The Magic Of Polishing Compounds

Just thought I would post a couple of pics showing what anyone can do to their rides or any part that you want shiny. Here is my fork brace with half of it polished to the first stage. I used a bench grinder and a wire wheel to remove the tarnish and clear coat. Using a polishing wheel, I started with the black compound (Stage 1) to get it smooth. After I'm done with this colour, I'll use the brown and then the white compounds which should leave the brace shining like chrome! The pics show the results of about 20 minutes of work. Anyone can do this with simple tools, plus a good filtering mask as the buffing fibres kind of float through the air!

 

they really do wonders. i've got every piece of my engine screamin bright like chrome with a little compound and elbow grease

 

what kind of polish are you using? I have been thinking about going over my engine on my bike and doing that.

 

These are the blocks of wax mixed with abrasives that come in different colours denoting the various grades of abrasion power. For example, the black is the coarsest grade wich removes nicks and scratches in many metals. The brown is a little finer which starts to polish and remove the marks left by the black compound. Finally, the white compound basically polishes the metal to a bright shiny surface. There is a red compound used by jewellers to polish gold and silver, a blue compound for polishing plastics, and a green which is used on something that skips my mind right now. There are different buffing wheels used for different applications as well. I use both my bench grinder for small parts, and my drill press with a flex cable for large stuff like my wheels. A hand drill can also be used as it is more portable. The fibers that are produced by the polishing are really fine and contain particles of whatever metal you're working on, so it is important to wear a proper mask to avoid inhaling them. Gogles are also good to keep this stuff from getting in your eyes. There are tons of websites that show how to polish aluminum so it's a matter of surfing and reading. Once you start polishing parts on your bike, it becomes addictive. If you really want to get into this technique, I have lots of tips to pass on which will help you out I'm sure. When I started, it was frustrating because there was a learning curve. Hope this helps.

 

john08-

Any tips for polishing carburetor bodies and float bowls? I just finished cleaning my Mikunis and before I "re-rack" them, I was toying with the idea of polishing them. I have a cordless drill as well as a Dremel tool with the wand attachment.

 

The carb body would be real hard to do because of all the stuff on it, but the bowls would be fairly easy I would think. I'm thinking of doing mine as well (bowls) and intend to use the bench grinder. This way I can hold the bowl and have more control over it...besides, to clamp the bowl would likely leve dents or scratches, so mount your cordless drill. The dremel tool is also ok but mount it as well. Use buffing wheels with the drill, and the little buffing cones with your dremel. I bought the small buffing cones on eBay for a steal compared to what stores sell these attachments for. The buffing wheels for your drill could either be found in hardware stores or online. Same with the compounds....don't forget a mask or you're regret it.

Phil

 

man, that's great work... I wish I had that kind of patience :mrgreen:

 

there is also the option of screwing the bowls to a bit of wood or directly to the work bench - no clamp/vise marks.
Even two diagonal screws in a chunk of 2x4 gripped in the vice would be substantially stable.

 

Vibratory Tumbler!

 

Is the circus in town? 8O

 

I've got a big buffer like this from Harbor Freight. It's wonderful for shining up metal parts like engine covers, fork legs, etc. I haven't found any black polishing compound for rough surfaces though, it only came with red and white. Where could I get some of the black?
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/d ... mber=40668

 

AZSteve-

Check this link: http://www.hobbytool.com/index.asp?Page ... &ProdID=70

 

I have also bought some of the compounds and wheels at Sears. It's worth a shot to stop in. I have a "Sears hardware and appliance" close to me and they have a extended selection of different tools so I'm not sure what would be in the "regular" store.

 

Here in Canada, Princess Auto carries all the compounds and wheels you might need. The individual compounds are about $5 each (block is about 5" by 1" by 1"). Don't know if they sell across border but you could try...here's thier website.

http://www.princessauto.com/

 

Wow, that's great. One dollar even fits my budget!

 

Not bad...better than Princess Auto...the shipping is a little steep though.

 

what about the mothers polishing balls?

there's a 3" and a 6", can get aluminim / chrome buffing compound from them too.

 

I don't believe that you can even compare the two. The buffing compounds are actually abrasives desiged for bringing something scratched or unpolished to a chrome-like finish in most cases. The Mothers products just buff and polish something that has already been polished but is not as shiny anymore. I tried Mothers and other like products to do my wheels with unimpressive results. When I finally went with the polishing compounds and techniques, they came up like mirrors!

 

Looks sweet!! I have started this on my bike but with the easy to reach stuff first. Wish I had the time to tear the bike down and do it right. I have been told however that you have to " seal " the metel with something or it will tarnish or corrode faster than normal. Anyone esle heard of this?

 

I was just going to post something about this! I saw this on ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... 20338&rd=1
Is this what this guy did?? I want to do it!!!!

 

I'll answer both...first email, after it's polished, the pro's who do this for a living told me it won't corrode any faster after polishing, but they do advise using a good wax on the shiny stuff twice a year. You could clearcoat it but the clearcoat will yellow and peel off, which is what started me down this road.
That cover on ebay is exactly what I'm talking about. Once you have a technique down, you'll be surprised at how easy and satisfying it looks.

