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Topic: Getting a home-made bar chrome plated. Will it be good? |
Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 12 Nov 2019 6:24 am |
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I made a few custom made large size bars from stainless steel and I'm not happy with the surface: It is too rough. Even after some polishing with super fine sand paper, the bars still feel "scrapey" when rubbing on the strings.
Will getting them chrome plated at an automotive chrome plating shop work? Will this kind of chrome plating be durable enough for steel playing and will it look as smooth as a store bought chrome plated bar?
I want to get some opinions first because this will probably be expensive. |
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Per Berner
From:
Skövde, Sweden
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Posted 12 Nov 2019 7:04 am
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The chrome plated surface will be just as rough – or smooth – as the unplated surface‚ the chrome won't make it smoother or hide any imperfections, so get someone to polish the bars professionally to begin with. That may be all you need.
Also, standard automotive chrome plating is not durable enough, you need hard chrome if you want the surface to last. Probably a lot more expensive, and harder to find a company willing to fill such a small order.
Anyway, much cheaper and safer to get a BJS bar. |
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 12 Nov 2019 8:16 am
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Thanks Per,
I thought the chrome plating would smooth out the surface. I will not be doing it then.
Buffing this particular surface won't work because it has very small, hair-like grooves going round-wise that I didn't even notice when I was getting the bars. It looks like the kind of metal surface you see on kitchen faucets or refrigerators, one that is not completely smooth but a little matte so it won't leave fingerprints or marks easily. Making these bars was a waste of time, effort, and money.
I would definitely get a BJS bar but they won't make me a custom one in the diameter/length I want.
Think I will have to keep using my home-made brass bars that sound good and get more shiny the more you play them. Problem is that they leave a fine black dust on your fingers and strings after playing. |
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Ross Shafer
From:
Petaluma, California
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Posted 12 Nov 2019 8:26 am
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with the right amount of sanding and usage of very fine wet/dry sandpapers (800-2500 grit) you can definitely get those stainless bars to shine like chrome.
That will definitely help with the "scrapey" feel you mention. However a stainless bar won't work as nicely on stainless wound strings since stainless sliding on stainless doesn't work so well. Should be fine on nickel wound strings though. I've made a number of stainless bars and they all worked fine, but were highly polished. |
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 12 Nov 2019 9:21 am
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Thanks Ross, that gives me some hope.
I will go buy some more fine sandpaper, try to work up from the 800 grit like you say. I'm not looking for perfection here, just want something usable. |
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Norman Evans
From:
Tennessee
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Posted 13 Nov 2019 1:25 pm
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If you can find some Crocus Cloth, use oil between it and the bar. It will polish very smooth, after you get it as smooth as you can with sandpaper. If you have a lathe, even better.
https://www.mcmaster.com/crocus-cloth |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 9:35 am
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Just buy a BJS bar and be done with it! 
Erv |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 10:07 am
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| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
Just buy a BJS bar and be done with it!
Erv |
I agree, but the price is a little shocking to some. But getting his bar(s) plated will probably be as much, or more. In the early 80's, I was the expediter for a metal finishing company. At that time, our minimum charge was $45.00, depending on the process. And we were very selective on taking private party jobs, as sometimes the parts don't quite come out as expected, resulting in irate and unreasonable customers. Plus it can take production time away from the established industrial customers. If the shop accepted the parts for plating with the defects as described, the customer would be made aware that the finish might (probably won't) be what he is expecting. Adding polishing charges would make that minimum charge go up rather quickly.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, NV400, NV112 . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Marc Jenkins
From:
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 11:31 am
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| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
Just buy a BJS bar and be done with it!
Erv |
Uh he mentions above that BJS won't make the size of bar he wants |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 12:08 pm
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I wonder what size bar he needs!
Being from Canada he's maybe looking for a metric bar.
Most steelers can get by with what the bar makers put out.
Erv |
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Ian Worley
From:
Sacramento, CA
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 1:37 pm
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| Ross Shafer wrote: |
| with the right amount of sanding and usage of very fine wet/dry sandpapers (800-2500 grit) you can definitely get those stainless bars to shine like chrome... |
yes! the "stainless" part of stainless steel is chromium, same stuff as chrome plating
| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
| ...maybe looking for a metric bar... |
...and left-handed!  |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 14 Nov 2019 1:48 pm
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They're hard to find!!
Erv |
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Bobby D. Jones
From:
West Virginia, USA
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Posted 15 Nov 2019 10:14 pm Getting a home made bar chrome plated
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Do you happen to have a good knife maker local? Many knife makers who work with stainless steel blades have the proper cotton buffing wheels and stainless steel special polishing compound. They can buff the metal to a mirror finish. And you would have a solid stainless steel bar.
I had a aluminum bar chromed one time, There was some pores in the chrome and it weaped black goo that would turn our left hand black.
Good Luck in this project. |
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 17 Nov 2019 1:06 am
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Bobby D.Jones: My brass bar turns my hand black like your chrome bar. I was thinking of maybe having the brass chrome plated instead of the Stainless steel but will avoid that now.
The bar size is 1-1/4" diameter and 5-3/4" long It's MONSTER.
