This comes up on the Jockey Journal forum a good bit. One thread recommended reverse electrolysis with this process:
What Iron wigwam said, but didn't explain. Take a empty plastic Folgers PLASTIC Container. Has to be folgers Yuban won't work. No not really. A plastic container approx, 1 gallon. Fill this with a brine (enough salt dissolved in water to float an egg) solution. Now suspend your part into this and connect to the Positive lead on a trickle charger. Connect the negative to a chunk of steel suspended on the side of the container. Turn the charger on and check it after about 12 hours. Should be removing the chrome pretty well. You can use Electolyte (battery acid) but I've found the brine works okay for dechroming. Make sure you vent the area well befor entering as some nasty fumes can accumulate. Don't remember high school chemistry all that well, but could have some stuff that aint all that good for you. You can reverse the leads and hang some copper to plate the part after dechroming if you wish. Then nickle, then chrome. I usually stop at copper!
Also on the thread were these tips that DIDN'T work:
Most of the ****** you read online about "at home" chrome stripping is total ******.
I've tried a few things and nothing even touches it. Here's what doesn't work:
1. Phosphoric acid(ie battery acid)- Bought it at a local auto parts store, poured it in a glass undilluted and added some small chrome bits. 3 days later the chrome was as pretty as the day it was plated -FAIL
2. Muriatic acid- obtained from pool supply store (not cheap @ $26/gal) used same method as Phosphoric above. Total myth! this does nothing - FAIL
3. Apple cider vinegar with a 10 amp battery charger - filled a 5 gal pail with 50/50 mix of warm tap water & the vinegar. Put neg lead of charger onto part to be stripped and pos lead onto a copper rod. Overnight w/charger on 10 amp scale yeilded no results - FAIL
4. above method on 22-amp charge rate - FAIL
5. method 3 & 4 with polarity reversed -FAIL
6. Method 3 & 4 with stainless steel "anode" rod - FAIL
7. Method 3 & 4 with "BRINE" solution rather than vinegar. Mixed sodium chloride(halite salt) into water until an egg would float, thus creating brine. Tried this with all charger rates, both polatities, and both types of annodes. - FAIL
I'm going to send my stuff to a chrome shop and just let them anally violate me. That's the only way I can figure that will remove the chrome.
Most folks agreed that letting a chrome shop do the work was the best way, but it was just as pricey as getting items chromed.
Here's an interesting Jockey Journal thread on the subject:
http://www.jockeyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=54611&highlight=removing+Chrome
