Making Chrome Irons Raw

[irmogolfer04]

Does anyone know how to make a chrome set of irons a Raw/RTG type finish. I currently play CG1 black pearls and love not having a glare...thinking of getting some Srizon 506 but dont like glare at all. any info would be great. thanks in advance

[hattrick3518]

a buttload of nasty chemicals to get the chrome stripped

[irmogolfer04]

any ideas on what kind?

[hattrick3518]

no, i had this idea myself a while back and then turned away after hearing others tell me, that you need to use a lot of really nasty chemicals and it shouldnt be done in your garage by yourself

[gators78]

I had the same idea. Coreyt sent me a pm and this is what it said, its pretty involved and i never did it because 1) i hate chemicals and 2) when you remove the chrome you also change swingweight

 

"you should get some responses to your question, but I can give some advice. First you should contact some plating companies in your area and see if they will remove the chrome and nickel (pretty sure there will be nickel under the chrome). I found some in my area (fort worth) and it was going to cost about 40-50 bucks for the set and take a few weeks. Second is to contact a chrome auto shop, some remove chrome. I went this route at (had them do one head) but they did not remove the nickel and did a lousy job removing all the chrome. Lastly you can do it yourself, which is what I'm doing. I got a lot of help from other members on this site which was great, but it is a dangerous process. I used miriatic acid (bought at local hardware store 3.99 for a gallon) which is the most dangerous part because it's acid and hazardous. I put about 2 cups in a plastic bowl, (use chemical resistant gloves, eye-ware, and mouth protection dangerous to inhale) and drop heads (one or two at a time) and it will began to boil and fizz. Once this stops you remove the heads with tongs and rinse head off. The head should come out looking just like it was when you put it in the acid because the nickel is actually very shinny. Next (step i'm at) is to get nickel remover (I'm waiting for my to be delivered from caswell plating) and get the one that is nontoxic. Again I got mine from caswell plating, but if you google you can find others. Then heat the nickel remover in a stainless steel pot and drop heads in for about 3 hours. You will need to stir because some will lay on each other or on the bottom of the pan and not be exposed to the remover. Once this is done you will be left with black smudge and you can use a dremel tool and sand it off. Thats about it. Sorry for such a long pm, and if you decide not to go the do-it-yourself route you can pm Mike aka: the-long-ball or email him at: [email protected]. Hope this helps. Also you will have to find a place to dispose of the chrome once you have removed it.

 

Coreyt"

[irmogolfer04]

thanks, is there anyone who has done this or has any experience i could send them to you when i decide to get them??

[NicholasP]

I believe there is a member here named "thelongball" who is really experienced with the chrome stripping process, he can give you all the details you need, and may even do them for you for price. An alternative would be to take them to your local chrome shop, or check out nomadgolfwrx.com, they might be able to help as well.

[irmogolfer04]

thanks guys, any more info anyone has would be great. i would def. pay to have someone do it if its not ridiculous price

[TeeBonZ]

thanks guys, any more info anyone has would be great. i would def. pay to have someone do it if its not ridiculous price

 

E-mail Mike. He did my J33's. He does great work and really knows what he's doing with the chemicals :bigwhack:

[YevKasim]

Don't even think about anything other than sending them off to have it done by pros.

 

Even stripped-chrome heads will not come out looking like raw clubs from the factory. I believe the metal used in raw clubs is made using other "additives" to achieve that look. I know for a fact that "raw" steel beams used in building construction and engineering and which are not painted are made that way.

[irmogolfer04]

teebonz, could u PM me a pic of ur J33s, how much did it cost?

[Johnny]

Please pay someone because the materials left over are extremely hazardous to you.

[xxio]

Pic of my raw irons. Going with TFR 5.5s soon.

 

 

 

[wildwilly911]

a word of warning when you stip them be prepared to lose any where from 7 to 40 grams of weight depending on the irons, i did some nikes for a member here and a couple of the heads lost 40 plus grams, other alternative to rawing them is to bead bladt them that will take the glare off them. the nickel stripper mentioned above takes a long time to work not just 3 hours, it need to be removed with acids and electricity, not some thing to do at home. i'll post some pics of what your going to end up with.

[TeeBonZ]

Here's a pic of my J33's. I only lost 1 swingweight...easily adjusted with one 2g. tip weight.

 

 

[irmogolfer04]

thanks guys all the clubs look great

[wildwilly911]

Here's a pic of my J33's. I only lost 1 swingweight...easily adjusted with one 2g. tip weight.

 

looks like only the chrome is removed and not the nickel thats why there was no weight loss

[joey3108]

Electro reverse chrome in the acid ( cyanide ) bath is the correct way of doing it.

