Morning all. The corner of my front bumper took an unfortunate knock and the chrome itself cracked. (See pics) It's not much but there is a small portion that's lifted. Obvious concerns here. Water getting in/behind, and the chipped up piece continuing to lift off further. Anything I can do to secure this little "flap" back down to prevent further damage?

 

Nothing short of getting it rechromed will fix that. You can try crazy glue, but unfortunately the heat it absorbs will make it a temporary fix at best.

 

Well that's just sad. 😢 Bumpers in pretty damn good shape. They can't re-chrome a section correct? It's the whole thing or nothing.

 

Yup, all or nothing. Another option is to see if someone has another driver quality bumper to replace it.

 

Well poo! How can I tell if this was original chrome or a previously re-chromed unit. Just curiosity here.

 

Original chrome was much thinner than in your picture. It's flexible enough that it rarely splits from a dent.

That's a re-chromed bumper.

 

Thank you

 

There is no reason for chrome platers to put on a thick layer of chrome, unless they are skimping on the copper and nickel layers. The chrome is supposed to be only a sealer coating. My dad had a chrome back in the 1950s, and they did a lot of specialty work for Mack Truck, including the Bulldog. I remember them copper plating the part, buffing it to a high sheen, cleaning and inspecting it for pits, marks, etc., and then plating it again till the surface was smooth without ripples or defects. Then it would go into the nickel bath, and be removed, polished, and the process was the same as the copper coating. Only after the nickel coating was perfect did it go into the chrome tank. Then it was wiped down, inspected, and if everything was done correctly, it would be wrapped and delivered to the customer. Chrome is transparent when applied correctly to protect the nickel layer below. The shine of the bumper is all in the preparation of the copper and nickel layers. Today, many of the chrome shops no longer do the old copper, nickel, chrome process, and they can now put the nickel layer directly onto the steel.
Through the years, I have had many bumpers rechromed, and most recently, I have been using Tri City Plating in Tennessee. https://www.tricityplating.com/ E-Mail: chip@tcplating.com
Address: 218 E Mill St, Elizabethton, TN 37643
Phone: (423) 542-6532
Toll-Free: (800) 251-7536

 

Thank you for the insight. With the little knowledge of chrome I have I wouldn't know thin from thick or anything in-between. This bumper was satisfactory for me until I cracked it and my main concern is stopping it from continuing to peel away. Down the road I can make a decision on re-chrome or replace.

 

If you're not that concerned about aesthetics, you could "patch" it with some household chrome a/c duct tape. It sticks really well and polishes up nice.

 

😳 Yikes. Cars a little nicer than a piece of duct tape stick on it lol. But ty

 

Mono chrome is an acquired look and not appropriate for a car undergoing a concours restoration. That being said, I've considered getting the bumpers on my 71 98 wrapped. I don't think I'd go for a mono chrome look, but any wrap is going to be better than the chrome I got done at Northstar Plating in Brainerd, MN. After having my front and rear bumpers rechromed by them years ago the chrome wasn't any better than the OE chrome that had started pitting.

 

At one time, Northstar Plating was one of the best platers in the nation. Once they were acquired by LKQ the prices went up and the quality went down. The only advantage that they had was free shipping both ways through the LKQ network if you had an account with them. I had sent them a 1963 Chrysler bumper, and they gave me a price for the front that was different from the price for the rear. That year, the Chrysler bumpers were identical front and rear. I sent both as rears since that was the less expensive one.

 

The "Triple chrome" (Copper, nickel, chrome) process was the correct way. Shops that do this process are more costly than the "aftermarket budget chromer's". Someone discovered that bumpers in car accidents could be repaired cheaper by layers of only chrome and nickel. The copper plating step and labor step was completely eliminated. Of course, the car insurance companies jumped on the band wagon to save lots of money. The 30 second/30 feet parts warranty was satisfied.

The steel bumper is strong and rigid. Copper is ductile and pliable which adheres to steel quite well. Nickel is also ductile and pliable but does not adhere to steel as well as copper. The copper/nickel layers provide a flexible bond between the rigid steel and very thin (typically .001" thick) chrome.

 

I was thinking about your issue this morning, you might try chrome body wrap on the bumper.

 

Just a piece on that damage, or the whole bumper?

 

I think it would be the whole bumper.

 

^^^THIS^^^

I'm actually considering having the bumpers on my 71 98 wrapped. Definitely an option to consider if you aren't doing a concours restoration.

 

It's definitely not a concourse restoration. It's not a restoration at all the car is where it is in decent condition. I just made a fatal error in the garage with this bumper which is

in pretty good condition so I was looking to band-date it for a while until I get to a point where I would completely redo the bumper

 

Your car is beautiful. It deserves to have the bumper rechromed. Please don't do anything else, cheap and dirty!