Whats happening to my Chrome?

[Cul-Tech]

On my TXT I have chrome plated axles and transmission, it is all held together with SS allen head bolts and nuts. Everything is about 8 months old now and yesterday I noticed that the chrome around the bolts seems to be spiderwebbing away. I has happened around almost every bolt, it is not as though the chrome cracked and is peeling away, more like there is a chemical reaction with the ss and slowly it spreads from the bolt. It seems to be happening much more on the axles than the trans. The truck is a driver and has seen all types of terrain.

Anybody have this happen before?

[!][!][!][!][!][!][!][!][!][!][!]

Mike

[Martin71RS(2)]

could be a chemical reaction... same if you screw a SS bolt in aluminium, the materials react and with a bit of luck (bad) you never get the bolt out again after some time.

[DJTheo]

What Martin sais it true, when two dissimiliar metals are in contact without a protective barrier between them and they are in the presence of liquid, an electrolytic cell is created. The degree of corrosion is dependent on the area in contact and the electro-potential voltage of the metals concerned. The less noble of the metals is liable to be attacked, i.e. zinc will act as a protector of steel in sea water whereas copper or brass will attack the steel in the same environment.

In this case though I don't think its corrosion, but sounds to me more like stress cracking, maybe also due to the different temperature extension of the different materials.

Cheers