 

This technique will not attack the metal, just the plating ( nickel and chrome nickel, some company use watt nickel ). The chrome part is the easy part, the nickel part the harder and longer.

 

If this is the one you use, you'll only loose 2-3gr at most ( hardly 3 gr ).

 

Buffing it w/ a finishing wheel after media blast will loose another 1-2 gr, could be more depending on the existing condition of the club and how careful the guy who work on them. Most cases, they don't care...it's not theirs.:bigwhack:

 

Again, leave it to the metal refinishing company who has the proper equipments and license. This chemical is really toxic and dangerous.

 

FYI, I just did a friend pro platinum putter and refinished it w/ Dark Bitter Chocolate finish.

 

Here is the link:

 

Dark Bitter Chocolate finish

 

Cheers!

 

Joe

[irmogolfer04]

thanks joe that putter looks great!

[TeeBonZ]

Here's a pic of my J33's. I only lost 1 swingweight...easily adjusted with one 2g. tip weight.

 

looks like only the chrome is removed and not the nickel thats why there was no weight loss

 

 

Both nickel and chrome were stripped. I know for sure because the first time he sent them back to me the nickel was still on them and he sandblasted them. I sent them back and had them completely stripped. These babies are as raw as it gets.

[xxio]

Mine were really "rawed". I had the guy buff everything off even the base plating. I bought the heads for $100 and spent $25 to have everything buff/ground so I figure it is worth the experiment.

 

I have gone to counterbalancing with 115 gram shafts (PX 5.5), I'm putting 120 gram shafts in these TFR 5.5s and then testing to see what the "balance" ends up being.

 

I put together the 6 iron last nite. The overallweight seems like my DGSL-Slingshot Tour but with the balance of the rawed Cobras nearer the grip/hands.

[joey3108]

Mine were really "rawed". I had the guy buff everything off even the base plating. I bought the heads for $100 and spent $25 to have everything buff/ground so I figure it is worth the experiment.

 

I have gone to counterbalancing with 115 gram shafts (PX 5.5), I'm putting 120 gram shafts in these TFR 5.5s and then testing to see what the "balance" ends up being.

 

I put together the 6 iron last nite. The overallweight seems like my DGSL-Slingshot Tour but with the balance of the rawed Cobras nearer the grip/hands.

That is not fair! :rolleyes:

 

Can you send him to work for me? LOL! Tell him to swim the last 10 miles and pick him up at the beach. :bigwhack: He he he!

[Mr.I302]

Thanks for the pics. Im actually planning to do the same thing to my same Cobra heads. Have you noticed any different feel or playing characteristics?

[xxio]

Joey,

 

Ok. I'll tade you my grinding guy+my putter refinishing guy for a set of Kwok'd Tour issued Cobra Forged SS PX5.5 and a Cobra Pro S with a 60 gram ARMRQ, I'll even throw in the guy who pulls/install my shafts (for $5 each). You can pick them up a bit off Ellis Island in about 3 weeks. :bigwhack:

 

You know how cheap labor is over here, we have to pay for it in other ways. Like the same 4year old Cobra Forged SS set new is still gathering dust in the stores because they are priced at $800 (that is with a 10% discount).

 

Thank you whoever invented ebay and paypal.

 

mrI302,

I just finished having them shafted up. I still have to have them bent for loft and lie before I give them a go. I'll PM you with feedback next week. On an interesting note I brought 3 of my 6 irons to the shop to check on swingweighting and overall weight, the results are:

 

raw Cobra Forged SS/TFR 5.5 swingweight D0

X16PS/Dynalite Gold (off the LPGA) R300 D2

690.CB DGS300 D1

 

I can't remember the exact weights but all overall weights were within 5 grams. The Titleist being the lightest, Cobra middle (2 grams heavier than the 690s), and the X16PS (5 grams heavier than the 690s) the heaviest.

[joey3108]

Joey,

 

Ok. I'll tade you my grinding guy+my putter refinishing guy for a set of Kwok'd Tour issued Cobra Forged SS PX5.5 and a Cobra Pro S with a 60 gram ARMRQ, I'll even throw in the guy who pulls/install my shafts (for $5 each). You can pick them up a bit off Ellis Island in about 3 weeks. :bigwhack:

 

You know how cheap labor is over here, we have to pay for it in other ways. Like the same 4year old Cobra Forged SS set new is still gathering dust in the stores because they are priced at $800 (that is with a 10% discount).

 

Thank you whoever invented ebay and paypal.

 

NO worries! How many Balut he ate a day? that is the only part i'm worry! LOL! :rolleyes: