Making It Shine

What do you guys use to wax/polish/make things shiny? Specific brands?Anything I should stay away from?

 

Did you read the "polishing aluminum" and "valve cover refurb" threads?

Aside from that "process" (strip/sand/buff/polish) here are my personal "staples" for cleanup and shine maintenance:

Wax: I like Turtle wax liquid paste wax. The green stuff in the big fat upside-down bottle.

Polish: For initial shine, various buffing 'rouges.' For shine maintenance I prefer and use Mothers' Billet Metal Polish.

Making things shiny:

Original Armor-All for the black part of the wheels, believe it or not;

Armor-All Natural Finish for rubber bits you don't want all overly shiny;

Mothers' Back-to-Black to bring back the luster to any chalked-out black plastic;

and Meguire's Ultra Instant Detailer for touch up. It's the only Meguire's product I've been happy with; the rest sucked big time. Mothers' on the other hand, is my new best buddy.

Getting clean to begin with: Citris-based Engine Cleaner; be sure the label says it's for use on COLD engines. This stuff HAS TO BE very thoroughly washed off or it will white-stain the castings. Work it in with a stiff brush, then wash with copious amounts of clean low-pressure water.

Mineral Sprits; a benign, "soft" solvent. Won't damage paint.

A product called Tarminator it's a solvent-based bug and tar remover and I love it. Any residue it leaves behind is easily dissolved with soapy water.

Speaking of which, don't use dish soap to wash the bike. Get a jug of actual Car Washing soap at the auto parts store; it won't strip wax or kill the protection that Mothers left behind. I use 1/3 cup per bucket of warm water, a single jug lasts me an entire season washing my car and multiple bikes.

NEVER EVER EVER use a coin-op or other pressure wash on your bike. You can drive water into places water was never intended to be, like your transmission.

MICROFIBER IS EVIL. It will scratch the bejabbers out of virgin chrome (don't GET me started.) Use clean soft cotton terrycloth towels. You can get a dozen plain white washcloths for under $4 at a discount store. I use washcloths, hand towels ($3 for 6) and "bar" towels (equally cheap) and pitch them if they get too nasty.

Under the risk of getting flamed for posting pics of my bikes; this is what's possible. The white bike had VERY GREY covers and castings, it had been outside for 4 years in Michigan without anything more than a tarp in the winter. Also at the risk of getting flamed again, the white bike was done mostly by hand. I had better processes in place for the black bike.





Flame on.

 

Despite what was just said: Mequiars, and microfibers.

/thread




no but seriously its all I use. If you are using the stuff from autozone no wonder you think its no good (even though its no worse than any other comsumer level product). I use the basic Mequiars Cleaner wax for quicky touch ups, but much more agressive methods for severely abused stuff. I dont bother with any kind of metal polish, its all crap and will leave you with scratched shit no matter what you do. Machine polishing with a buffing rouge is the only way, imho.

I use the Meguiars professional line (Mirror Glaze) and Im a detailer by trade. I would be happy to show some before and afters ALL done with Mequiars and microfibers if you doubt what Im sayin.

 

Fitz wrote: "Flame on."

Yeah, right, you didn't restore those bikes, you stole them from a museum! Nyah Nyah!

 

Microfiber scratched the living bejabbers out a piece of VIRGIN CHROME that I had just gotten back from the platers. Terry cloth doesn't do that.

Machine polishing with buffing rouge is good, but you need to maintain it afterward, especially if you ride the bike a lot. Using a good quality metal polish for shine maintenance is a lot easier than pulling the parts off the bike and re-machine polishing them a couple times a season or after getting caught in the rain.

My answer is a synopsis of what I use to maintain the bikes in my pics. Both get ridden quite a lot; the products I named off are how I keep them looking the way they do. Other products may work equally well, and part of the question was what to stay away from.

Your results may vary.

 

Thanks, guys! The PO left a ton of road grime all over. I got the bulk of it off with terry cloth and probably some deep=rooted desire for punishment. But it looks so much better already!
Fitz- Yep! Checked 'em out. At the moment, I have no access to a buffing wheel, so I'm in the do-it-by-hand boat too. Not a problem. The valve cover refurb threat was pretty neat, though I'm not sure the SO would approve that particular usage of the stove. haha

 

The real key to getting the aluminum polished intially is to strip the old clear coat off using "Aircraft" Paint remover from the auto parts. Then start with a careful 1200-wet sanding and work your way up.

I forgot to mention Mothers' Chrome Polish, it's "gentler" than a lot of other brands, virtually non abrasive. The platers recommended it.

As far as a buffing wheel, I use my 1/2" electric drill clamped upside-down in my WorkMate with a cheapo buffing wheel set from Home Depot.

