your point about chroming and the embrittlement issue is spot on. i'm not a big fan of chromed suspension items for that reason, but if done correctly using the proper after chroming procedures, these items seem to work reasonably well. however, over many years, i have installed harley pipes and hot rod pipes in all configurements that were chrome plated, and these, being quality items as well as very costly, exhibited only the blueing one comes to expect at the exhaust port. as they were items not made from import steel, none exhibited cracking issues that seem to be common in some headers now days. rust was a concern, however, at the collector joint because of the chroming process not being very good at that juncture due to the confines of all the pipes coming together. i have had cracking issues a couple of times due to a couple of systems lacking proper hanger support. those i blamed on the support issue and excess vibration and flex encountered, not the item or the chroming process. today, it seems there are more imported items at an attractive [cheap] price that draw customers, and then some wonder why problems crop up. i guess it all comes down to the "you get what you pay for", and the "if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't" statements. [regarding pricing of these items.]