Cleaning aluminum bar

[Kev In]

I have a bunch of 1.5 x 1.5 solid 6061 aluminum bar that was marked up during shipment. I have tried WD 40 but it didn’t work. Looking for a simple solution to clean and remove most or all of the black marks so that they look better.

 

[fourbyford]

Have you tried a mild abrasive cleaner?? In the past, I've used Brasso for just about everything you can think of... I'm sure that has included aluminum...
Available pretty much anywhere and inexpensive... might be worth a try.
...D

 

[astroracer]

Depends on if they are ON the surface or IN the surface. If these are scratches rather then simply a transfer mark you will have to get a bit more aggressive with your "cleaning". What do you want for an end finish?
Mark

 

[Kev In]

I don’t need them highly polished. Don’t really want a scratched/sanded looking finish either. Just something that looks good.

I have tried 3M pads by hand, but it is time consuming as I have a lot of bars to clean.

Looking for a few different options I could try that won’t take too much time to achieve.

 

[Dumber than lumber]

have you tried one of those "rust eraser" bars? They are like a hunk of rubber with embedded abrasive. Works good on rusted iron surfaces

 

[astroracer]

Pick up a cheap polishing kit, one that will work with a drill motor. A good cleaner/polish is White Diamond, but, for what you want, a cheap one will probably do the trick. There really is no simple solution, it is going to take some work.
Mark

 

[aczr2k]

DA sander and a scotchbrite pad.

 

[JoeMcGov]

0000 steel wool.

 

[ez-duzit]

Steel wool could leave residue which will rust and stain. Try rubbing compound with a buffer.

 

[matt_i]

Green scotchbrite.

I machined some parts for a guy who built panel saws. The part was pretty simple, just hogged out of 3/4" solid flat bar. However being an appearance part it had to be cleaned up. I have spent a lot of time with a green scotchbrite pad polishing the durn things. Finally he switched designs which might have benefitted us both

 

[Bretny]

Use isopropyl alcohol. It should take off the corrosion. Thats what the black stuff looks like anyway.

 

[PWC Repair]

Yep, scotchbrite in a bucket of soapy water. You could try alumabrite or foaminator if you know anybody that does hvac repair, they'll have some.

 

[Kev In]

UPDATE: I tried polishing the bar with a cotton wheel and polishing compound, but it was too shinny and took too long. I then tried a scotch type pad mounted to an orbital sander and it did a great job. I also tried an Aluminum disk that has fibre embedded, but it left very heavy scratches.

I am going to proceed with using the scotch type pads on an orbital.

Thank you for your input!

 

[Jeff Ivers]

UPDATE: I tried polishing the bar with a cotton wheel and polishing compound, but it was too shinny and took too long. I then tried a scotch type pad mounted to an orbital sander and it did a great job. I also tried an Aluminum disk that has fibre embedded, but it left very heavy scratches.

I am going to proceed with using the scotch type pads on an orbital.

Thank you for your input!

3M paint/varnish remover, 6" diameter, which is a scotch brite like pad on a mandrel that can be chucked into an angle grinder will polish those bars in seconds.

 

[Kev In]

Thanks I will see if I can find those and give them a try!