Flaking, rusting chrome on shafts - Help!

[macksmom]

After getting my son's US Kids Golf tour irons out of storage (we moved a long distance), I noticed that the shafts are pitted and flaking. I was hoping to sell them to help finance my son's new golf equipment.

Can I do anything to make these better? I have Iron Out, Simichrome polish and Brasso on hand. I don't know if these will make a difference, since the chrome is flaking. Steel wool, perhaps? Am I doomed? 

Thank you. 

[gregsandiego]

If I were you I'd polish them up as good as I can with a soft cloth then list them on ebay. I really doubt you can repair chrome.

Steel wool sounds like a mistake. Try a test area.

But you're hardly "doomed". Someone will want them at the right price.

 

[macksmom]

@gregsandiego Thank you!

[Dinola]

In restoring chrome on older motorcycles I've had good luck with oxalic acid.  Its found in Barkeepers Friend in a powdered mild form (wet it, make a paste)  and stronger concentration in boat hull cleaner, usually a gel.  That said.. it will only remove the rust portion, it won't restore the chrome itself which has breached, allowing the rust to form under it. Your have pitting,, and this might clean it up enough to make it passable but only re-chroming will return it to original, clearly not worth the cost.

Barkeepers Friend is not bad to have around the house anyway, i'd start with that.  Put it on and let it sit a bit. Rinse well.  NO steel wool.  Hull cleaner is serious stuff , i'd worry about the rest of the club components being exposed to it..... probably not a good choice.

Good luck with it

 

[macksmom]

On 7/10/2016 at 1:21 PM, Dinola said:

In restoring chrome on older motorcycles I've had good luck with oxalic acid.  Its found in Barkeepers Friend in a powdered mild form (wet it, make a paste)  and stronger concentration in boat hull cleaner, usually a gel.  That said.. it will only remove the rust portion, it won't restore the chrome itself which has breached, allowing the rust to form under it. Your have pitting,, and this might clean it up enough to make it passable but only re-chroming will return it to original, clearly not worth the cost.

Barkeepers Friend is not bad to have around the house anyway, i'd start with that.  Put it on and let it sit a bit. Rinse well.  NO steel wool.  Hull cleaner is serious stuff , i'd worry about the rest of the club components being exposed to it..... probably not a good choice.

Good luck with it

 

Thank you! I actually always have Barkeepers Friend on hand. It's one of my cleaning staples! Amazing stuff.

[amoline]

Those don't look pretty! Sorry to hear that you pulled them out to see that.

However, everything aside, from a pure safety perspective I would be concerned that even if you cosmetically repaired them there could be structural degradation somewhere inside or within the shaft after severe flaking like that. 

Every shaft for a golf club has certain points where it's designed to bend and flex and certain points where it's, well, not. Depending on where those particular shafts (especially being a junior set) are designed to do that, I'd be worried that if there was rust/flaking in a particular point that's significant to the shaft, you may have to worry about the shaft snapping. Me being pessimistic of course but just throwing that out there...

A little trick that I've used in the past on stuff that was too delicate for steel wool is to dip some squares of aluminum foil in water and rub that -- chemically, it'll still remove rust. It will also create a sort of polishing effect to get some of the flake off, too. You don't have to rub very hard for it to work. 

Let us know how it works out. 

EDIT: Whoops! This thread is old. -- Did it work for you? 

Edited August 15, 2016 by amoline