Unfortunately, the sanding didn't work. I even went with 400 grit and sanded for a long time. it looks a bit shinier but sounds the same as a non-sanded bar. This bar surface is a dud and not suitable for steel bars...you'd have to sand a lot, because if you look at it with a magnifying glass, it has a tiny wood-like grain on it. I also got a smaller diameter stainless steel bar (1-1/8") that is supposedly the same material but the surface is not as rough, and is playable (but not BJS quality for sure.) I will go to the metal supply store next week to look for some 1-1/4" bars with a smoother surface.
Thanks for your suggestions. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 17 Nov 2019 6:55 am
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You must have a massive mitt to play with a bar that big.
Erv |
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 22 Jan 2020 7:09 am
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UPDATE:
Not long after my last post, I went to another metal supply store and was lucky to find the 1-1/4 stainless bar that has the smoother surface and is not as rough as the other dud bar I made. I didn't have to sand or polish the surface at all (only the ends) and it sounds OK. I'm satisfied and it and it is now my main bar.
Thanks again to everyone for your advice. You saved me a lot of hassle and money from not doing the chrome plating. I'm glad I asked first.
Check out a picture below of my MONSTER bar next to a BJS 1" 12 string bar. The BJS looks puny next to it. The reason for the thick 1-1/4 diameter is for better tone and bar handling. The reason for the extra length is cover the span of all the strings...I am planning to write a separate post soon to show you guys how I use this bar. You guys will find it interesting.
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 22 Jan 2020 7:52 am
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There is NO need to cover all the strings.
You slide the bar back and forth to only cover the strings you're going to pick.
It cuts down on the string noise and friction. |
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Bobby D. Jones
From:
West Virginia, USA
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Posted 23 Jan 2020 9:29 am
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The most important thing to consider on selecting a bar, Is Hand Fit not Guitar Fit. Select a bar that fits your hand, In Length, Diameter and weight. This allows you to have complete control of the bar as an extension of your fingers, With complete control of the bar you can control the strings however needed for each lick.
If you cannot grip the bar comfortable, After a few minutes playing you will be more sliding the bar around on the strings not controlling the bar.
Once a bar fits your hand then type of material, finish and color can be considered. |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 23 Jan 2020 9:37 am
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The only use I can see for that bar is self defense! 
Erv |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 6:36 am
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| Jacek Jakubek wrote: |
Check out a picture below of my MONSTER bar next to a BJS 1" 12 string bar. The BJS looks puny next to it. The reason for the thick 1-1/4 diameter is for better tone and bar handling. The reason for the extra length is cover the span of all the strings...I am planning to write a separate post soon to show you guys how I use this bar. You guys will find it interesting.
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I hope you'll take this the right way...
Unless you have some sort of physical deformity, everything you're doing with this "bar project" is illogical and totally unnecessary, and the time you're spending fooling around doing this could be better spent learning to play. |
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 8:25 am
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How will that bar allow you to lay the middle, ring and little fingers of the left hand behind the bar to control string noise? I think that a bar that long wouldn't be able to be tucked between the base of the thumb and the index finger. Moving that weight of a bar quickly, I think would be very difficult, unless you had a bionic arm. I doubt you are going to see a remarkable improvement in tone over using standard size bars with the right amount of bar pressure from the hand. You don't need to have that much downward pressure to get good tone. I think the difficulty in moving that big bar accurately, would far, far, far outweigh any tonal benefits. Not to mention any possible physical problems from having to maneuver that heavy chunk of metal up and down the fretboard for hours on end. Orthopedic surgeons dream about stuff like this.
As Erv says, you don't want to cover all 10 strings, unless you are playing the 1st and 10th string at the same time. Watch any pro or amateur player, I doubt you would hardly ever see the bar cover all strings. I was taught by Jeff Newman, that you want where the bar starts the nose radius to be where the highest string you are picking and move this back and forth from low to high strings. This adds another method of string blocking. The middle finger will probably extend a little past the nose, and when pulling back the bar to a lower string, it will mute the note just picked on the higher string.
_________________
Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, NV400, NV112 . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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Jacek Jakubek
From:
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 8:30 am
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
I hope you'll take this the right way...
Unless you have some sort of physical deformity, everything you're doing with this "bar project" is illogical and totally unnecessary, and the time you're spending fooling around doing this could be better spent learning to play. |
You're completely right, Donny. I do have limited movement in my left index and middle fingers due to an old table saw injury that prevents me from holding the bar properly. I tried modifying regular bars with different attachments in the past but found that just getting a bigger bar worked better. This is actually the reason I started playing steel, because the injury made it so I couldn't play six-string properly anymore. Otherwise I'd have just gotten a b-bender guitar or something. You guys with no hand hand injuries who play these contraptions completely by choice are the crazy ones! 
| Erv Niehaus wrote: |
| The only use I can see for that bar is self defense! |
Versatility it always good...Another benefit is that the heavy weight of the bar gives my left arm quite a workout. Here's a recent picture of me just after a couple of weeks of using this MONSTER bar 
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 8:30 am
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I'd hate to drop that on my big toe!!!
Erv |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 10:09 am
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| Jacek Jakubek wrote: |
You're completely right, Donny. I do have limited movement in my left index and middle fingers due to an old table saw injury that prevents me from holding the bar properly. I tried modifying regular bars with different attachments in the past but found that just getting a bigger bar worked better. |
Okay, but that's the type of information you should be willing to share. You never know when someone here may have had a similar problem, and found a different/better solution. Good luck with your playing.  |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 24 Jan 2020 10:15 am
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Different strokes for different folks.
Erv |
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