02GF74
|
 posted on 10/3/09 at 09:00 AM |
|
|
buffing up alloy casting - how to
alloy casting in question in crossflow timing cover.
it has a coat of dark grey tranish/oxide that can be sanded off using 400 wet'n'dry but it is quite time consuming.
is there a hosehold chemical that will strip the layer off?
what about grit blasting?
|
|
|
|
|
Mr Whippy
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 09:32 AM |
|
|
Me I'd use course wire wool etc and some wd40 to get most of the crap off, then autosol and a soft brass rotary brush, followed by autosol and a
rotary cloth buff on the drill. Once shiny, wash it very well with white sprit, then several coats of lacquer
|
|
|
wilkingj
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 09:58 AM |
|
|
I used buffing mpos and soap bars (Buffing compund)
from Shesto.
Linky
My polisher is based on a scrap Garder Shredder with a 1100Watt motor.
Warning!!!
Wear eyeshields, a dust mask, and leather gloves.
It really does the job.
I have used this to take brushed stainless to a mirror polish finish.
I also started with 800 then 1200 grit wet and dry.
1. The point of a journey is not to arrive.
2. Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.
Best Regards
Geoff
http://www.v8viento.co.uk
|
|
|
sucksqueezebangblow
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 10:16 AM |
|
|
Battery Acid will have it off in no time, but watch it, it is quite agressive so a minute or two at most before you rinse it and check progress. You
can get battery acid from motor factors for a couple of quid. I did my steering column bearing bracket with it and it came up beutifully in a couple
of minutes. The finish is a uniform silver/grey of course. To improve on that you would need to buff it with a polishing wheel.
[Edited on 10/3/09 by sucksqueezebangblow]
Better to Burnout than to Fade Away JET METAL ~ AndySparrow © 
|
|
|
thunderace
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 10:34 AM |
|
|
one tip alloy will not go shiny is its very cold i love polishing things.
|
|
|
02GF74
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 10:37 AM |
|
|
LOL - I am not after mirror finish.
The acid idea sounds good - wold vinegar be effective?
There is raised casting of Fford logo plus some numbers that is hard to get to with wet'n'dry. I could grind that off but .....
|
|
|
Mr Whippy
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 10:53 AM |
|
|
Vinegar will take it all off but leave a very mat surface, perfect if you want to then spray it. I use vinegar to clean carbs but you need to
occasionally scrub them with a paint brush otherwise they get very minging. With a bit of work they’ll look like new.
Thunderace, I have 8 rims that you very welcome to polish up like those 
|
|
|
UncleFista
|
| posted on 10/3/09 at 11:22 AM |
|
|
What about "Wonder Wheels" alloy wheel cleaner ?
I know it's acid based and you have to rinse it off after a few minutes, might be worth a try if you already have some ? 
Tony Bond / UncleFista
Love is like a snowmobile, speeding across the frozen tundra.
Which suddenly flips, pinning you underneath.
At night the ice-weasels come...
|
|
|
