help for a new polishing addict

[89notchback]

well Im a addict now but am having problems with getting the mirror look.....
here are some pics
this turned out good but still has some fine scratches I cant get out

see its kinda hazzy

[89notchback]

you can see some scratches here

some stuff I have sanded and re sanded so much the metal is thin now.... Im using a hand drill and 4 and 6' buffs and im sanding from 80-400 and the hitting the 3 black brown and whit compounds...but I CAN NOT GET THE MIRROR SHINE.... Im wanting to polish everything on my mustang that is aluminum evan my vortech but not till I get this figured out
one is a vintalated flap and the other is spirel sewn

[baz]

if you sand and buff in a x pattern and take a close look after each different step you will see wich step is leaving the scratches

[mpierich]

Originally Posted by 89notchback

you can see some scratches here...
some stuff I have sanded and re sanded so much the metal is thin now.... Im using a hand drill and 4 and 6' buffs and im sanding from 80-400 and the hitting the 3 black brown and whit compounds...but I CAN NOT GET THE MIRROR SHINE.... Im wanting to polish everything on my mustang that is aluminum evan my vortech but not till I get this figured out
one is a vintalated flap and the other is spirel sewn

Baz is right on.

It's probably simply a matter of not spending enough time on each step. Sanding and polishing is easy...knowing when to stop is not. You really need to use bright lighting at different angles to _see_ if you're getting the previous scratches out. Looking and seeing are two different things.

Are you using different wheels for the different compounds? Raking the wheels during polishing? Cleaning the metal between steps?

One possible problem is the 80 grit. When I started out I used 80 for the initial smoothing because it was fast. I soon discovered that it took far longer to get out the 80-grit scratches than the time it saved me. Now I never go lower than 120 to start - sometimes 220 if possible.

Also try skipping the tripoli. Sometimes it seems to me to be unhelpful, although some people swear by it.

[KENLUDE97]

I also do not start sanding with paper that rough. I generally start with 120 also. And like its been said sand 90° to the previous step, so "show" your scratches.

I have not had that good of luck with vintalated flaps. I use spirial wheels for everything.

Yup a wheel for each step, and clean the wheel every once and a wile.

I don't use tripoli, i go from Emory to White.

Good luck, i hope that you can get the results that you desire.

[jrow]

89notchback,

First off if your aluminum is smooth, it other words if you can't catch a fingernail on a scratch then start your polishing with your ventilated buff with Emory. No need to sand. If you have scratches start with the finest sandpaper that will take the scratches out! After you have got the shine that you want take some Mothers mag wheel polish and hand polish the piece. See if that won't take the fine scratches out!
The longer you sand a piece of aluminum the quicker that you will get through the top layer and you may expose imperfections that will require additional work and may not come out.

John

[89notchback]

I havnt been cleaning the surface after each step.... and I have beed using diff. buffs for eash compound..... I need to get a rake, been cleaning it with a screwdriver...... It makes since to start with 120 or 180 but some of those ford parts are sand cast and have a pitted surface to start...... Im going to spring for a bench buffer but for now Im using a drill
Thanks for the help Ill have a go at it again using the tips

[mpierich]

Originally Posted by 89notchback

well Im a addict now but am having problems with getting the mirror look.....

By the way...looking at the photos I'd say you do have a problem, but remember you will always have some swirls and micro-scratches in aluminum. I know some people talk about their "perfect" polishing jobs, but I guarantee you that if I take it out their piece out into the bright sunlight I will see scratches. In my opinion it's because of the relative softness of the material. Chrome plating can be polished to a "mirror" finish only because it's much harder.

[KENLUDE97]

I have used a saw blade in the past, and it worked pretty good, but nothing like the rake that caswell sells! And my wheels seam to have more color on them (black).

Also, i have used a small bench grinder for many jobs, granted it adds a lot of time to the project but the machine was free, and easy to find supplies for. I recently added a 3/4hp Craftsman buffing machine, and it runns circles around the old small grinder. But it was over $100 for the machine that will only be used for buffing. So its a little hard to justify.

Here are some of my results, these were ALL sand cast parts. So lots of sanding had to happen.

Finished it yesterday, pretty soft aluminum.


Harder aluminum

[mpierich]

Very nice!