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Old 10-17-2007, 10:20 PM
rickt rickt is offline
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Default Fine Scratches & Haze Won't Go Away

I'm finally getting back to the '78 Suzuki cycle engine cases that I started on in the spring. I removed the polymer coating with hardware store paint stripper and got a good smooth finish with tripoli on a spiral wheel. I'm using a 1/2 hp (3500 rpm) bench grinder with 8" wheels.

I read a number of posts about the importance of cleaning the metal when changing compounds, so I throughly cleaned the first engine case with degreaser followed by acetone and finally a good scrubbing with dish soap and hot water. I went one step further and washed my spiral wheels that have only been used with white coloring compound with dish soap and lots of hot water. After everything dried, I put the two 1/2" wheels together and gave it a go. Same result as six months ago - fine scratches and haze when viewed under the fluorescent lights in the workshop. The fine scratches shift 90 degrees when I turn the piece 90 degrees, so I know there are coming from the white compound polishing wheel.

Have I missed something? Anyone have any suggestions for improving the overall appearance of the cycle engine cases? I found polishing stainless auto trim to be much more straightforward than these cycle parts

rickt
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