StinkBug
Been Around the Block
So I'm finally getting back around to finishing my project that I've been riding around in bare steel for over a year now. My plan was always to strip the frame of all paint (half of it is fresh bare steel anyways) and have it nickel plated. Problem is that the plating will definitely show every little imperfection in the metal, and getting all the factory paint off will be a real bear unless I blast it, which will create a texture that will show in the plating. Basically if I'm gonna plate the frame, I'm in for a lot of work and may not get as pretty an end result as I'm dreaming of.
The other option is powder coat / Jet hot. I've seen a few of those coatings that resemble the look of plating, but without all the worry about blasting, and which will possibly hold up better over time. Question there is how bright and shiny can they actually do a powdercoat? I'm looking for a finish that is just slightly darker and less mirror like than chrome. Hence the plan to simply Nickel plate.
Any other ideas or suggestions? This is the bike in question:
The other option is powder coat / Jet hot. I've seen a few of those coatings that resemble the look of plating, but without all the worry about blasting, and which will possibly hold up better over time. Question there is how bright and shiny can they actually do a powdercoat? I'm looking for a finish that is just slightly darker and less mirror like than chrome. Hence the plan to simply Nickel plate.
Any other ideas or suggestions? This is the bike in question: