Damaged chromium on vintage watch

[Pali333]

Hello everyone,

I decided to restore vintage watch case and I dont know how. You experienced folks sure know what to do. I want to polish the case so there are no damage marks but I get little to none results except the watch is shining more. See photos. Thers also poorly made open spot for back case (brute force) and it looks terible with hard finish. Can I brush it somehow ?

I thought its rust, dust mixed with wetness so it will go off easily but I guess the chrome surface has been damaged. I tried soapwater, baking soda solution, autosol metal polish but nothing work. Can yoo please give me some advice ? Thanks in advance for every reply.

[Khronos]

Hi, yes, it's pretty frustrating.  These are base metal (brass) cases with a chrome plate over them.  I personally have never found a satisfactory solution as the pitting goes pretty deep.  Good luck with finding a workable solution.  Maybe finding a junker watch with a decent case?  I've had some luck with that.  Anyway, the case back looks beautiful!  Nice job! 

[saswatch88]

MetalX makes strippers for different metals, I use the solution on nickel plated cases. It will remove the plating and leave the brass. I then polish the brass so it looks like gold then I replace with nickel using electrolysis. Then I polish again. Doing your own plating is very easy, chromium May require other steps in the plating process but I never dealt with it so iam not sure. But many videos on the tube in regards to metal x and electrolysis.

[JohnR725]

If it was a stainless steel case they can be refinished and polish to look like new. If you're dealing with chrome plating on brass as mentioned above not much you can do. Although you could try going to an automotive supply store where they have polishing supplies for chrome items found on cars maybe they have something.

[Endeavor]

Chrome will be attacked by acid. The higher the acidity, the faster it will be removed. Perspiration, or sweat, has a slight acidity and therefore a chrome-layer will, in time, be eaten away. How fast and how much depends on many factors like the acidity of the persons sweat, the contact duration, the quality of the chrome layer etc , etc. I don't know how the front of the case looks like, most likely the "damage" is restricted to the back-side.

If you want everything a 1000% perfect, the old chrome layer has to come off and the case needs to be re-chromed. High-gloss chrome is used and that is not a DIY job. Applying a nickel layer is another story, has another appearance and is not as per original.

The watch has had a life and a story to tell. You can erase all the age/life tell-tales, but where do you stop? Re-chrome the case, remove all the patina, install a new dial, new hands and while you at it, a new movement?

Also, it seems to be on the back-side of the watch, a place normally nobody sees ....

Polishing too aggressive and too much and you will go through the chrome layer making things only (much) worse.

Considering the fact that you may do more harm than any good, I would leave it "AS IS" is .........but that's just my opinion

[Pali333]

Thanks for all replies. You are very helpful. I was thinking about buying chrome solution and use electrolisys. Do you think it would work if I apply it on existing plating or I need to remove original plating to the point when its all brass and than apply new layer of chrome ? Or is it easier to use nickel plating ?

[Endeavor]

1 hour ago, Pali333 said:

Thanks for all replies. You are very helpful. I was thinking about buying chrome solution and use electrolisys. Do you think it would work if I apply it on existing plating or I need to remove original plating to the point when its all brass and than apply new layer of chrome ? Or is it easier to use nickel plating ?

I think you are about to open a can of worms. The base material is unknown and there may be layers of a kind of "filler" between the base material and the chrome layer. As said, High-Gloss chrome is not a DIY. Nickel plating is doable but you have to be prepared for any outcome. See this thread for further information / study;

https://www.watchrepairtalk.com/topic/3831-design-watch-plating-project/

Suc6

[vinn3]

i lucked out.  with a few military,  vintage wrist watch cases "deeply pited"   between the two wars, the US auctoned off a pile of military marked NOS cases.     someone in New York got them,  probably Freed.    they are still trickeling out,  some of those militaty marked cases modified for a proper winding stem and crown.   vin

[JJM]

I guess the decision has to be made of what final finish your intending to achieve? 

Restored or factory fresh.... Plating is feasible, however convincing a company to undertake this will be problematic. You could however, remove all the remaining chrome, polish up the brassious case & lacquer it..... That way you could either buff all the Imperfections out or leave a strategic few... A black Jappaned (dull black) might be deemed period correct, but you may well be straying too far from the 'Traditionally' accepted norms there. 

[AndyHull]

Plating on a small scale is possible, but there is a bit of an art to it.

Google/YouTube has a bunch of videos and articles on the subject.

Watch/read some of these first to see if this looks like something you would be tempted to try.

It has also been discussed on this forum a number of times, so try a search here too.

Removing chrome is also possible, but bear in mind that the process either produces chrome salts if chemical stripping or reverse plating, or chrome dust if using a mechanical process. Chrome compounds are generally petty toxic, so should be handled and disposed off carefully (see your local disposal laws). You are producing relatively small amounts, so evaporating/drying off the waste, and disposing of it at your local waste facility would probably be the best route.

Stripping chrome from brass can probably be done with household bleach and various acids. The exact method would depend on the underlying metal. See the following link for some basic tips.

https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-Chrome-Plating

Once stripped, the work piece should then be bright polished, and I would suggest that a relatively heavy copper plate should be applied to help fill the pitting, before a second bright polishing is done to give the base for the nickel finish.

Be aware that any threads, drilled holes or other features on the work piece should be preserved by coating in wax or whatever, otherwise you may have issues re-assembling after the plating process.

Take safety seriously when doing this, always wear gloves throughout these processes, and avoid breathing in any vapours as much as possible.

If you do attempt this, don't forget to let us see the results (even the failures), as this will assist anybody else who is tempted to try this.

[Pali333]

Wow thanks for LOT of info. Of course I will do some research and then decide what to do. Of course I will post results. Thanks again