Did they only chrome a portion of the tubing, or paint over the chrome?

I will be getting a new fully chromed fork for an old bike, and I am afraid that it is going to look completely out of place. I would like to mask off the drop outs and several inches of the legs and paint the rest to match the frame. However, I have read that paint over chrome doesn't work well.

Anyone know how this effect was/can be done?

Thanks.

It can be done. Some frames were completely chromed then painted; others just were dripped in the chrome in the areas they wanted chrome. But either way some paint went over the chrome.
Painting is all about the prep-work. Use a good painter that has experience with bicycles and you'll be happy. Try Joe Bell, he is the best.

Some bikes (I know - not many) came with painted frames and chrome forks. Tell your friends that you're going for the "Lambert" or, somewhat more recently, the "Viscount" look. Very retro.

We are talking about a Japanese Univega here. I believe my mom bought it new for $700 in 1979.

The frame is structurally sound, but the paint is dinged to heck and there was a lot of surface rust. The finish on the original fork was so messed up that it is hard to tell what is going on with the chrome under the paint, but it is painted about about 2/3 of the way down the fork legs.

Needless to say, I not am planning to spend a ton of money on the finish. Plus, I am something of a DIY fanatic, so I am hoping to refinish the replacement fork myself. I have done a couple frames (including the frame in question) with reasonable success, but I don't want to get too ambtitious with the fork if it requires more skill and materials than a layman can muster. I may just learn to love the all-chrome fork look, which I have seen on a few (much nicer) lugged frame-sets.

Thanks for the info.

We are talking about a Japanese Univega here. I believe my mom bought it new for $700 in 1979.

.

Wow. Your mom has excellent taste. She must've bought the nicest Univega made that year. Which model is it?

She does, though now I wonder if her memory is correct on the price, as money was tight back then. I have been searching high and low for the digital images I took before I stripped the frame. . .

She does, though now I wonder if her memory is correct on the price, as money was tight back then. I have been searching high and low for the digital images I took before I stripped the frame. . .
A $700 Univerga (even a $400 Univega) in 1979 would have been a hell of a bike. I believe that was about the time Lawlee took the late, great Italvega from Italy to Japan and started cranking out some very, very fine bikes at reasonable prices. Most people remember the cheaper gaspipe Univegas that proliferated on college campuses all through the 70s and early 80s, but few remember that the higher-end models from that era were high zoot indeed. Sweet-riding bikes.