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Here is a tip on how to restore your chrome strips on both the door panels and the 1/4 trim panels.

Go to a hobby shop that deals in RC airplanes. You can buy two different types of covering and trim there. They make trim sheets that are approximately 36" long and 6' inches wide in a chrome finish. This trim has adhesive applied to the backing so you just need a long straight edge and you can cut a narrow strip and apply it to the old mouldings on the panels. They also make chrome like covering that it used on the airplane wings and fuselage that is applied using a heat iron. This may stick better but is harder to apply if you do not have all the tools.

I hope this helps save you some bucks.

Good luck

They also make chrome like covering that it used on the airplane wings and fuselage that is applied using a heat iron.

Yep, I have some of this stuff for my R/C gliders. Works great for covering wings. I mainly use the silver for accents and trim, on the planes that is. I'm not sure how well it would do against the the summer sun in a closed car, but it should do ok. The plus side is that it's relatively cheap and comes in rolls like wrapping paper.

We tried the chrome sheet/adhesive thing and it just doesn't work right. The ends come up. The iron-on idea might not be a bad one. I thought I saw some paint (like Fun_in_my_z suggested) in a hot-rod magazine recently. I'll check out some more ideas and you guys will be the first to know.

I used the Eastood "Almost Chrome" paint on the door panel strips after light sanding and primer. After three coats, it looks OK, but not shiny enough. Definitely looks like paint.

Sorry for the purple-fringing on some of the pics. It is due to the much higher reflectivity of the chrome tape over the chrome paint.

So far (six weeks), this has worked for me on the dogleg interior pieces. As you can see, there's a little bit of non-adhesion on one end, but otherwise it looks good. If it continues to hold up, I'll do the doors the same way:

1) Buy self-adhesive chrome trim from the hobby/RC shop. Cut 1" width strips slightly longer than needed. I tried cutting strips to the exact width of the strip (including all three sides, as there is a slight shoulder), but adhesion on the sides and at the ends is very poor.

2) Lightly sand the plastic strip (320 grit or similar)

3) Apply thin coat of contact cement per directions

4) Place the self-adhesive chrome strip in place, apply pressure on all three sides of the strip to ensure adhesion.

5) Use an exacto-knife to trim the excess. By oversizing the chrome strip, you've allowed the chrome to adhere optimally to the sides and to the fore and aft tapered sections. If your chrome tape is like mine, the adhesive on the tape is pretty poor, so it comes off the adjacent vinyl quite easily.

I plan on the chrome tape solution to be temporary until I can devote funds to proper restoration/replacement. But if it holds up, and I learn from the doglegs, the door panels will look even better!

Good luck,

Steve

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For those who don't want to go the orginal route, you can tape them off and paint them your accent color. Which is my plans ... costs me a can of paint and not 500 bucks ... of course if you want orginal, some will pay for it to be perfect.

Are those of you using the chrome tape from R/C stores using FliteMetal?

I don't know if this is the same stuff or not, but have been wondering if it would work (or work better than other adhesived tape) There may be some differences in the quality of these tapes and the adhesives that are on them.

www.flitemetal.com

Jim D.

"Zup" :bunny:

How can the eBay seller call these panels NOS when the picture of the back side clearly shows water stains and that the ends of the metal caps have surface rust? It appears the bidders on these panels don't care that they're not NOS, but used. Duh! It's no wonder these parts cost so much with people like these bidding on them.:stupid:

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