Robvolz 

It seems to have come about by the British, I’m not sure for the rationale. Chrome actually adds weight.

repechage

Falcon and Holdsworth are two I recall but did not infect the industry.
Leave that to Ernesto

iab

Chrome plating was commercially available in the early/mid 1930s. Most Italian bike manufacturers used the process for components and forks. While used on some frames then, it did not get popular until after WW2.

clubman 

And previous to the 30's, builders were using nickel plating on their forks. Dressing up a bike frame with shiny bits is pretty much as old as bikes themselves. Have a look at the Pryor Dodge book, The Bicycle.

Here's a 1926 CCM Flyer

machinist42

More then Paint?

For no particular reason I weighed my '73 "23"" Carabela Profesional (sic) before removing the non-original paint.
It weighed 2328g.
After removing all the coating, (and discovering it's almost entirely chromed),
It weighs 2294g.
So that paint weighed 34g?

How much does chrome weigh?
No way for me to say with any authority. I have and will have no data on that.
But Paint weighs something...

So, discounting "Chromovelato," does Paint weigh more than Chrome?

(Of more concern is "hydrogen embrittlement," though hopefully the original Chromer would have taken steps to mitigate that?)

oneclick 

A bicycle frame has a surface area somewhere around 400 square inches; perhaps more if big and/or lots of brazeons etcetera.

Typical decorative chromium plating has a thickness of about a millionth of an inch.

Chromium has a density of about four-and-a-quarter ounces per cubic inch.

In round figures, 0.02 of an ounce - half a gram.

SJX426 

@oneclick - interesting info. What about the copper plating underneath, or what every might be plated prior to the chrome?

pastorbobnlnh 

Does an all-chrome fork match any frame color? Is it a practical matter for the builder? Whether on an expensive Lotus or a basic electro-forged Schwinn, chrome forks look brilliant.

jdawginsc 

And here I was thinking the chrome was because it was more durable than paint on high ding areas...fork blades, chain stays, seat stays...and when the entire frame was chromed and painted...durability?

Chromed lugs...that was pure design.

oneclick 

There are no hard values for plating thicknesses; the above value for decorative chrome is what is a reasonable minimum to get a shiny surface that will last whatever the expected life of the product is. Nickle and nickle-copper may be much thicker, ten to perhaps a hundred times (think Harley level show chrome).

Chombi1 

Everyone loved the look of chrome forks on their bikes in the 80's. That is why many bikes had it. Even the mid to lower model levels had chromed forks on the 80's. It was a great selling point for bike manufacturers. Chrome on bikes started to suddenly dissappear after the mid 80's because of ever stricter environmental anti-pollution laws that made the chroming process too expensive to maintain, so, by 3/4ths into the 80's most new bike had no chrome on their frames.