Phil

 

Awesome!!! I might just have a new weekend(s) project!! Does it take a REAL long time?? Also, would this work on the grab bar in the back??? IM PUMPED!!

 

Depending on your setup, the actual time from begining to end is not really a lot of time. If anything, you tend to rush the work which is something I work hard at avoiding. I am in the process of doing the rear grab bar on mine and I've spent about 2 hours on it...it's gleaming but I still have the brown and white stages to do. Each stage takes less than the previous one because you use less pressure each time. Will post some pictures of it as well.

 

Thanks ArizonaSteve I think I will try that link out that you posted. I've been looking for somthing like that. Every place I look want and arm and a leg for this stuff. Appreciate it!

 

I've been doing my share of polishing with my bike. I'll need to pick up some of the better compounds though and see how they work compared to what I've been using.

 

http://www.caswellplating.com/buffs/index.html

 

Enkay seems to be the preferred compounds...that's what I've been using. The cost up here vaties fro about $2.99 on up for the 4 oz bars.

 

I found the black bars at Harbor Freight for $4.99 and there's no shipping since they are just down the street!

 

Ok, so I decided to try this...not too easy...??? I bought a polishing kit from Lowes and tried a small area first. I used the stainless brush to remove the tarnish/clear. THEN WHAT!!! I tried to used the little buffing wheels but did not seem to get any progress. Any tips???

 

Okay, I talked with a 'polish' guy running a booth at an auto swap meet this weekend and he sold me a bar of Brown (400) and a bar of White (finish). Said they would do the job on XJ aluminum. Told me a lot about cloth buffing wheels, too: recommended 60 layer cloth wheels with high thread count, etc. He seemed know so much more that I didn't totally follow but got the general idea, esp. about basics like different wheel for each compound.

Unless somebody thinks I'm missing a step needed, I'm gonna use these two and see how the XJ shines up.

 

Here are some links to the sites I used to learn how to polish aluminum. It does take time to learn, but your patience and rewards will be worth it!

http://www.enkaypolishing.com/polishing ... ctions.pdf

http://www.xs11.com/tips/maintenance/maint18.shtml

http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/ab_auto_r ... 45,00.html

 

I always wanted to try using my dremel tool to polish parts on my bike. I know it sounds painfully slow and tedious, but I think with the high rpm's on the tool, it would go pretty quick. You could get into a lot of tight places and break the bike into sections and tackle one at a time.

Any thoughts on this? Does anyone make buffers that fit dremel tools?

 

I used my dremel to get into the tight spots and it worked very well. You could use it to do the whole bike but it would take extra time. The problem might be with large flat sections...the dremel is small which means any differences in pressure or technique might show up on the finishd area. Using a larger buffer (even a drill with the proper size buffer wheels) would give those areas a more even finish. As far as buffers for the dremel, I used the 1 inch buffer cones with my dremel and they were the best choice. I bought 36 of them on eBay for a fraction of the cost of buying them anywhere else. I think the cost for each worked out to 50 cents versus $1.25 each in stores.

 

I am only slightly mechanically inclined (rebuilt a small engine back in H.S. and have worked on my old cars) but the thought of tearing down my baby to clean and polish her makes me very scared. (I'm so afraid I'll never get her to run again )

So, my question is, has anyone done any aluminum polishing while the bike is still in one piece and how does it work, way to much trouble or not as bad as one might think?

I also have some fine "swirl" scratches in the tank and was wondering if anyone had a product that would help with that. I have some "Nu-Finsh" scratch remover but it has not helped. I am using those orange towels that you can get in the auto section at Target, supposed to be ultra soft, but not so sure about that either. Thinking about buying cloth baby diapers, any thoughts?

Thanks alot!

 

After you've polished it like that, do you have to put any thing on top to protect that finish? Or do you just have to polish it again periodically?

Thanks,
Dean

 

Yamahamama How much of the engine are you looking to polish ?? As for your tank what you need to get is "swirl remover" it is best to polish tank with a buffer and the swirl remover you should be able to find it at any auto parts store

 

Dean:

I use a good coat of wax on the shiny stuff and in the winter, if there's anything that needs re-polishing, I do it then. Others might suggest clearcoating, but all the metal polishing sites I've gone to advise against that as it yellows after time...how much time, I don't know. I'll just try the wax for now and see how I make out.

 

I would like to polish as much as the engine as I can without taking it apart. Was thinking that any parts too small to get to would get a nice caot of shiny black.

I'll take a look for the swirl remover. Thanks

 

Get the Kit that's for use with a 1/4-Inch Drill.

Use Jewelers Rouge's to bring-out the Mirror Finish.
Polish one piece at a time.

I took the parts off and held the drill in my vice.
Then you can apply good pressure and turn the part every wich way to bring out the luster of polished aluminum.

The side cases of my 900:

 

Agood place to get polishing kits is eastwood.com they also have extensions for bench grinders if you have one I use them and there alot cheaper then buying a buff motor