C-3, 1970 ignition shielding lid

[D S.]

I have two original lids that I would like to get flash re-chromed as original. There is a plastic or nylon piece on the underside that is held into place by four plastic or nylon pins. How can I get those pins out without breaking them? I'm afraid those pieces will be destroyed in the chrome stripping and replating process.

Thanks,
Scott

[Joe L.]

Re: C-3, 1970 ignition shielding lid

Scott-----

There is no way to remove the plastic rivets without destroying them. It is possible to CAREFULLY grind off the bottom of the rivet and remove them. To "reinstall" them the bottom portion of the rivet is "replaced" with CAREFULLY applied epoxy. This preserves the external appearance of the rivets while, obviously, the underside appearance is changed. It's about the best you can do, though.

The big problem is that these rivets are plastic and the heat of the engine compartment degrades them over time. So, they're usually quite brittle and may have an appearance significantly changed from the original. The original rivets were a "translucent" plastic. With age, they yellow considerably.