cost of nickel plating radiator outer shell and headlight buckets

[NY John T]

Can someone give me a ball park cost of nickel plating a radiator shell and headlight buckets? And also a good reasonable place to send them to? Thanks.
John

[jiminbartow]

The best way for you to find a good plater in your area is to do an online search for platers in New York, then make a list and reach out to each one for the best price. If you want bright nickel plating, that might be cheaper, so make that clear to them. The better platers will have a website showing examples of the work they do. Good luck. Jim Patrick

[Allan]

Much will depend on how good the shell is, and what standard of work you are prepared to pay for. The last brass 26-7 model one I had done cost AU$660 for a really nice job.
I doubt anyone will give you a quote without seeing the shell. If they do, consider it an estimate and be prepared for fluctuations.
Steel shells with rust pits require repeated polishing and copper plating to fill the pits. It is the labour to do this which adds up to the cost. once all the pits are filled then a nice finish can be assured. If you can live with some pitting, that will save you some.
Best of luck in your search. I would be interested to see how US prices compare with ours.

Allan from down under.

[GG Gregory]

My cost was $700 just for the radiator shell 2 yrs ago. I’d say your looking at $1000 easily.

[Henry K. Lee]

Good plating is not cheap, cheap plating is not good. Pay the price and be happy...., Rolls Royce quote, "Long after the price is forgotten, the quality still stands".

[Jerry VanOoteghem]

Good plating is not cheap, cheap plating is not good. Pay the price and be happy...., Rolls Royce quote, "Long after the price is forgotten, the quality still stands".

So true!

My dad went to cheap plater that nearly ruined his radiator shell and headlight rims. Do NOT use a plater that commonly plates car bumpers and other large stuff. They're not used to buffing and prepping thin parts with small details, like the Ford logo, or "Made in USA" stamping, or rivet heads.

Members on another forum I frequent are very happy with Nashville Plating Service. I have not personally used them, but definitely will for my next plating job. http://www.nashvilleplatingservice.com/

[John Codman]

Call New England Chrome Plating in East Hartford , CT. Their phone number(s) are 860 528-7176 and 7177. They do Nickel and their work is top quality. I go along with those who recommend quality over price. Doing your shell and headlight buckets will not be cheap.

[Rick_Rice]

I agree with Hank. Call Chris, the owner at Advanced Custom Chrome in Erie, PA. They do awesome nickel, chrome and copper plating. Chris has clients literally all around the globe, but he isn't cheap.

[Original Smith]

A typical chrome plating shop will probably not do the kind of job you seek. You need to find a shop that does the old fashioned hard nickel plating. I had some done ten years ago, and all it needs is to wipe it off once in a while with a soft cotton rag.

[Dropacent]

Better start hugging your good plated radiator shells. As a long time restorer, and small manufacturer, I’ve seen plating costs skyrocket lately. I do all my prep work, and it’s still very expensive to jus5 get dipped in the sauce. Dull nickel ( buffed) is what henry used, and that’s even harder to find. It takes highly skilled labor to do it right, and material and metal costs are through the roof right now. Heed the given advice, no such thing as a good cheap job. Save up if you really want it done, or find a good original , which are still out there, JMHO. I’m heading to my chrome shop right now, so I’m going to buckle up, it’s going to be a bumpy ride!

[Dropacent]

I agree with Orig. Smith. Modern bright nickel makes my eyes hurt.

[Les Schubert]

I had 2 done this fall here in Calgary Canada. They both needed some repairs. $1,000.00 for both. This is a shop I have dealt with for close to 50 years and they do quality work.

[modeltspaz]

Be careful with the type of nickel plating you request.
There are several different alloys of nickel plating. Bright nickel is alloyed to give a brilliant shine, but unless it is top coated with another layer of plating, usually chrome, it will rapidly dull to a grayish color. This is why it's usually advertised as "Triple Chrome Plating". It's not because it was put in the tank of chrome three times, it's because it has been plated with three layers of plating. Copper (acts as a type of primer and fills tiny imperfections), nickel (this gives the brilliant silver shine), and chrome (this adds the protective top coat and keeps the nickel from tarnishing rapidly and gives a bluish tint).
If you bring your items to a typical chrome shop and ask them to just nickel plate them, they'll use what they have. That's Bright Nickel. Every time you take your car out, you'll need to polish the nickel.
There are other types of nickel plating available. Very few chrome shops have anything but bright nickel. The other types of nickel plating are: Watts Cold Nickel Plating, and Nickel Sulfamate. These types of nickel plating are not required to be top coated with chrome to maintain the shine.
A friend of mine had a set-up for nickel plating small items at his home. He used the Caswell nickel plating kit. I had him re nickel a chimney (top) for a Coleman lantern of mine from the early 20's. This was done in the early 2000s and it is still as shiny today as it was when he first plated it.
When you bring your parts to the plater, ask them if they offer different types of nickel plating. If they say "No" or give you a puzzled look, or even tell you that there's only one type, run.
On a similar note, I once called a plating shop to ask if they did silver plating. I wanted to get a couple of Cushman Scooter headlight reflectors re plated. The guy on the phone told me that they were originally chrome (he had never seen the reflectors). When he said that they had probably been re plated with silver in the past, I asked if they even offered silver plating. His simple reply was "No".
Don't always depend on the shop offering the correct type of plating to suit your needs. They'll give you what they have, take your money, and you get to keep the "Maguire's Polish Company" in the black for the entire time you own your car.
Moral to the story: if you want the correct type of plating for your parts, do your research, ask around, and don't be afraid to ship your parts to a reccomended shop. You'll be money and expletives ahead.

Good Luck.

[ModelTWoods]

I have used several plating shops in Houston, TX. , but none recently. Last year, I had a pair of die cast Corvette valve covers chrome plated at a shop in Converse, TX. (a suburb of San Antonio). They set me back, $200.00 for triple chrome plating (copper, nickle, chrome).

[david_dewey]

Lots of good information here--I should emphasize that you do NOT want Bright Nickel plating. It is designed to be under chrome, and was developed to reduce the plating steps--it comes out of the tank bright and doesn't need to be polished before the chrome layer goes on. It is also much thinner than other nickel plating so when left uncovered it wears through faster, and it is more porous than the "dull nickels".
The Caswell plating system works well. A friend of mine has it to do his Dodge Brothers stuff--there's a LOT of nickel plating on them. It takes time to learn how to polish and what you have to do to keep pieces clean between polishing and plating. The good set is more expensive, but still less than paying a good plater, and there is a learning curve! My friend is very meticulous, and I suspect his finished product is better than the factory (over restored!). A lot of DB headlight rims are cracked because of the brass hardening and he brazes them up and works them back down so they are round and beautiful!

[schwabd1]

A friend of mine, Craig Riker does polishing / plating for antique and classic cars. A lot of guys know him for his supply of refurbished shifters, emergency brake handles and headlight buckets and reflectors he has for Model A's. He has a bunch or international clients that he meets every year at Hershey.... they bring him old parts to be plated and he gives them the parts he's completed. Since they only do "old stuff" they are very particular not to buff off any part numbers or logos (like the "MADE IN USA on the radiator shell). his phone is 419-290-4442 and is in Toledo, Ohio.

[pron022020]

Craig Riker is a great guy who is somewhat close. Does great work and his prices are very reasonable.

[Don D]

John,

Generally there are 3 types of service - Good, Cheap and Fast. You can pick 2. The results are:

Good and Cheap service won't be Fast
Fast and Cheap service won't be Good
Good and Fast service won't be Cheap

Best of luck,

Dom