Polishing Aluminum

[Truck Guy]

Like an idiot, I left some road film on a set of polished aluminum wheels for a couple of
months on a car I don't drive much in the winter.

There must have been more salt than I thought, because now the wheels are
marked and stained. I don't think there is any pitting, but they look bad.
They're not clear coated, just polished.

Can anyone recommend a good way to re-polish these wheels?

I figured I'll fire up the compressor and breakout the small straight die grinder,
buy a bunch of polishing wheels and get to work.

I just need to know the right compound or rouge to use with aluminum?

Any help from you guys would be great!

 

[kartracer55]

Mothers Mag polish. Best stuff out there

 

[jstbecauz]

I usually use Neverdull, it comes in a can that you can get from any local parts store. It works well on most metals for cleaning.

 

[Truck Guy]

Thanks guys. I have the Mothers polish already,
will go pick up a can of Neverdull tohight and get polishing.

 

[kartracer55]

Also check out Flitz if "neverdul'" isnt available or still doesnt work

 

[sg69]

if its really bad, but not pitted, try using 1000 grit san paper then polish. i really like the mothers billet polish, it far superior to others out there. i'd be really careful of neverdull, it'll scratch the hell out of some aluminum.

 

[Washbush]

I would like to add another vote for FLITZ. I think that between FLITZ and Semichrome a person wouldn't need anything else. Also, FLITZ has a polishing ball that mounts in the end of any drill. Go over the wheel once by hand and then hit it with the spinning polishing ball. It works miracles. And remember, a black ball is a good ball.

 

[automotive stud]

I've had a hard time finding semichrome polish, but I found Blue Magic at the local napa real cheap, and it's almost the same stuff.

 

[Rothaus]

I also like Mothers Mag polish. I did the porsche wheels, i put on my wifes 78 VW Cabrio. If it's working with the polish, try the fine sand paper and scotchbrite, then polish. See below.

Cheers
Engelbert

http://carmagic.us
http://muelhaupt.us

 

[Truck Guy]

Looks like I'll be doing a few hours of polishing this weekend.

Thanks everyone for the tips and advise

I'll post some before and after pics soon.

 

[Cebby]

Another vote for Mothers Billet Polish

 

[comp]

so how did they come out ???

 

[Truck Guy]

so how did they come out ???

Haven't had the time to do it yet.

But I did go out and buy some Mothers Billet Polish, mini die grinder and polishing wheels

Going to try to get it done this weekend.

 

[camarojoe]

I've found that the "best" polish for the job is very dependent on how bad the part you are cleaning is to start with. For example, if you already have a nice shiny part, the Mother's "Billet" polish will make it shinier... shinier than the regular mag wheel and aluminum polish... BUT... if you have a not-so-nice part, the standard mag wheel polish will shine it up better than the "Billet" polish will, because it has more abrasives and cleaners in it. Its basically a process of steps... using the harshest stuff first, such as steel wool or fine sandpaper, then working down to the "best" polish, or should i say, the least abrasive polish, to achieve the best end result.

With that said, i had a set of aluminum aftermarket wheels on my truck that sat outside not driven all winter, and the wheels were a mess... fine pits, and discoloration,etc. back when they were clean, the Mothers "billet" polish worked to make them shine the best, but it did very little to improve the look of them when they were really crappy looking. I took some 00 steel wool to each wheel, til all the marks and pits were gone, then used the standard Mothers mag polish on them, THEN finished off with the Billet polish, and then (and only then) did the billet polish really make a difference.

Also... i recently sampled some of the Meguiar's alumunium polish in their "NXT" synthetic line and found it to be some super good stuff... its in a blue can with a neon green lid if i'm not mistaken... I'm planning to pick some up myself in the near future. Based onthe sample i had, i think its even better than the Mother's billet polish, and is cheaper too.