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Old 03-03-2008, 11:47 PM
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Default Re: Can't get a good polish on aluminum

Quote:
Originally Posted by mkriegs View Post
I normally use these forums for anodizing but I just today had some trouble with some polishing work so I figured I'd ask in this forum.

Anyway, I'm having some trouble getting these two parts to get a good polished finish, no matter what I do there's little scratches in the finished product. The weird thing is that these are the only two parts that I've had trouble with. I've polished parts in worse starting conditions to better results in half the time. Also, I did three other polished parts in the same batch and they all came out perfect.

I used a sisal wheel with emery compound followed by spiral sewn cotton wheel with tripoli compound followed by loose cotton wheel with white rouge. I even tried the corn starch and water trick mentioned in the pamphlet that came with the 1/3 HP buffing machine kit.

The scratches aren't terribly bad and I doubt the owner will complain, but I'd still like to send these parts back in flawless condition. here's a picture:

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/b...7/DSC00417.jpg

note - I had to get the lighting just right in order to get that picture, so they aren't that apparent in real life.
if you would do your buffing in different directions like the sisal in one directio n and the spiral 45 degree from that one and the loose 90 degree as a test you would see from wich step the lines come from .
also you could have some contaminant on one of your wheels . make sure you rake them before use , if they are from the ast polishing step you cn alo try flanel buffs that are available on this site , they are about the softest wheels you can find
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