 

me too. I have no idea what he is talking about. quality microfiber and professional line meguiar's. Turtle is proven to be plain garbage and cotton is rarely 100% pure. it gets rough after 1 wash too and you can't use fabric softener on any detailing towels or you are asking for trouble.

 

Tanks for the tip, dwcopple.
What about paper-based automotive rags? I have a whole mess of them at work, but I can't say where we got them. They're not the blue ones, though; they're softer and thicker than that.

 

Microfiber Cloth Varies..

I think both opinions on microfiber usage are valid.

I completely ruined a pristine chrome job too, (at least by my picky standards) using microfiber cloth when it first became popular. I swore I'd never use them again after that.

Later, after looking a bit closer I realized there are different qualities of cloth out there. You can actually feel the difference and I think it has a lot to do with the percentage of Polyamide used. I won't use anything other than 20% Polyamide blend and when compared to microfiber of lesser % Polyamide, they feel rough. The stuff I have now feels very soft to the touch and I use on my black BMW for polishing/waxing and I think it's as good as if not better than pure 100% soft terry.

Also, it's important to only wash microfiber cloth with other microfiber items and just use regular detergent.

Another critical variable is the polish being used. For chrome and aluminum I only use Wenol or AutoSol now.

As with anything though, YMMV

George

 

Yes, quality microfibers do make a difference, and you should wash them before first use. The problem I have had with microfibers is that will pick up and not easily release just about any contaminant. This means if you drop one on a dirty shop floor, especially one you've done some metal grinding over, that cloth is often forever ruined from detail work.


I havent found a metal polish yet that gives me the same gloss as a buffing wheel and rouge. I understand whats being said about maintenance but after I polish my metals, I use zoopseal to protect it. Most contaminants simply rinse off after that and when the polish eventually does fade over time, its just time for the rouge again.


For severely neglected paint I use the Mequiars microfiber polishing system new out this year. Here is a sample of what Ive done in just a two simple steps with that stuff.

Before:


after:


Before:


after:




The following was done with Mequiars D1080 Super Degreaser, D1080, M4001 vinyl and rubber cleaner/conditioner, and M1700 Hyper Dressing, some toilet/bottle brushes, and water.

before:





After:





And you should see what I can do with interiors (again, all I use is Megiuars pro line products, and no I dont work for them, its just a line of stuff Ive found works well for me)

before:




after:






I also agree that "You results may vary". Alot of this kind of stuff is about finding the right technique and product that suits your technique. I was taught to detail by a guy in florida that details only the most expensive cars in the world. His details routinely cost over a $1000 each and he uses primarily Mequiars products. He does have specialty stuff for certain situations (like using zoopseal as well). So I tend to just emulate what he does. I just wish I had his clientelle, lol.

 

Whoa! PTS, that's awesome! I'm checking Meguiars out now; I'd love to get that shine!
This is great! Thanks for all of the help and tips! Anything else I should know?

 

8O

 

So! Some results! Keep in mind that this is the second phase of things; the first was to clean (and by clean, I mean scrub, sometimes for a long time) engine bits so I could see what the heck was underneath the grime. The POs didn't take much time to care for aesthetics, so there is a lot to do. Some of which, I think, I don't have the tools for.

Before!


Note the sixty tons of grease & road grime. Ick.


I took advice and picked up some Meguiares products. Let's go!


First up, some ignored exhaust bits. I gave them several coats, and they cleaned up nicely, thought they still show their age. There is a lot of evidence of someone taking shortcuts with rust and it made me tear up.



What color are these supposed to be?


The PO decided to repaint and came up with a big, mustard-yellow FAIL.


Probably the biggest improvement on the bike:


Nothing I can do here. Ugh. I'm going to repaint letters, but I think that's all I can do at the moment.


Uh. Yeah. So there's a bunch of this. Mostly in hard-to-read places. Any thoughts on what I can do for it? I haven't got tools for much of anything.|



I didn't say this before, but Meguaires is AWESOME. One go with it and looky!



Right has one pass with Meguiars, left side has nothing.


So. Shiny.


A big improvement! I have a long way to go with it, I know, but tools and of course the green stuff, are big factors. I'd love to get it to sparkle without sticking glitter in every crevice; I hope it's something I can get to sooner rather than later. Wheel are next for today, with a scrubbing and a polish.
What do you guys think?

 

You won't be able to polish the aluminum, like that ignition cover, without stripping the old clearcoat off first. That grey corrosion is UNDER the old clear lacquer coat. That ignition cover can be made to look brand new or better. The "YICS" badge can be removed, or masked over (with at least 4 layers) before stripping/polishing.

The "unchromed" spot on the right muffler is from a battery acid leak, chrome polish won't fix it unfortunately.

New tank badges are relatively cheap.

Some of the chrome (head pipes for instance) is just GONE. Those parts will have to be replaced, painted, or Jet-Hot coated.

