Very interesting, buddy - I'm especially drawn to the polished brass & bronze, plus I take your point about "cooling down" the chrome with an overpainted varnish; I had immediately thought of how the chrome can often look just
too bright on a smaller model but hadn't ever thought of this varnish idea. You are still busy teaching this old dog new tricks, ya know
Atm I use "Plasti-Kote" chrome spray (spirit based) which has been the closest I've ever been able to get. However, I wonder whether you've seen these new chrome pens advertised on Face Book & eleswhere? They seem to work wonders