Mssr. ronald manseau asked (among other things): <snip> I would tend to think they got cromed by the frame fabricator as separate parts but then I wonder how they managed to weld (braze) these in places on the forks without seeing their croming affected by the high heath!? ++++++++++++++++ I once replaced the rear drop-outs of a bike that had partially chromed stays. Being an amateur, I was liberal with the brazing compound going up the stays. Much to my initial surprise, the areas that were flux-covered did not turn blue, or change at all.
On second thought, this just could make sense: ONe purpose of the flux is to protect the surfaces from oxidation by keeping air away. no air hitting hot chrome seems to mean no damage to the chrome. I trust that I'll have more chances to play with this with some scrap frames one of these years. Your results are not guaranteed. But, I'd certainly try it before writing off the chrome.
harvey sachs
mcLean va