Looks like you're off to a good start.

 

I would like to clarify something. Ive never used the Mequiars Chrome polish if thats what you are using, sO I cant really comment on it. I use their Cleaner Wax as my do it all product. I find it cuts grime and contamination amazingly fast on ALL surfaces (I use it on glass as well). It is not a soft metal polish and therefore doesnt work great on the alloy stuff, it does work good on chrome.

To be honest most chrome I see is pretty heavily abused already and I go straight for my polishing tools. I have a very fast and efficient method that takes almost no elbow grease though it does take a few special tools.

I use the following method and I posted this on my build thread, here it is again as I think its useful and relevant here.

http://www.suebob.com/index.php?option= ... &Itemid=64


Here is a quick rundown of that articale in my own words.
You need an angle grinder. Harbor Freight has them for around $20.
You need the gator backing pad and at least one pack each (2 per pack) of the course (brown), medium (purple) and fine (blue) surface prep pads. They are like a green kitchen scouring pad on steroids. You will also need the felt polishing pads and a couple sticks of compound. I would recommend the Emery compound (black) for a good cleaning and the general purpose (white) compound.
The last thing I find useful is an inline rheostat. They are meant to add the ability to fade a plug in lamp, and I use it to vary the speed of my grinder.


excuse how dusty the bike is in this pic, I was backroading it the other day, but I just took this picture to show you whats possible in less than an hours work.



and my chrome didnt look all that much better than yours (minus the really rusty stuff) when I started



I have a set of pipes on my parts bike I want to clean up for spares anyway. I'll see if I can take a step by step tutorial for ya.

 

The stuff I used was the All Metal Polish. I did buy the Chrome Wheel cleaner, but hadn't used it when I posted photos. After a quick rinse last night, I gave the chrome spray a go and I have to say that I'm impressed with that as well.
Unfortunately, I don't have the green to grab all of the tools you recommended, so as of right now, I'm stuck with things I can do by hand with minimal additional costs.
If you do happen to have time to do a step-by-step, I will most certainly hang onto it for the future. Thank you!

 

You are looking at about $60-70 for the tools outlined above including the compounds. Taking into account how fast they make the job and how long they will last and how many things on a bike you can do with them...I think they pay for themselves. Tools are an investment. If you are going to own a bike and can only afford to fix it yourself, you are going to need tools.

just my .02


I'll try to get that tutorial done today.

 

I can tell you as a noob that you will need tools. Good tools, but shop around and get what you can get. You don't need to buy a complete tool set all at once. Maybe once a month you buy a tool. Say a set of metric wrenches, then metric allen keys, socket set, etc.... That is what I have been doing. Slowly I am getting enough tools to work on this bike. Most of the specialty tools you will/may need you can get from Chacal.

 

I agree. Tools are an investment. If you can afford to make the investment, it is, in most cases, a wise move. Part of the issue for me is time. At the moment, I do not have a large amount of free time, nor the knowledge to do all of the things I'd like to do. Being a visual learner, text can only go so far for me. I'm checking around in my area to see if there is anyone willing to teach me some of this stuff. You know, "teach a man to fish..."
Thank you for your advice, PTS. It's good to hear from folks who know what's up.

 

Good advice! Yet, we are specifically talking here about "making it shine". While its true that alot can be done with a few chemicals and some "rags" sometimes it takes tools to get the best results.

Another good example is those paint shots I showed earlier were done with a DA polisher and require the correct pad for the compound. My polisher wasnt cheap and pads and quality chemicals arent cheap either. In my case they pay for themselves with one or two jobs but for the average joe at home they might be a little extreme. However if you want professional looking results, you are going to need what can at least pass for professional quality equipment.

Or you can always take it to a guy like me that does it for a living and pay big bucks (actually, Im rather cheap).

The middle ground is what the OP is doing, hand work, with the best chemicals he can afford and a labor of love. Thats ok too. As long as the results make you happy and your bike looks better because of your efforts, its a win win.

 

Might I suggest that you worry more about getting the motor running right; the valves adjusted, the carbs cleaned and sync'ed, etc.; and getting the brakes rebuilt and the tires and suspension attended to BEFORE you worry a whole lot about the shine?

We've had more than one member spend countless hours and wads of cash on a bike cosmetically only to discover an inoperable issue with the motor.

Better to get it running right first then worry about the cosmetics. All the shine in the world won't help if you have a burnt valve or need new rings.

 

Good advice Fitz, and I know you are a veteran here and probably carry a bunch of weight, but dont you think beating that drum in this thread is out of place?

 

PTS- I suppose what it comes down to is that's not a priority at the moment. I've got a bunch of other things on the table, and buying tools to scrub up my bike isn't the first course right now. :\ I'll keeping getting my hands dirty and doing what I can for now.

