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Hello Packard Pals;

I have been searching for l5 inch spoked wire wheels for my 54 Pacific and am reluctant to buy a wheel that uses any chrome finish since I live on the coast and rust is very prevalent, spoked wheels are very hard to keep up. I know some vendors offer stainless spokes, however the wheel itself is chromed steel.
A vendor at a recent car swap meet stated that he can build spoked wheels that are powder coated and painted a chrome color that is equal in appearance as a chromed wheel.
Have any of you had any experience or knowledge about this process, please lend me your opinions. Thanks, Carl

Did he guess your weight and age at the same time? Powder Coat Chrome....brought to you by the faster better cheaper firm of PT Barnum and Associates.

Actually there is a shop about a mile from my house that had a sample valve cover they shot in powder coat chrome and I had no clue until he told me it wasn't real chrome. It was impressive. This is the same shop that did all the black on my engine with phenomenal results.

We have a great powder coat on the north side of town called QC Coatings and he does a lot of custom work.

Attached is a photo of silver-gloss, ceramic coating on a valve cover for my 1100cc, inline 4, Honda motorcycle. Polishing is now a thing of the past as it comes clean with just soap and water.

Is it as good as chrome? Not quite. It does have a slight texture to it and does appear as highly polished aluminum - which is OK by me. I think this is the best you will find today. But they continue to improve the powder and the process,

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Finish Line Coatings is an excellent ceramic coating place here in Oregon.
http://www.finishlinecoatings.com/misc.htm

They put a cast-iron-appearing ceramic coating on my manifolds, and after 6 years since they did it and 8000 miles driving, they both look brand new. They coated my exhaust system "stainless steel," too.

They coat pistons on the inside and out for the heat reducing properties of this technology. Experts.

But on my son's '61 Jag's chrome wire-wheels, which spent decades in a barn without cleaning, I spent 4-1/2 hours on each wheel to bring them back. Some pieces need to be re-chromed, but if you keep chrome parts clean with kerosene and a wax coating (the Meguire wax doesn't leave residue), chrome wire wheels can look good "forever."

Nothing is show-ier than blazing wire wheels in sunlight.

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At one time I wanted to start doing the chrome substitute as an alternative to the vanishing plating tank.

Everybody told me I was an idiot so I decided to drop the idea and let them suffer with sky high plating costs.

It looks like the products have come a long way as I expected.

Of course when I was in finance they all thought I was stupid as well and I guess they were right because they are getting paid more than ever after losing billions and billions.