I had a recommendation for Avon Plating in Stratford by someone who was very meticulous. The problem was that Avon Plating were so good that they were always inundated with work. Every three months I telephoned to ask if they could take on the work, only to be told try in another 3 months. I had seen a recommendation in Octagon Club magazine for Anglo Radiators in Ripley Surrey. So I had them refurbish the radiator core. It seemed a reasonable job, at least the radiator came back clean and nicely shrink wrap packaged. After four years of dry storage the steel parts of the radiator frame are rusting under the black radiator paint. Where I really came unstuck was asking Anglo Radiators if they knew of anyone who could repair and re-chrome the radiator shell. Unfortunately they offered to do the job. The radiator shell had a crack across the top due to abrasion from a badly routed radiator blind cable and there were cracks down one side where a badly fitting bonnet had worn the raised rib on the shell. Also some of the studs for the radiator slats were broken. After a few months they telephoned to tell me the shell was ready for collection. On picking up the radiator shell I was appalled. The main crack in the top had been repaired. They had actually got the silver solder to stick, although the repair was still visible from the outside. No attempt had been made to repair the crack along the side but the shell had been re-chromed. The polishing was awful with concentric circles around the filler cap opening and cutting through on the edges of some of the openings due to harsh polishing. They did replace all the studs which they managed to place with an accuracy of about +/- half an inch. I refused to accept the radiator shell and they took it back for further repair. After six months of telephone calls it was finally ready for collection again. It wasn't much better. An attempt had been made to repair the crack in the side of the shell and the only ragged holes from the original damage are now hidden when the bonnet is closed. I had begun to doubt that I would ever get the radiator shell back, so I paid up and took it away just from relief at getting the thing back again. Regards Jim

[Michael Card]

Jim

Try Brian Purves, near East Grinstead in Sussex, tel. 01342 315 065. [Not so very close to you, but worth travelling the distance.]

Brian knows T-types well [and MMM]. He did the plating for my TC 8233, and presently has a rad shell and other parts to repair and replate for me for TC 9477. Brian also makes some parts, such as rad caps and rad nose piece.

Please mention my name when you call him.

Mike Card

Surrey, UK