Fitz - It runs. I have no engine experience, but I just had a local recommended shop take things apart and check them out. They checked carbs and valve clearances, hoses and brakes, etc. They gave it a thumbs up. And when I affectionately referred to it as my "piece of junk," they guy looked offended and quickly replied that oh, no, this thing is beautiful! As I told PTS, I'm limited with both time & money as to what I can do myself. Not to mention having no experience with any of it. But I do appreciate the forethough, Fitz. I sure would hate to have the best looking lawn-ornament bike anywhere!

 

let me also add that cleaning a bike isnt always 100% about vanity. There are safety factors and mantenance factors at work as well. A clean bike is a bike that is easier to work on, easier to spot failures on, and in some cases run cooler and ride better.

Having said that I take a balanced approach to my restoration projects. First thing is does it run? Second thing is is it safe to ride? and finally, is it a bike I WANT to ride?

My XJ has been together and apart soo many times Ive lost count because I work in stages, but the last thing I want is crappy nasty dirty gritty oily oxidized parts to work with WHILE Im making it safe to ride.

 

Well the way I see it is simple. Fix what needs fixing first and if a part is taken off in the process may as well clean and shine it up while it is already off.

 

or the other way around, if you take it off to shine it, might as well make it work as good as it can

 

I guess I tend to go somewhere in the middle, and thats why my bike has been apart so many times. I didnt want to polish side covers or paint forks and front brake parts until I was sure nothing was going to leak on them or that I wasnt going to be taking them back apart anytime soon. So when adressing those items I wanted them clean and working but not painted and polshed until I knew that I had at least a rideable bike first.


I wasnt in any way disagreeing with Bigfitz, In fact Im totally in agreement, but if the OP had said: Hey I just bought this bike and know nothing about it, how do I make it shiney? Then I would recommend caution. This thread isnt about that (and Im not helping get back on track at this point by discussing this).


On topic however I should have a few pictures up later that illustrate my polishing process.

 

Exhaust wrap. Any thoughts on using to cover up all of that disgusting rust on the header bars, etc? Is it meant to be a long-term thing and/or will it come off easily when I want it to? I'm thinking of wrapping what I can't fix right now, but I don't want to do any damage.

 

ok so I was pretty busy prepping my bike for delivery to its new owner, but managed a little time to show you whats possible.

starting with:





here is after a quick rip down one pipe with a cleaning compound (brown). note the other pipe how nasty it is. I would normally at least degrease that so it doesnt gum my pad, but I was using the remnants of some old pads anyway.





a few minutes later:






Then a once over with all purpose white compound. This is literally 3 minutes later:



not the best photo, I was trying to show the contrast between the two but the reflection of the one pipe makes the shiney one look bad. I think you get the idea though.



Also, if these pipes were going on my bike I would go over them again with a fresh pad and some jewelers rouge to really bring out the shine. My point of this is that only so much can be done by hand, and that things some people would give up on are items Ive used with great success to dress up a restoration project.

 

but the chrome is gone so the steel is exposed and it's going to rust again.
you can make rebar shine with a buffing wheel but how long will it stay that way

 

Very nice, PTS! Thank you for the photos!!
If what Polock says it true, can you clearcoat it with something? Is there a way to prevent the reappearance of rust? Since it's still structurally sound (hopefully), what about exhaust wrap?

 

uhhh...the chrome is NOT gone on those pipes, and like anything if you keep it clean and dry it shouldnt rust immediately. An occasional once over with a cream chrome polish will further protect it.


I'll leave that pipe alone for the next couple of weeks and not so much as touch it and rephoto it if you like. 2 weeks here (I live 20 miles from the Oregon coast) will turn most things rusty.


But the point here really is still relevant. What you cant do by hand, you WILL need machines for, IF...you want the best results.

 

Hes incorrect in this case, but to some extent its a valid concern. Even the fact that it is chrome doesnt mean it wont develop surface rust again. A metal "wax" is a good line of defence. I used to use Zoop Seal but they folded and the creator came out with something new that I havent ried yet. Its kind of expensive.

Im currently testing this:




So far results are excellent. Grime washes right off and so long as I dry stuff after washing with a good clean microfiber, Im not getting spots. I'll give an opinion on it AFTER a winter in Oregon.

 

Great! I'll check out Poorboy's. I'd like to give things a good safe coat, even if it's not just for the winter.

I'm still looking for info about exhaust wrap. Anybody? I would be using it with the possibility of it being a temporary thing, so I don't want to do any damage. Good? Bad? Ugly?

 

exhaust wrap is notorious for making rusty things rustier. It traps moisture right agasint the pipes. Unless you have simply given up on your pipes and expect to either rechrome or cereamic coat them down the road I wouldnt use it. If however you feel the pipes cant really be saved the way they are then you could wrap em for cosmetic reasons.