I took my 1979 Dodge D150 bumpers in the get chrome plated, (ouch the cost has sky rocketed) the shop told me about it.

Here is the story. https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/ot...mp;cvid=797a9c52d33b419d9925be962b1b3da1

The state is looking to reduce harmful emissions and cancer-causing chemicals. The L.A. Times reports state officials have set their sights on banning a method of chrome plating that releases potentially deadly and cancerous chemicals.

California is trying to kill every business.
Illinois and New York are right behind them. All are pretty good at it.
Any farther comment gets political.

Give them an inch, they'll take a mile...

It’s been an issue for over 30 years. Google the movie Erin Brockovich, which is a true story. Hexvalent chrome is worse than Trivalent, but unfortunately Hex is the the best. Just like circuit board manufacting went to Asia, chrome is hard to do in the us.

Still haven't found a substitute for trichloroethane degreaser, that stuff was awesome! Chroming shops and chemical dipping have pretty much gone away in my area near Chicago...

Indeed. Nothing new. The use of chromium has been a sore spot for a lot of years with cal-osha and EPA.

Old carb cleaner and MEK... If you are over 50, I bet you stuck your hand in that stuff without gloves on. Hand looking like a partially dried grape.
Dizzy out, cause if you stood over the can and breathing it in, you dizzy out.

I got quoted $2k to do a pair of dentless bumpers for my charger. Repro's cost the same amount. Sucks when trying to restore a car here in california.

Yes.
MEK used to be widely used in motor repair shops as well as carbs.

I have refilled many specialty mining motors with PCB transformer oil and you always get some on skin.
Now underground city electrical transformers regularly blow up and catch fire because PCB oil is not in the transformers anymore.

Family friends ran a Chrome shop and government started making it near impossible 30 years ago.
$500 rotating centrifuge screens in mining will last twice as long if the 400 series stainless steel is hard chrome plated.

Many years ago I was a driver for an electrical component company and at one point in the manufacturing process some of their products they had to be electro coated , not in chrome necessarilly which required me delivering the parts to a plater. I just remember going in to those places and the air was so thick with an acid taste and smell that you could hardly breathe. I am pretty sure none of the places still exist . I do remember some of the places also did chrome. About five years ago when I was still working the company owner had a VW Thing I used to work on , he wanted some of the parts from it rechromed I remember taking them to a chroming place in Newark N.J. to be done , they did a good job and I guess the process has evolved as the place didn't smell like acid.

Do some internet searching...go figure the chrome plating business is alive and well in china and many of the china companies that do it have a office/shop in the usa.

Not much cheaper here in Idaho, two truck bumpers, minor straightening, qouted between $1600 to $1800, still waiting two weeks later for an official quote. Plus he said it would be 10 to 16 weeks to get them back.

A few years ago I took in a set of valve covers to be chromed. NONE of the shops I used in the '70's and '80's were around anymore. I'm usually a full speed ahead, damn the cost kind of guy, but $400 for two valve covers set me back. I gulped REAL hard and went ahead, but GEEZ LOUISE! That was painful. That's more than I paid in the '80's for show chrome for the front and rear bumpers of my '69 Grand Prix.

I worked in a chrome shop back when they used carbon tetrachloride to clean parts. The shop made all of us take a fresh air break evey 15 minutes.

And you're still here to talk about it!

I was glad they did because that stuff could knock you out if you weren't careful.

Librandi's is still open. Used them years ago.

California being what California is I'm surprised they didn't kill chrome shops a long time ago.

I thought the Cali chrome shops have been shipping stuff to Mexico for years. I'd be surprised if one was still doing it locally.

That was my first thought too.

Seems like there would be several shops in Tijuana that would be both cheap and good, yet dangerous in a Mexican way.

bumper boyz [] wants 3% "disposal costs" and $120.00 "handling fee" for each bumper they sell.

I use a shop in Marysville Ca. he’s been in business for 30 and still going strong. His operation has been grandfathered in, so not much has changed.

You know, I've seen people dog Bumper Boyz for years but, the rear bumper on my car was done by them. It's been on the car for over 20 years and still looks great. Got my front bumper done by Paul's in PA, it looks great too but, is much harder to clean than the rear for some reason.

Now, what quality work do you get today when using Bumper Boyz? Or maybe they've always sucked and my bumper got the VIP treatment or something, who knows.