<Brief version>
After reading somewhere that Chrome nail polish might yield better results than typical silver model paints, I tried Sally Hansen's "Pure Chrome" from WalFart. After testing on junk materials & a few KOs, I made a few valiant passes on appropriate parts - it dries fast & clumps easily; the whole layer must be done in one pass. So far, the best method seems to be coating the target part in a thin layer of polish rermover just before applying the nail-polish - this aids in a more uniform coat & thinning into smaller/finer details of the piece ( I suspect paint-thinner may work too ).

I'd really like to get get feedback / advice from anyone who knows how to apply this stuff better - it seems to have great potential & looks tops when applied successfully. Obviously not expecting 'Vacuform' or commercial results; just better than typical enamels. Thanks in advance for any details, methods and constructive critiques.

(Included pics of my custom Alt 'Silverstreak', Energon Arcee & a few various parts touched-up with the same polish.)

<Long-winded lead-in>
Thinking back to the 80's I realized much of the appeal those cool Transformers had for me was their shiny, gleaming, metal looking, chromed-out parts. Soundwave's buttons. Prime's bumper, gas-tanks etc; Those glorious DINOBOTS! It all screamed: "put me in the nest to attract females." Or rather, the chrome bits enhanced the (already impressive) realism of the robots in disguise. The past few generations of TFs (Post RID) seem to have lost much of that polished, metallic look - (dont get me started on those bloody US "Reissues")

...and that's why I avoided the Hasbro reissues.

Hmm... from those pics I can't tell the diff between the nail polish and say mithral silver miniature/model paint. Perhaps you should grab a KO and do a side by side test, like paint one side with paint the other side with polish? Kinda like what they do with nail polish when they paint 2 nails with different polishes so that when you put them together you can make a direct comparison.

Looks good! I do a good chunk of some of my customization with nail polish. Different brands gets different results. I picked up this one that was called something like "Buried Treasure" or something like that. It was awful at clumping. (and it was $8! blargh.)

Generally, what I'll do is dip the brush in, then rub it against the edge of the jar opening to put some back into the bottle, then start painting in one stroke. I've also heard from one of my co-workers that I used to work with, that you can actually thin out nail polish with Witch Hazel. I never actually got around to doing it, so I can't confirm if it works or not.

The nail polishes that I've had the best results with, is Avon's Mirror Shine nail polish. Though, it's recommended to stock up on it, since they'll carry it for a while, then take it off the market for a while, then bring it back. Also, check the color against a junker piece first.

My first encounter with it, I was wanting to do one of the Lasercycles from RID as Galvatron; went and polished it up with purple polish, when it dried, it turned pink. (I also quickly learned not to use nail polish remover on plastic after that one.)

if you want real chrome, go with alclad II

Just checked out their site & like the look of their multilayered metallics. A modeller friend of mine swears by the stuff too. I've let the (seemingly complex) application of Alclad intimidate me, but the results look worth a bit of effort. Every good product has instructions...

Thanks for the feedback, guys! Will post some comparison pics soon as my test pieces turn up (or when I get 5 mins to make new ones)