Front grille

[pdxrealtor]

Well let me be the first to tell you a heat gun and/or torch does not take the chrome off easily. It's such a PITA I said F it , and now need a new grille.

If anyone has one let me know.

[Camou2]

Unless you actually bent or mis-shaped it, don't give up yet. Take a power sander to it then prime with a chrome primer then paint it the color you want. I sanded mine by hand and did the chrome primer and then painted it the same color as my truck almost 3 years ago and it still looks great. I also applied 2 coats of clear coat.

[pdxrealtor]

Not bent or anything...

But there is chrome and no chrome. I'd have to strip the rest.

[Hellz]

use a high pressure power washer.

i have pics on here of how well it worked on mine when i stripped it for lineX.

really, it works great at removing the chrome.

are you getting it LineX ?

[pdxrealtor]

How much pressure did you use?? I have a 3000 psi washer and no way would it take this chrome off.

Really , I don't know WTF is up with my grille but shi't is on there good.

[guruerror]

How much pressure did you use?? I have a 3000 psi washer and no way would it take this chrome off.

Really , I don't know WTF is up with my grille but shi't is on there good.
Oooohhh I bet that 3000 would take it off especially if you hit it at the point where you left off with the heat gun. Get that water up under the plasti-chrome and I'd think it'd peel straight off.

[Hellz]

yup thats what it exactly does.

iirc my PW is a 2800 psi.
focus the spray in to a high pressure stream.
you want to try to force the water under the chrome. it will bubble and pop.
i used pliers to help peel it from the edges and hard places.

once you get your first bubble, it will become clear how easy it is.

do it on a nice warm day and expect to get wet.
it will take some patience to get in some spots.
let the water do all the work. dont try to peel it off if it is not bubbled up.

the water will get underneath the chrome and copper plating.

since it is plastic, if you focus the stream in a spot for too long, it will start cutting in to it. If you are lineX - ing it, no worries as the LineX will cover it, just dont do it too often or around the edges.

[Hellz]

here is a link to when i did mine with some pics.


http://www.elcovaforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=42575

you can see in the pics how the chrome is bubbled up... thats what you want.
after it is bubbled up, you can use pliers to break the line whole pieces of chrome so you can pull it off... but again, dont peel it off unless it has been bubbled up.

If you try to peel if off, you will just pull the chrome plating off of the copper plating, and the copper will stay on the grill.

once you have all the chrome off the front, or atleast free from the front.. you can peel the edge pieces off without worries of the back of the grill. Since you will never see the back of the grill, its not a big deal. i did use the powerwasher on the back as well to get as much as i could off before i took it in.

so are you getting you grill LineX ?

[[__--MUD--__]]

how big of a heat gun were you using?

I sandblasted mine off....but it wasn't the material that was doing the work, it was the friction heating the chrome and bubbling it off.

[Humvee21]

IIRC, PSI doesn't mean much when talking about pressure washers. It's the GPM that's really important

[pdxrealtor]

Hellz- I'm painting it body color.

Mud- standard harbor freight gun. Then propane torch, it was quicker.

Humvee- you're correct. But in this case it's all about pressure. The GPM allows getting a job done quicker. Mine is. 3 GPM, above average for a home user type model. I was incorrect on pressure, it's 2500 psi 3 GPM model. You really don't need much more pressure for normal situations.

This problem is solved. My dealer had brand new ones in stock, chrome and pewter, for 125. I got them down to 100.00 out the door in factory box. Got a pewter and will paint it blue.

Honestly, this chrome removal project is not my typed of deal. I have no patience for things like this.