Abstract: A release film is coated with a thin layer of metal by, for example, a vapor deposition process. The film is then stretched over a composite object, made, e.g., of fiberglass-epoxy or graphite-epoxy, which one desires to metallize. A treatment involving either vacuum or pressure and that may involve heat is used to transfer the thin metal layer to the composite object. The stretchable film is then peeled off the object, leaving a metal coating bonded to the object. The epoxy resin or other adhesive in the composite material gives structural integrity to the object as well as provides a bond for the metal, so that the composite object may be molded and metallized in one step. Alternatively, a two-step process of molding then metallizing or metallizing then molding can be employed.