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Clean and Polish?

Discussion in 'XJ Technical Chat' started by lpayne, Jul 10, 2008.

  1. lpayne

    lpayne New Member

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    My 1981 XJ650 that I only acquired recently has probably never been cleaned since the eighties. I've started polishing the chrome, aluminum, and every other type of metal surface. But I'm having to work through layers of oxidation and tarnish. I've tried a few different brands of cleaners and polishes.

    Does anyone have one that makes the job easier or at least faster? At this rate it'll take so long I'll have to start over once I'm finished! LOL
     
  2. weoxstan

    weoxstan Member

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    I use 000, or 0000 steel wool to get the oxidation and rust off of mine. After that I use Mother's.
     
  3. brent_bastien

    brent_bastien Member

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    dont use the steel wool it will impregnate the aluminum and chrome with little bits of steel which will rust and you will have to scrub again

    use a green scotch brite pad (the ones you use to scub pots and pans in the kitchen)

    i did the steel wool thing and i got the little rust spots
    with the green pads it stayed clean

    on the really corroded aluminum i used a paint stripper to get the yellowed coat of varnish off then i used a buffing wheel and some alluminum polishing compound it can take a while

    find out what parts you can take off and put an 8 inch buffing wheel in your bench grinder with the aluminum compound and you can polish the parts real quick
     
  4. weoxstan

    weoxstan Member

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    Never thought of the steel wool impregnating the aluminum. I will switch over even though I have not had any problems as of yet.
     
  5. wizard

    wizard Active Member

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    pollishing aluminium.
    start with 80 grit oxide paper & stage by stage take it finer to 240, now use the solid pollish & the buffing wheel, finally finish with Mothers or similar.
    there is no quick fix.
     
  6. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    Hey, Wizard ...

    Are you sure about 80 and 240?

    I have never used 80 for anything other than cutting-down body filler to get a surface close to working with the finer finishing papers.

    80 and 240 are "Scratchers"
    Cutters.
    Rough stuff.

    If you want to bring a finish to a bright alloy you'll have alot of extra work to do by starting out with such a rough abrasive.

    Peek at some of the Polishing I did in My Gallery.
     
  7. wizard

    wizard Active Member

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    Hey, Rick meister, it depends how much oxidiation is on there, i know, i have had to start with rougher suff than 80, like, wire brush.
    with small stuff, like your oil filler cap, you can just buff that from the get-go, but for broader areas you have to sand down grade by grade. if it's that good to start with, you won't need abrasive at all.
     
  8. RickCoMatic

    RickCoMatic Well-Known Member

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    When I needed to remove the yellowed and flaking-off Factory Clear Coat; I used a Spray-on Paint Remover called: "Airplane Paint Remover'

    The stuff goes on and clings because its like a foam. I dissolved the Clear and the Paint, bubbling it up and letting you scrape-off the mess with a tongue depressor.

    It's a sure-fire way to get all that stuff right off there without a lot of elbow grease.
    Scrape-off the heavy stuff with a tongue depressor.
    Hit the nooks and crannies with a Q-Tip.
    Wipe-off the rest of it with a paper towel.

    Clean and bare bright alloy awaits finishing with ultra-fine grades of finishing papers.

    Even the toughest parts will look like chrome:
    [​IMG]
     
  9. gunnabuild1

    gunnabuild1 Member

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    Stop showing shiny pictures Rick it makes me feel guilty.
     
  10. bigfitz52

    bigfitz52 Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    I'm a fan of the green scotchbrite pad to get the old clear coat off, as well as the worst of the corrosion. I use Solvol Autosol (a German product rather widely available) to get the shine up, then Mothers to maintain thereafter. Solvol is perceptibly coarser than Mother's. I have found that TIME also aids the process...over time, your newly polished cover WILL oxidize a bit and need to be repolished (unless you clear coat it but what fun is that?) After a few of the oxidize/repolish cycles, the stains will fade away quite nicely. I LIKE the paint remover idea, though. Rick, where do you get that stuff?
     
  11. chadwickm

    chadwickm Member

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    To make your bike look like this:

    [​IMG]

    1. Get rid of the clear coat with the afore mentioned Aircraft Stripper
    2. Start with 320 grit progressively working up to 2000
    3. Get a couple of buffing wheels for your grinder
    4. Get a bar of Red Jewlers Rouge
    5. Get a bar of White Jewlers Rouge
    6. Polish with the Red
    7. Get a mirror finish with the White

    Enjoy!
     
  12. MN-Maxims

    MN-Maxims St. Paul Minnesota

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    Het Chad,

    What kind of paint did you use on your cylinders. The black on mine is almost gone.

    Your bike looks great.
    Thanks
    Ron
     
  13. chadwickm

    chadwickm Member

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    Ace Hardware - high temp grill paint. Brushed it on by and with a cheapo brush from Big Lots. Cost MAYBE $4.00.
     
  14. lpayne

    lpayne New Member

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    Thanks for all the info!!! I see that there may be some short cuts. I'll get some before and after pics. I just hope I can get my XJ to look as sharp as Rick's and Michael's.
     
  15. weoxstan

    weoxstan Member

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    While we are talking about cleaning and polishing, what about the rear shock/strut springs? Any good way of getting them cleaned up? Mine are looking kinda bad.
     
  16. chadwickm

    chadwickm Member

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    On or off the shock? I disassembled the ones on my Magna and re-polished all the chrome parts. I use SOS pads for the springs, cleans them right up.
     
  17. weoxstan

    weoxstan Member

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    I was thinking on. How hard are they to get apart, if not too bad I can take them off if it is going to be alot easier to clean.
     
  18. jgb1503

    jgb1503 Member

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    I wsa thinking the same thing - mine are kinda nasty ;-)

    Can you soak them or anything? or would that ruin them? (the whole thing)

    If I can take it off, i can do the 'electrolysis' trick on the springs, that should help.. I have been doing that for TONS of parts - they come out beautiful!
     
  19. chadwickm

    chadwickm Member

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    It's not hard, just remember you will be working with a spring under compression; always point away from yourself, keep the kiddies out, etc.

    You need to make yourself a spring compressor for the shock, a couple of boards, some all thread,and bolts and washers works really well. Once the shock is compressed, loosen the nut under the top of the shock and unscrew the top. Uncompress the spring, disassemble, clean, and reassemble in reverse order.

    I'll take some pictures of my compression tool and post them when I get home from work.
     
  20. chadwickm

    chadwickm Member

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    I wouldn't soak them in anything personally. A quick wash in the sink with some hot soapy water is as far as I went.

    I would be interested in see the electrolysis results if you go that route. You may be able to start up a nice little side business referbing shock springs!
     

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