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Polishing aluminium

Started by V-SLR5000-P , Sep 19 2007 01:20 PM

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247 replies to this topic

#226 _judgelj_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 12:25 PM

well thats where i was going but 300 its a bit excessive for me. the one i want is $80, 200W ryobi. you probably got the biggest one which is 300 and something watts and 200mm discs. 200w spins at 2850 RPM with no load which is just under the 3000 limit for the josco discs. i wish i could get bigger but no just yet. the ozito one is rubbish and the guy told me to stay away. it has a massive 2" sharpening disc on a right angle and the thing struggles to stand up right, where as the ryobi are all very well balanced and heavy. ill buy a spindle too but they are surprisingly dear.

Cheers

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#227 _stretchlc_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 12:40 PM

After you do the final polish Jacob it pays to get some warm soapy water and give the polished item a good wash with a callico cloth or similar, dry it off and then hand polish it with a soft dry cloth....watch it pop then!!

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#228 _judgelj_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 12:48 PM

I thought the water stain? Well the wipers are good but there is definitely room for improvement. Thats why i want the grinder as i think the RPM on the drill is too little and takes too long. I will give them another go, wash like you said and then polish with the mirror finish? Do you use mirror or purple polish and is a flannelette rag ok?

Edited by judgelj, 10 July 2012 - 12:48 PM.

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#229 _stretchlc_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 01:09 PM

Like I said...warm soapy water....scrub the item well...You'll see alot of extra Black crud come off onto the wet rag and then dry off and polish with a flanelette rag and either purple or brite-shine wadding........really comes alive after the wash and light hand polish!!

And go invest in a Dremel or similar rotary tool..............theyre awesome for all the little fiddly corners and such items. The attatchments and Arbors cost a small fortune but well worth the cash.....Their little Flapwheels are amazing when doing a heap of polishing!

Edited by stretchlc, 10 July 2012 - 01:11 PM.

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#230 _Viper_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 02:51 PM

It may not have been $300 it was awhile ago now, Might have been $300 all up including the wheels and spindles

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#231 _judgelj_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 05:59 PM

yeah spindle is 20 bucks, buff is like 25, it all adds up. Thanks stretch i will give it a go. i have a dremel but not sure what i wold use it for as everything i am polishing is fairly flat and straight. which is the buff wheel and spindle for the dremel? is it the little rod with a screw on the end and the felt wheel?

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#232 _stretchlc_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 07:20 PM

Yes mate thats right......really good for tight corners and edges. The whole trick to polishing is getting the alloy as smooth as possible with wet and dry paper working up to a minimum of 1500 grit, 2000 even better....the longer you spend on the sanding and smoothing side of things the better the final polish comes out. Like I said in a previous post.....Its total pain, but the end results are awesome!!................ You should have a spindle with a screw type end on it that you can screw on a tapered felt fixture in the kit (kinda looks like a bullet head shape) which is frustrating to use when any form of pressure is applied to it, but with patience it polishes those tight little corners really nicely!

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#233 _Viper_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 08:43 PM

Sanding with up to 2000grit? for a flat surface 400grit on a orbital and then white rouge on loose leaf wheel gives great results. If you use a hard backing pad for the orbital its nice and flat too with no wobbles... I guess you could pick it if you had a really good look but I still wouldn't block sand with anything over 800grit wet?

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#234 _judgelj_

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Posted 10 July 2012 - 09:25 PM

i'm not quite sure how sanding with finer grades would do any harm, but i guess its personal preference. as for the dremel im thinking of the bit that looks like its had a small button head self tapping screw welded on, not like the spindle for the grinder? As for the grinder itself i tried the one i purchased today, not bad but i can tell it doesnt spin like my grandfathers old one which is only a 1/4 hp but is rated to 3000 and something rpm, 70's machinery for ya!

I tried to attach the spindle i got for it which was a RH 1/2 josco that was supposed to fit a 6" grinder, or so the guy told me. the grinder itself has a 150mm disc, what spindle should i be looking at? also is the 250w grinder i purchased fast enough to be effective polishing these metals?

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#235 _Viper_

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Posted 11 July 2012 - 09:47 AM

Yea there is no harm in sanding with finer grits, except the unneccesary elbow grease.

The spindle didnt fit your grinder? I guess you will have to measure the thread on the grinder and get a spindle to suit... When I get home this weekend ill check what mine is.

Yea it should be fast enough, you just might not be able to apply as much pressure as you could with a higher power machine or it may bog down. More pressure = heat and more heat seems to make the process go alot faster.

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#236 _judgelj_

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Posted 11 July 2012 - 12:06 PM

well this grinder is not a chump, but could definitely be faster. if anyone has one similar i would be keen to know how they went.

also what about white vs green rouge? what is the best for alloy, and which gives the better finish. my thoughts were white but the manufacturer recommends green for alloy?

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#237 _judgelj_

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Posted 09 September 2012 - 08:42 PM

Ok so i have had some good results following the advice in this thread. My only question is how bad does the surface need to be to require a sisal wheel and grey compound? im polishing my water jet resovoir and it has come up really nice, only problem is it had horozontal lines in it and i can't get them out with the white compound and calico buff. These are brush marks from the 'brushed alloy' finish. How do i get these out? Sisal?

Also my buff is starting to get scaly, do i need to clean it? I think it is leaving scratches!!

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#238 _judgelj_

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Posted 17 September 2012 - 07:03 PM

Also noticing im getting a lot of super fine scratches when i use the mirror finish polish afterwards to hand polish, is this normal?

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#239 _stretchlc_

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Posted 24 February 2013 - 06:04 PM

Thought I'd wake this thread up with a little polishing I did today on my turbo's Compressor Housing!!.................No fancy tools except a $30 Ozito rotary tool and a bit of hand sanding.

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#240 _judgelj_

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Posted 24 February 2013 - 07:34 PM

what rotary tool bits did you use?

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#241 _judgelj_

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Posted 24 February 2013 - 08:14 PM

Scratch that, it was a flap wheel, i know. what i meant to ask is how did you get into the recessed part of the housing? Sandpaper?

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#242 _stretchlc_

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Posted 25 February 2013 - 12:07 PM

A very small Carbide Tip, a small round rubber bit that takes small round sandpaper rolls(they come with an ozito rotary tool in some cases) and some rolled up sandpaper with a heap of elbow grease.

Edited by stretchlc, 25 February 2013 - 12:07 PM.