Nothing shines quite like chrome. Gleaming chrome accessories add class to any truck and make a clear statement about your pride of ownership. But if you leave the bright metal unprotected, road salt and other harsh chemicals can quickly attack the thin chrome plating, inviting rust and pitting, and resulting in a not-so-good-looking truck.
Stainless steel and aluminum components also require regular maintenance to keep their good looks. The time and effort you spend keeping your chrome and other bright metal trim looking good reflects well on you. It also pays dividends in higher resale value.
Chrome holds a shine longer than other metals, but it oxidizes, rusts and becomes pitted if neglected. The good part is that it is easy to maintain a deep shine on chrome parts. Metal polish for chrome removes rust and can bring a shine back to even a heavily rusted part. If the chrome starts flaking off, the part is too far gone for polish, and it will have to be replated.
In the chroming process, copper, nickel and chromium are used. Parts to be electroplated are immersed in a bath with a salt of the coating metal, while electric current flows through it from a positive anode. The parts are connected to the negative cathode, causing atoms of the plating metal to deposit on their surfaces.
Linda Hou, director of operations at American Chrome Company, Mokena, Ill., says that the major difference in the quality of chrome-plated accessories is in the thickness of the plating. “Most people use a three-step process in which they plate steel with copper, nickel and chrome. Our company does a five-step process. We double nickel-plate over a layer of copper and also plate two layers of chrome,” Hou says. “The extra steps ensure a longer-lasting product, with more resistance to rust and a deeper luster.”
She recommends regular washing and polishing of a truck’s bright metal. This helps remove the components that cause rust on chrome. She also recommends using liquid or paste wax to protect the shiny metal. Most of the well-known metal polishes on the market do well. The key is doing the maintenance on a regular basis, she says.
“Acid washing will adversely affect chrome and stainless products,” Hou notes. “We recommend against using truck washes that use acid in the detergent. But more and more truck washing operations are steering away from that. Even if they do acid-wash the trucks, they keep it off the chrome.” Keeping that mirror-like finish on your chrome means rinsing it well and drying it after each wash, she says.
