The chrome parts enhance the mahagony classics. Rio manufactured all the metal parts itself, which would then be chrome-plated by partners.
Even today, there are very few companies specialized in the restoration of metals and these work with all the shipyards that house wooden motor boats.
To start, the pieces are tied together with copper wire and immersed in a tub with sulfuric acid diluted to 55%. They are then rinsed and re-immersed at a voltage of 8 volts for an hour.
The third step is polishing the pieces. First, they are processed with abrasive grinding discs to make them smooth. Then they are polished with brushes to restore the old shine.
The fourth step is to attach the pieces to hooks, with which they will be hung on the bars of the various baths. The individual parts are each connected to the positive pole of a current rectifier.
The fifth step is pickling in an acid solution at a temperature of 40 degrees, followed by a bath in an electrolytic degreasing basin at a voltage of 8 volts for about 2 minutes.
In the sixth step, after neutralization in the tank, the metal is immersed in an acidic copper tank with 10% hydrochloric acid, where it remains for about an hour. It is then rinsed with water again and then immersed in an electrolytic degreasing tank.
The seventh step is the nickel plating of the workpiece. It is neutralized in a tank with 10% sulfuric acid and then immersed in nickel at a current of 3 volts for another 50 minutes.
The eighth step is the last of the chrome plating — the piece that comes out of the nickel bath, heated to 55 degrees, is washed in a tub with water. It cools down, is immersed with the hooks for three minutes and hooked to the rod in the chrome at 6 volts. After that, it is washed again in the water. Finally, the piece is dried with hot air and is then ready for its reuse and reinstallation on the boat: turning "old" into "new."
