Can you turn chrome into brushed nickel

March 3, 2010 7:56 PM

I have a rare antique lockset which I was able to find via a minor miracle. It matches the other doorknobs in my house...almost. Sadly, the knob is chrome, and the rest of the house and all the hardware in that room is brushed nickel or aluminum. I hate that it's the only chrome thing in the room, so I want to find out if it can be fixed. By what process is brushed nickel made? Can chrome be worked so that it looks like brushed nickel? Since this is a hard-to-find item, I don't want to botch it with half-assery.

I'm willing to be adventurous, explore metalworking, or seek professional help (for the knob, not for me). I have a wood shop and experience with finishing and working wood, but am mostly clueless about metal.

Extra details: It's a Schlage "Luna" from the 60s. It's a "passage" doorknob, which means it has a button on one side (like you'd see on a bathroom). The inside half is chrome, which would go in the kitchen; the outside half is brushed nickel and goes in the garage. I don't want to install it backwards, but I guess that's plan B.

posted by jewzilla to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

400 grit silicon-carbide abrasive will dull the polish on the chrome, if this isn't suitable a plating service can plate nickel over chrome which can be brushed with a steel wire brush.
posted by hortense at 9:23 PM on March 3, 2010

Doh! many useful answers in this aptly titled previous question.
posted by hortense at 9:27 PM on March 3, 2010

If you decide to experiment with giving it a matte finish yourself, start out with a green scrubby.

Do not use a steel wire brush on it. There is a big rusty spot on the all stainless gateway arch where someone did this during construction.
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 5:37 AM on March 4, 2010