Just a little update, as my parts are basically almost cured. I'm going to move on to the leg tutorial that Demonss posted. Hoping I'm done with having issues on this one. Basically, if I'd be just a little more patient I could have saved myself some time and money  

I wouldn't imagine you'd have any issues with it.

 

Thanks! I hope to experiment a little more with it this weekend. And I feel for you, impatience has lead to many a headache for me as well when trying to rush a project. I still want to follow your lead and do this to my Metroplex soon and I also sort of want to grab a 25th GI Joe Sky Hawk and give it a chromey goodness Sky Patrol paint job just for the heck of it.

 

So, I'm in the process of reassembly right now. As stated, I'm going to do the leg mod that Demonss posted. I'm hoping to have some snapshots later tonight some time.

I've been asked by a few people whether or not I used primer. I did not, and I can't say definitively whether or not it would help. I want to say that a primer coat would always help, but such wasn't my experience here.

 

I am hoping to get around to trying this on mine in the next week or so at long last. When I do I will probably be using Tamiya primer as a base coat so I can post some comparison pics and share my results then. I may wet sand the primer with some very fine sandpaper to get as smooth a finish as possible to get maximum shiny chrome goodness  

 

Superquad, did you throw away that KO (Now-chromed) Air Raid or do you still have him?
'Cause my Air Raid could use a right arm, Unpainted, KO, or otherwise.

 

Ok, so I'm a little late getting back here. At any rate, here are the photos of my Metroplex, reassembled:

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That KO I have is pretty awful. You'd be much better off getting a G1 junker off of eBay to complete yours.

I tossed mine...somewhere. I just can't remember where.  

 

Just a bit of an update from me. If you can't tell even from the photos above, the chrome has faded just a bit from the initial painting. *sigh* It's still silver, but the chrome effect has lost its luster just a bit.

 

well,i "was" happy with my n/a version metro with just the reprolabels upgrades,but thanks to you sq7 i now keep eyeballin' him for some butcherin' and squirtin' 

btw,if it helps,i've found that krylon "acrylic" gloss clear from walmart works quite well over top of that exact can/color of paint you depicted.i do corporate signage for a living and sometimes clients want "chrome" letter edges which is htf and uber expensive so the can that you have shown is actually the one we use in our shop,again,just 2 light coats of the krylon acrylic clear and she's set.
just don't be a dumb @$$ like an old co-worker before and hit it with matte clear as it just turns it dark grey,almost like a pot metal or raw diecast color 
the other one that's almost equivalent to the reflectiveness of this is crappy tire's "bright silver metallic,but it has more noticable "flakes" in it.

 

Pretty excellent tutorial.

That Chrome spray...how is the adhesion? Stick to the plastic well?

I feel the same way..I didn't want to do much with metroplex..now I think I may do this one.

 

It sticks to plastic very well. It's just the finish that concerns me. I've already documented my experience and results here. After tackling this, I think I'd use this for smaller pieces and such, but never for parts this size again at the least.

Certainly you guys post if you tackle this project and/or use this paint.

 

PLease help! I just used the Krylon Original Chrome paint like you suggested and its not "chromey" at all. More of a darker grey color. I'm trying to repaint the gold parts on the YOTH optimus prime. I removed all the gold with oven cleaner so its down to the bare white plastic. But the paint isn't like your metroplex face at all. What could I be doing wrong?? I shook the can plenty. How do I get the mirror like color and finish as your metroplex face? Is it a matter of coats or shaking the can enough? Thanks for any help you can give

 

Sounds like you had a similar experience:

Going forward, I seriously doubt I'll tackle parts this size ever again with this paint. It is really good for things like wheels and such, though:

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Oddly the face on my Metroplex still looks pretty good. The legs have lost their mirrored, chromey luster, though. They're still silver and such, but not the same glass-like mirror chrome as before. I think having to handle them while putting them back on is what did it (I did use rubber gloves to minimize it, but I still feel like it would be difficult to avoid).

I'd love to hear more from some of you guys who have decided to use this stuff.

 

I tried it out on a TFTM Leader Prime hand. The chrome effect also dulls when you put a layer of future on top of it (After letting the paint cure for a week. Don't want a bad reaction between the enamel and acrylic.)

It's like you said, it's good for small pieces but alclad is the way to go for a true mirror chrome finish. That being said it would be perfect for those that have a UFO annular trailer. It will look just like the movie, a polished stainless finish instead of the mirror chrome finish that is too shiny or the silver that isn't shiny enough.

 

It really is. Only reason I'm able to handle mine is because i haven't touched it for literally a month n some change. I kept doing tiny smear checks with my finger in places that will be painted over once a week. That said, it seems like it depends on the plastic grade. The Megatron I'm working has dulled a lil but mostly it's still shiny.

I'm using this for a custom IDW-esque leader class Megatron n the headaches of wait time is well worth the finish i got.

I don't think it has to be relagated to small parts, tho. If I had this stuff prior I would've basecoated my Ironhide with it an painted over that. I did a quick job on a junker Shockwave doing that for a test run n it came out slick.

 

Artimus Prime, you mentioned "alclad" would leave a nice stainless looking finish? That's EXACTLY what I'm looking for... Not too mirror shiney like, and not too dull, boring silver either. What is alclad? where can I get it?

 

Some info on Allclad.

 

No. Use alclad if you want a mirror chrome finish. The spray paint on this discussion is good for a polished stainless finish. It starts off shiny but it dulls to a stainless finish.

 

Not to sound like a dick but this custom of mine using Tamiya spray chrome is still this shiny even today.

http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/radicons-customs/962821-custom-character-patch-up.html