The entire fork was plated with chrome and then painted over. On the frame the dropouts, most of the chainstays, and about a third of the seatstays were also plated in chrome and painted over. I am the second owner of the bike and I know that the paint was original. Is there a reason Schwinn (or anyone else) would paint over chrome? This is a fixed gear project on a Schwinn Prologue. Pictures will follow (I have to scan them after they are developed).

Chrome plating is a rust preventative. This used to be a fairly common practice.

Many high-quality, older steel frames are entirely chromed under the paint.

The manufacturing process likely involved dipping built frames and forks in the plating solutions before painting them. It would probably be cheaper to dip the rear triangle than pay someone to make sure only the targeted area was treated.

Be careful working with that stuff -- chrome can be toxic.

The manufacturing process likely involved dipping built frames and forks in the plating solutions before painting them. It would probably be cheaper to dip the rear triangle than pay someone to make sure only the targeted area was treated.

Be careful working with that stuff -- chrome can be toxic.

I plan on polishing up most of the chrome and leaving it exposed when I get the frame powdercoated. Anything in particular I should be aware of? Thanks for the info.