Let a Newbie know if this is a decent chrome job

[quadraduece]

I took the selector plate on my Westinghouse WC-78 Selectomatic to get chromed.  I used a local auto restoration shop that has its own small chrome shop as a side business.  He charged me $90 for prep and chroming, which included scraping off the well-worn decals, fixing some dings, etc.

What do you think?  Any good?  Was I ripped off?  I think it looks much better than it was, especially considering the dings, scrapes, etc, on it.

-Q

[GreginNM]

Hello and welcome to the board!  I think it looks awesome!  I haven't had any chrome work done yet, so I can't judge the price, but I'm sure some of the old-heads will chime in that have done a good deal of chroming.  As long as you are happy and the machine is happy, that's all that matters!   

[quadraduece]

Here's a "before" picture.

[SIGNGUY]

Hi and welcome, personally I think the original looked pretty good, but from what I can see from the photos.. I think the chrome came out good, didn't fill in any of the low spots the lettering is visible as well as the texture pattern... and for $90 for the size of the piece .. that's a good price.

[Crazzy Canuck]

yup. good deal

[loman4ec]

I personally like the original gold anodizing. Why did you change it. The before picture looks flawless??

[Pat Pixley]

I think you did well on the price      Hey when you have a chance post a picture
of the whole machine   .

[quadraduece]

The gold anodized finish was not in as good of shape as I would have liked.  Several dents and gouges made it look shabby, so it needed to be refinished. 

I am in the process of taking the machine a part to clean and hammertone the inside, and then repaint the outside.  The red paint is not in the best shape, but the white graphics on the side look good.  Not sure how I'm going to save the white graphics but repaint the red around them....

[loman4ec]

I never suggest only painting a part of a machine. Trust me it will not look right. If you are going to paint the machine then you should paint it all.

[quadraduece]

I agree.  I think I am just going strip it down, prime it, paint a base of "Coke Red", apply new vinyl decals, and clearcote over everything.

[loman4ec]

I have used vinyl for the white on the sides of my machines several times. Its easier than painting and liiks great. You can even clear over it and you will barely be able to tell its vinyl. Here is a pic. They are cheap and it looks great.

[quadraduece]

That is the exact graphic that is on the side of my machine.  How did you get the vinyl shop to reproduce it?  Did you have to design the graphic from scratch yourself? 

I did all the other graphics in Photoshop, but those were just lettering.

[loman4ec]

I just took them a picture and the dimensions that I needed. Its just one piece of white vinyl. The letters are just cut out of the vinyl so that the lettering is the paint of the machine showing through. Its really easy and looks great. They cost me on average $20 each side. Here is another picture of one on a Cavalier USS-64.

[loman4ec]

Take a picture of your machine with you just in case your sign shop has a problem making the coke logo. As far as I understand it they are not violating any laws if they are reproducing a logo to go on something that was originally made for Coke and as long as it is not being mass produced for profit. Also make sure they know that it is for your machine and not something for sale. If one place says no don't let it get you down. Just look for another place. I would just go instead of asking over the phone as the moment they hear Coke over the phone it will scare them away. The smaller shops are usually the easiest to have make stuff like this.

[quadraduece]

Thanks for the tips!  I've got the bottle rack and vend mechanism removed.  Just need to get the vend motor and compressor removed and I can start the restoration.  I'll post a new topic showing my progress when I actually make some.

[loman4ec]

Make sure to remove the machine liner and insulation. The insulation is usually nasty and the machine can start to rust from the inside out. Take the metal tub out and remove the insulation. Replace it with new insulation. Don't use the kind with paper on one side. If you cant find any just remove the paper, then there are several tips of how to reinstall the liner if you do a search. if you have rust on the inside make sure you use something to neutralize it with something like Por15. I prefer to use por 15 then use automotive undercoating on the inside of the machine. Then paint the liner and mech with Hammertone paint and reinstall.