Every time I see one of those motorcycle shows or some other show that demonstrates an electroplating process, it appears that they tie the part onto a copper frame using copper wire before immersing the part in the plating bath and turning on the juice. On the motorcycle frames, they even attach little pigtails of copper wire to the ends of the frame to assist in the process.
One thing I have never seen them address: Won’t the copper wire leave marks where it is in contact with the part? Won’t the areas in direct contact with the wire be shielded somewhat from the plating material? At the very least, the plating should show a slight “shadow” of the wires, and if the plating is for corrosion resistance, one tiny pit could compromise the whole process.
Every chromed part I have seen has always been flawless, without any signs of where wires were attached.
How is this achieved?