Reproduction Chrome Parts

The Hornet was in pretty rough shape, bent parts, broken parts, and many missing parts. In my quest for replacements I purchased some parts that needed to be repaired and re-plated, ones that were good as is, and reproductions which is what this post is about. One thing I found out is that re-plating a chrome part is more expensive than reproductions. I also learned that while some reproductions were quite good, others were not. I ordered “Made in England” reproductions thinking they would be of similar quality to the originals. This was the case in some but not others. Here is what ended up with.

The exhaust pipes had excellent chrome and shape. The only issue is that the holes were tap drilled too big. All of the 1/4 – 26 BSC holes had about .005 of threads in them. The 5/16-26 holes were alright. I found out the holes were close to a 7 mm tap drill and decided to modify them in this manner. I will need to make custom screws for the heat shields but that will work. The supplier gave me a discount for keeping the pipes. They have been a good supplier to me for many years and I wanted to work with them.

The handle bars were excellent reproductions that were made by Les Harris and purchased from British Cycle Supply in Canada. They do not have the serrations like many reproductions.

The fork covers were excellent reproductions “Made in England” and bought from Classic Bike Parts Cheshire in the UK. The only difference I can see from stock is the lack of the air hole in the bottom rear of them.

The exhaust heat shields were a “Made in England”, ordered from an English supplier, disappointment. The shape was off and they have a orange peeled copper tone to them. I will look for an OEM part that needs re-plating to go with the one I have.

The rear fender is a “Made in England” bought from Britain part. It looks great on the outside and all the holes are in the right spot. If you turn it over it looks pretty rough. All of the crimps are very poorly done and there are heavy burrs that were not removed from the fender cutout for the chain guard. I would like to remove them but am afraid it will rust if I take off the chrome plating. Maybe I am getting to picky worrying about the underside of a fender but I am not sure if I will buy another one. I think this would push me toward spending more money on re-plating an original.