Aluminum Valve Cover Question

[ptim]

I'm trying to polish a set of Valve Covers, I have a couple of questions.

I'm seeing tiny pits in the aluminum, will they polish out or should I quit wasting my time.

Its getting pretty smooth and shiney, I can see myself, but its not a mirror like finish, also, will the aluminum get a chrome finish.

At this point which compound should I continue to use, I have black, brown, green and white.

Also, how much compound should I use on the pads.

I'm using a drill if it helps. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

[mpierich]

Originally Posted by ptim

I'm trying to polish a set of Valve Covers, I have a couple of questions.

I'm seeing tiny pits in the aluminum, will they polish out or should I quit wasting my time.

Pay close attention to the "pits".. If you see more "pits" the more you sand, it's bubbles in the metal. Stop sanding.

Originally Posted by ptim

Its getting pretty smooth and shiney, I can see myself, but its not a mirror like finish, also, will the aluminum get a chrome finish.

It will get close to chrome, done properly. Usually it's enough to take it to 400 or 600 grit, then emery compound, then maybe tripoli and finish with white rouge.

Originally Posted by ptim

At this point which compound should I continue to use, I have black, brown, green and white.

See above. Also read the polishing manual on this site.

Originally Posted by ptim

Also, how much compound should I use on the pads.

A quick jab or two at the spinning wheel is all you need every few minutes.

Originally Posted by ptim

I'm using a drill if it helps. Thanks

Kind of slow but it can be done. A motor with 8" wheel would be better.

Good luck.

[ptim]

I have a bench grinder, if I bought some adapters and pads, would it work better than my drill.

[Tng21]

Originally Posted by ptim

I have a bench grinder, if I bought some adapters and pads, would it work better than my drill.

Id tend to stay away from a bench grinder converted mate. Its what iu started out with, waste of money if you ask me as a bench grinder dont have the power, when you stick your workpiece up to your mops/wheels the wheel will just stop and wnt do anything. I bought a heavy duty motor of a fella on ebay and there's no way i can stop it with pressure. Bench grinder now made redundanty in the back of the shed, same with a drill, no good because you cant get the speed out of them.

[ptim]

Originally Posted by Tng21

Id tend to stay away from a bench grinder converted mate. Its what iu started out with, waste of money if you ask me as a bench grinder dont have the power, when you stick your workpiece up to your mops/wheels the wheel will just stop and wnt do anything. I bought a heavy duty motor of a fella on ebay and there's no way i can stop it with pressure. Bench grinder now made redundanty in the back of the shed, same with a drill, no good because you cant get the speed out of them.

Thanks for the info, If the bench grinder isnt strong enough, what about an angle grinder.

[UncleJimmi]

Angle grinders work great. I like the older Makita 9217-spc
The newer model 9227 is good too, they have a soft start so the grinder won't jump or jerk when you hit the switch with big wheels on it.
They also are variable speed, have loads of torque, and will take more abuse than any other grinder.
(My oldest of 3 is 7 years and counting / polishing)
Another great thing about grinders is that they can be clamped to the edge of a table and used as a stationary machine.
I use them for small or odd shape parts that are too dangerous to do on
the 5HP, or big parts that can't be held to a buffer.
I use them for sanding too, using an 6 or 8 inch sticky pad.
The car and the bike were polished with Makita's
The bike is mine, the car was done for Nitto tires and on display at the
SEMA show in 05
...................................NOT CHROME...............................

[ptim]

Originally Posted by UncleJimmi

Angle grinders work great. I like the older Makita 9217-spc
The newer model 9227 is good too, they have a soft start so the grinder won't jump or jerk when you hit the switch with big wheels on it.
They also are variable speed, have loads of torque, and will take more abuse than any other grinder.
(My oldest of 3 is 7 years and counting / polishing)
Another great thing about grinders is that they can be clamped to the edge of a table and used as a stationary machine.
I use them for small or odd shape parts that are too dangerous to do on
the 5HP, or big parts that can't be held to a buffer.
I use them for sanding too, using an 6 or 8 inch sticky pad.
The car and the bike were polished with Makita's
The bike is mine, the car was done for Nitto tires and on display at the
SEMA show in 05
...................................NOT CHROME...............................

WOW, the car is awesome and I thought valve covers were hard to do.

[jrow]

ptim,

I have used a 3/8" drill for polishing pieces that you can't get under a pedestal mounted buffer. A bench grinder probably won't be strong enough unless your bench grinder is using 8" grinding wheels. I use 4" or smaller wheels on my drill and have had good success. By the time you buy a pedestal, shaft extensions and wheels for your bench grinder you are almost to the place where it's less expensive to buy an 8" or 10" buffer!

John

[alabama_lowlife]

what is that car made out of? that thing looks absolutely amazing!


you can do a good job of polishing with a bench grinder, but it can be frustrating since they don't have any power. i'd rather use a bench grinder than a drill, but an angle grinder rocks. i've got a 3.5hp motor and a bench mandrel to upgrade from my bench grinder as soon as i build a table for them.

[mpierich]

Originally Posted by ptim

Thanks for the info, If the bench grinder isnt strong enough, what about an angle grinder.

Personally I'm not sure how these angle grinders are being used. Surely they exceed the rpm limits for normal cotton wheels, and 20,000 - 30,000 rpm is, um, overkill for simply polishing. But, as the name implies, they are the best for grinding...which is what they're made for.

If these valve covers are all you're doing, you can do it with the drill - it'll just take a while. After all, Caswell sells a kit just for using a drill, so they must think it works...

If you're going to do very many more parts, _then_ it might be worth it to get better equipment.