70% doesn't work well, you need 90% or better.

 

Thanks for this!

 

just put mine into the super clean and that awful red is coming right off, no problems at all. very nice red underneath too

 

70 or 90 % isopropyl alcohol does not work well. you still have to do lots of scrubbing after the alcohol soak. super clean works really well. another thing that works well is the thick gel like bleach. you can youtube chrome remove and there will be some videos on it. go with superclean. i wasted so much time trying to remove chrome with isopropyl alcohol and it was so much easier with superclean.

 

Does anyone know what products are available in the UK that I could achieve this with?

 

soaked mine overnight and they are completely clear of chrome. This chrome is pretty thick. I tested it on a junker g1 insecticon and it was all clean in about 5 minutes. Jetfire took over an hour to see any viseable affect.
Make SURE you wear gloves when using this crap as it does work over flesh quite quickly. That slimy feeling isn't the plastic, it's your skin.

Also, make sure not to get the "super clean" wheel cleaner as it is a totally different substance and nowhere near as strong. I went back to the store and got the right 1 and the strength was very noticeable. Easisest way to tell if you have the right one is: correct has purple coloured cleaner inside, incorrect has orange coloured.

Luckily the red underneath is actually a very good red and not orangey like some of the recent "red" they put out. It's actually a little darker than the recent cliffjumper release.

 

I used $3.99 Power Green degreaser and the chrome went away all by itself after about 10 hours of soaking.

 

Looking good! Much better with the chrome.

 

Thanks Cheetimus! And more mod vids please!

 

Worked like a charm. I used denatured alcohol, which took the paint off in about 30 minutes. Once the chrome was exposed, the Super Clean removed it in under 10 minutes.

 

Cheet....or anyone else who's removed the chrome, did you encounter a slightly tacky film covering the red plastic? It seemed to be under the chrome layer, and was a little foggy once the part had dried. Soaking for longer seems to maybe be taking it off...can't really tell yet.

Also, to anyone else trying this, remove the red paint first! I tried just soaking the parts as is in the Super Clean, and it was taking forever. Finally, dumped them in some 91% alcohol for about 20 mins, then put them back into the super clean, and the chrome just disappeared.

 

It's the soapy film left over from the Super Clean. Just wash them off and it should be fine.

 

So denatured first, then super clean correct? Anybody have any thoughts on Acetone?

 

I had a goo layer too, especially down in the tiny details. I just soaked it longer and used a toothbrush on it

 

Nope, definitely not that. I know what your talking about, and that very easily wiped off. It was the remnants of clear coat of some kind. It was tough, and tacky, but I could scrape it if I tried, but not rub it off. Does anyone know if they put some kind of clear layer down before chroming plastic?

I dipped a few other random chrome bits I had laying around, just straight chrome ones...and they appeared to have a very glossy clear coat of some kind underneath the chrome. It was easy to see around indents of details.

Anyway, dipping it longer did removed most of it, but there were still some splotches here and there. I dried them, then tried soaking a few of the parts in alcohol again. That seemed to take care of it except for a few tiny splotches. This time I let it dry, and it cleared up and glossed up some, and now its almost unnoticeable.

 

Huh... I didn't have an issue with that myself. I don't doubt you but it didn't happen with me. Doesn't sound fun at all.

 

Be careful with acetone. It'll eat your plastic. Some denatured alcohol has a small amount of acetone in the mix, but I haven't had problems with it (although I have yet to leave parts exposed for more than an hour or so).

 

What are you guys using to get at the paint in tight spaces like the vents and coils on the guns.

 

Stiff brush, and a dental pick (any small thin metal tool will do). For me, the paint on the coils brushed right off after the alcohol bath, with just a few seconds of brushing. I only had to use the pick for the really deep parts, like the area around the thrusters on the backpack.

 

Hmm, maybe they need to go for another bath. How long should they soak in the alcohol?