Chrome plating quality – which tool companies are best today?

[Samuel D]

Chrome plating work has become expensive in rich countries, because it involves highly toxic chemistry that is now tightly regulated. You can’t just dump waste products in your nearest river any more.

That’s a good thing, of course. But where does it leave people who want to buy fine spanners, sockets, and other tools to last a lifetime?

I have noticed many complaints about the chrome quality of recently made sockets from expensive name brands.

Are certain Asian manufacturers more likely to do good quality chrome plating these days, just because they have laxer standards of environmental protection?

I’m mostly interested in sockets since I want to buy a good set of 3/8-inch sockets … once.

 

[zendriver]

I'll bite.

Dumping used chemicals in the nearest river, is free, but managing the proper recycling and disposal, of used chemicals is not a deal breaking expenses, for manufacturing chromed products, IMO.

I don't hear of may complaints of chrome plating on American made Snap On products They are not dumping waste into any river.

Besides simply assuming Asian companies are still just dumping used everything, is pretty much becoming a moot point, since Taiwan has an EPA, China has an EPA, India has and EPA and they all seem to enjoy serving a beat-down on polluters, when they can.

Pollution control perfect? hardly, but it seem they are trying, just like everywhere else.

I have never heard of wide-scale problems on chrome plating on any American made products.

 

[Steve_P]

SK has beautiful chrome. Better than current Snap On IMO, or at least better than the SO I bought new 5 yrs ago. I assume this is hexavalent for SK vs trivalent for SO but dont know for sure. SK is the beautiful blue tint we all know where US Williams and SO are more of a brown tint. SO chrome is still fine but in comparison not as pretty.

China has an EPA but it's obviously not effective as they're choking on smog in large cities and illegal dumping of toxic chemicals is common if not widespread. It's in the news often but not in US headlines

 

[uncwstudent]

I'm going to second SK. They seriously know how to do a chrome job and the finish tends to last. They're also just, frankly, quite beautiful. SuperKrome is the way to go.

 

[Crabman]

SK has beautiful chrome.

x3

Really beautiful as uncwstudent said.

Bruce

 

[nichocha33]

Nepros


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[Tallpilot]

I'm going to second SK. They seriously know how to do a chrome job and the finish tends to last. They're also just, frankly, quite beautiful. SuperKrome is the way to go.

The outside of sockets look great. I sent one of three back because of crappy paint on the inside. In that regard both Snap-on and Williams do better.

 

[anndel]

Snap-on much better than SK. SK's chrome has a thinner feel than SO plus the interior of the sockets looks awful not that it matters. I've sent several SK sockets back because the broaching were offset to one side and one was even cracked because it was so close to the edge of one side. Can't believe QA/QC let that one through. I bought that one direct from SK with a 25% off coupon code. HJE wouldn't let that pass muster and wouldn't have let that one through.

 

[Air21]

Besides everyone's anecdotal evidence, how are you defining "good" chrome? My understanding is that with hand tools in the United States the plating is predominantly nickel with a surface chrome treatment so there's lest chrome waste whereas in Taiwan they use more chrome because the regulations are different and it's more cost effective to do one process instead of multiple platings.

I inspect industrial chrome plating on aircraft hydraulic components all day and we have a digital thickness gauge that measures this. I'd like to see someone actually measure the plating thickness on a range of sockets, I'd bet the differences are not significant.

Actually I fished out some sockets from the shop and here's what came out:

0.0006" USA Craftsman
0.0007" Pittsburgh Pro
0.0007" Proto Professional
0.0007" SK

Craftsman USA wrench reads at 0.0007" as well

Either way it's all flash chrome not hard chrome, if you think truck prices are high I promise they'd be astronomical if they had them plated and ground back to size, or I guess EDM'd for some of those fancy wrench jaw profiles.

I'll keep an eye out for some Snap-On tools around here but like all good machinists I don't own any unless someone might think I'm a mechanic!

 

[Samuel D]

Besides everyone's anecdotal evidence, how are you defining "good" chrome?

Durable in use.

But I’m no expert on this stuff, hence my interest in your answers. For which thanks, all.

Do any European brands compare with the American and Japanese ones mentioned? They’re easier to find over here.

Several of the European brands, e.g. Bahco, Proxxon, appear to make their sockets in Taiwan although they don’t make it easy to find that info.

 

[Steve_P]

All chrome plating for things like tools or bumpers is 99% nickel. Any plater will tell you this. Hydraulic cylinder rod, aircraft parts, are different but chrome plating for tools is for appearance. Nickel gives the corrosion protection, that little bit of chrome makes it pretty and keeps it from tarnishing .

 

[L.Cheapo]

Besides everyone's anecdotal evidence, how are you defining "good" chrome?

This is how I define garbage chrome.

The Snap on sockets in my drawer look like jewelry next to the USA Craftsman sockets next to them.

 

[Skin]

Cornwell and Proto/MAC are part of the few that go the extra mile to maintain the old school bright chrome luster. Most companies have gone to a darker chrome finish when they shifted to Trivalent. I have almost no complaints about any brand except for the end of life US Craftsman (Armstrong), primarily the sockets. It doesn't look that great and I've had a lot of rust issues on the actual chrome itself which shouldn't happen as corrosion prevention is one of the primary purposes of the plating.

 

[ngk22r]

Nepros I would have to say has the best chrome I have seen. But that’s my thought on it so take it with a grain of salt.