# Black Chrome vs Black Ti vs Gunmetal



## Fibonacci (Jun 22, 2011)

I have worked with a fair amount of gunmetal and black ti.  The two of them are very similar in coloring, but wildly different in durability.

How does black chrome compare?  Both Berea and CSUSA carry black chrome versions of the Patriot/Carabara, but the pictures they have look like a gloss black.

Is that accurate?  Or is the black chrome a reasonable facsimile of black ti/gunmetal?


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## jlord (Jun 22, 2011)

Black Chrome is gloss black. It does not look like Black Ti or Gun Metal.


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## SCR0LL3R (Jun 22, 2011)

Is the black chrome very durable? comparable to regular chrome?


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## Drstrangefart (Jun 22, 2011)

All of my black chrome has been pretty durable so far, about comparable with other finishes, but all I've worked with is Slims. I will say Black Chrome goes with WAY more materials than gunmetal, and gunmetal goes with almost everything.


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## Holz Mechaniker (Jun 22, 2011)

I like Gun Metal, and yet I have made pen with the Black Chrome.  What I would like personally is that Gun Metal have more Blue to it.  Black Chrome almost seems like they are more like a Gloss Black Powder Coat.  Not really a "Plating"  But I find it the same as Dr Strange... Goes with everything.


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## Haynie (Jun 22, 2011)

I have black chrome on the pencil I made out of Aluminum.  Since I am not happy with it I have been using it as a shop pencil.  Gets tossed into the tool box, dropped on the floor, and basically beat up.  The aluminum is scratched all to hell after a week.  The black chrome is not scratched at all.  I would say it was pretty durable.


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## LarryDNJR (Jun 22, 2011)

I have personally used two of the black chrome artist sketch pencils from CUSA and both have scratched way to easy.  I've found this to be the case with other Black Chrome kits I've used before.  I tend to stay away from it anymore despite looking good with most things used on it.


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## dtswebb (Jun 22, 2011)

I've worked with all three, thanks to Ernie at Bear Tooth Woods.  The black chrome is a shiny black finish that does seem to go well with most woods and acrylics.  I've found the black chrome to be as durable a finish as anyone puts out there.

The black TI is a great looking finish that I personally like and will try on almost anything I turn.  And black TI stands up to daily use in the field, where I use some pens I've made.

I've found gunmetal finishes to be good quality from some manufacturers, poor from others.  I've been selective in who I will purchase gunmetal components from.

If you like the gunmetal finish and depending upon what you're turning, you could try another finish.  If I'm turning a cigar pen and want a finish that looks like gunmetal, I'll use the flat black kit from Ernie.  It has a gunmetal appearance and I've not had any issues with the finish not holding up to normal use.

Matthew


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## arioux (Jun 22, 2011)

There are two finish refered too as "black chrome".  One look a lot like black TI and the other one look more like a black powder coat.  The second one will chip eventually and does not offer a great scratch endurance.  The other is as durable as regular chrome and i found to be a good replacement to blackj TI


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## SCR0LL3R (Jun 22, 2011)

I guess whenever I want to buy something new, it's just best to ask around here so I can be more certain I am buying something worthwhile. There are so many variations of everything.


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## Smitty37 (Jun 22, 2011)

*Black Chrome*



Fibonacci said:


> I have worked with a fair amount of gunmetal and black ti. The two of them are very similar in coloring, but wildly different in durability.
> 
> How does black chrome compare? Both Berea and CSUSA carry black chrome versions of the Patriot/Carabara, but the pictures they have look like a gloss black.
> 
> Is that accurate? Or is the black chrome a reasonable facsimile of black ti/gunmetal?


 
Black Chrome is darker than Gun Metal and it is Metalic (bright rather than flat), It is as durable and perhaps a little more durable than Chrome much more so than Gun Metal.

There are at least two variations of Black TN .... the one I use is even darker than Black Chrome.  Others seem to me to be pretty close to Gun Metal.  The durability of Black TN is probably the best available being a tad better than Gold TN.

Gun Metal which is a Bronze with 2% or so of zinc (I believe) added does not compare well to the other two in durability but in my opinion looks as good as either.


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## Smitty37 (Jun 22, 2011)

*Black Enamel?*



arioux said:


> There are two finish refered too as "black chrome". One look a lot like black TI and the other one look more like a black powder coat. The second one will chip eventually and does not offer a great scratch endurance. The other is as durable as regular chrome and i found to be a good replacement to blackj TI


 
The only other black I've come across is black enamel...is that what you are referring to?


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## Smitty37 (Jun 22, 2011)

*Black Chrome durability*

I think that one will not see much difference in durability using a Black Chrome/Chrome package than if using a Black TN/Rhodium package....but what a difference in price.


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## SCR0LL3R (Jun 22, 2011)

Smitty37 said:


> I think that one will not see much difference in durability using a Black Chrome/Chrome package than if using a Black TN/Rhodium package....but what a difference in price.



It just sounds so much cooler to be able to say that the pen is rhodium or platinum rather than boring old chrome.


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## SCR0LL3R (Jun 22, 2011)

So is what Berea calls black chrome the real deal? I always thought black chrome wasn't perfectly black. Here's a pic of a Berea Carbara.

http://www.penblanks.ca/popup_image.php?type=D&id=4055&title=Carbara%20pen%20black%20chrome%20&area=C


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## Smitty37 (Jun 23, 2011)

*Won't say*



SCR0LL3R said:


> So is what Berea calls black chrome the real deal? I always thought black chrome wasn't perfectly black. Here's a pic of a Berea Carbara.
> 
> http://www.penblanks.ca/popup_image.php?type=D&id=4055&title=Carbara pen black chrome &area=C


I won't make a judgement on a competitors product and it is far to difficult to tell anything much from a photo.


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