Here's a photo of the hood ornament on my 54 Super 88. There's a small crack in the right wing area. Could this be fixed if it was rechromed or is it a lost cause?
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It is probably a lost cause. The hood ornament is made out of pot metal and there is very little that can be done to repair it. Pitting is usually the enemy. It would still be worth taking to the plater and asking what they thought.

 

I disagree on above reply. It costs money, but they can repair anything. In the old days, they would grind the whole piece to get rid of pits but then you change the shape and lose detail. Now, after removing old plating, they typically copper plate it first so the solder has something to stick to (like soldering copper pipes at home). Then they solder in the pits or cracks and polish smooth and then re-copper plate, then nickel and chrome. It is a standard practice out there for pot metal. If you need a good chrome shop, check Hemmings or I used Frankford in Philly area with good results on my 70 Supreme lower moldings. One of my pieces had a large crack like yours and they repaired it and you can't even tell. I paid $700 for 4 pieces so it was not that bad as each piece had some intricate detail and a lot of pits to fix. The more the pits, the higher cost as each one has to be filled.

 

X2 for sure. The abilities to fix and rechrome pot metal has improved tremendously over recent years.

 

Thanks for the info guys. I did take it to the plater and he told me he could fix it but it would cost about $300. He told me getting a different one, even with pretty good pitting would probably end up costing less. On a side note I did purchase another one a short time ago and realized that the 53, as much as it looks the same, is not! Live and learn I guess.