Polished Aluminium Frame
gt-arrowhead
Posts: 2,507
Slowly but surely getting my Arrowhead back together, collecting the wheelset this weekend so im looking to get cracking with the frame.
Basically, im a lazy bastad and i never bothered to sand the bike down to bare metal each time ive sprayed it. Ive just throughly sanded the paint on the outside before applying my primer, so what ive got on the frame is this
Factory paint + primer
black + primer
blue + primer
Thats quite thick, so ive gotta strip all that off...and thats gonna take forever.
Ive decided i dont want paint anymore, my plan is to strip it down to bare aluminium and and polish it up to look like a "chrome" sort of effect, then i am thinking to give it a coat of primer to stop it from oxidizing and becoming faded.
I dont know too much about doing this, so what exactly do i need to achieve this polished mirrory sort of effect. I know it can be done because ive seen it on car wheels and stuff, and other bike parts like stems etc.
Apparently i need some sort of liquid and alot of elbow grease to polish it up to look how i want. So ive been told. Does anyone have any ideas or know how to do this? Ill be looking around the net in the mean time but it doesnt hurt to ask on here either, because last time i saw a thread about paint it was very informative as people on here seem to know alot about paint and finishes etc -cough- Kowalski -cough-
Basically, im a lazy bastad and i never bothered to sand the bike down to bare metal each time ive sprayed it. Ive just throughly sanded the paint on the outside before applying my primer, so what ive got on the frame is this
Factory paint + primer
black + primer
blue + primer
Thats quite thick, so ive gotta strip all that off...and thats gonna take forever.
Ive decided i dont want paint anymore, my plan is to strip it down to bare aluminium and and polish it up to look like a "chrome" sort of effect, then i am thinking to give it a coat of primer to stop it from oxidizing and becoming faded.
I dont know too much about doing this, so what exactly do i need to achieve this polished mirrory sort of effect. I know it can be done because ive seen it on car wheels and stuff, and other bike parts like stems etc.
Apparently i need some sort of liquid and alot of elbow grease to polish it up to look how i want. So ive been told. Does anyone have any ideas or know how to do this? Ill be looking around the net in the mean time but it doesnt hurt to ask on here either, because last time i saw a thread about paint it was very informative as people on here seem to know alot about paint and finishes etc -cough- Kowalski -cough-
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Comments
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There's nothing difficult about metal polishing. Stainless steel is easier than ally, but it's not brain surgery - there's a knack to it, but you soon pick it up with practice. You want a polishing kit and an electric drill (or bench grinder, or air grinder and compressor). Don't use an expensive drill - polishing kills them, so use a cheap tesco job, and exchange it for another when the motor burns out.
For polishing ally (and assuming you're starting with a bare ally surface with no deep scratches) you want to start with a medium compound on a stitched cotton mop for the first polish. Don't load too much polish on the mop (you'll get black streaks where it builds up) and use the edge of the mop, not the flat (hold the mop at about 45 degrees to the surface of the metal). Polish a few inches of tube at a time, passing the mop back and forth, don't press too hard, you don't need a lot of pressure (unless you're taking out deep scratches, for which you'd use a coarse cutting compound and sisal mop). For the second (finishing) polish you do the whole lot again, but with a fine compound on an open, soft calico mop - that brings it to the real mirror shine. Wipe any excess polish buildup off with vienna lime and a microfibre cloth.
For stainless steel it's the same process, but you can usually get a good shine without the fine mop (with tarnished stainless start with the coarse stapol mop and cutting compound, that'll rip through even the heaviest tarnishing. Then switch to the medium compound and stitched cotton mop for a good mirror shine.
It's a time consuming process, and you will get absolutely fu**ing filthy - I wear a balaclava, cotton mask and goggles, otherwise you're washing polish out of your hair for weeks and you'll look like you're wearing mascara. You'll need to give the shower a good wipe down after you've finished, or your mum won't be happy - you won't believe just how filthy you get after a few hours polishing. I wear earplugs too - hours of an electric drill whining away in the crook of your elbow will give you tinitus without them. Every time I do it I say never again, but I always go back on my word. It's oddly cathartic, once you get into it, and the results are very satisfying.
Here's a few things I've polished (some of the Triumph parts, like the footrest assemblies, clock surround and rear hub centre, started with an anodised finish, and were an absolute bastard - I wouldn't do that again without having them chemically stripped first):
To show just what a difference you can make with a few hours work (eight hours on these exhaust headers), here's before and after:
No doubt somebody will be along shortly to say that all you need's a brillo pad, a bit of spit and some autosol, but I'd be surprised if there's anyone on here who's done as much polishing over the years as I have, lol.
Be aware though, that it will (as you've said) oxidise, so you'll need to repolish regularly to keep a mirror shine (but it doesn't take as long as the original polish to maintain it. Don't lacquer it - it'll yellow and flake over time (and on an off road bike will soon ger chipped and start flaking around the chips), and you'll need to strip it all off and start again.0 -
Wow, i knew you would be the person to give me a fantastic reply,
Thanks alot mate, really informative, and those parts look the balls.
Ive got a few questions now based on what youve said.
1. Will i really end up burning out a drill? I dont have a compressor at my home unfortunately. I have a couple of old electric drills that my dad wouldnt mind me using. Im sure they would do the trick? My dad would go absolutely ape shyte if i killed one of his drills.
2. It looks like ill need to buy loads of products based on what youve said....
How much would this be setting me back, and can i just get these products from like say halfords or something?
3. What would you recommend using to strip the frame down? I dont wanna use too much thinner because again, my dad would go ape shyte. I guess i could sit there sanding it down with fine finishing paper (P-###) i dont remember the name of it, ill have a look tomorrow but that will take forever. I should have a coarser sand paper somewhere in the shed but im not too sure.0 -
GT-Arrowhead wrote:Wow, i knew you would be the person to give me a fantastic reply, Thanks alot mate, really informative, and those parts look the balls.
Ive got a few questions now based on what youve said.
1. Will i really end up burning out a drill? I dont have a compressor at my home unfortunately. I have a couple of old electric drills that my dad wouldnt mind me using. Im sure they would do the trick? My dad would go absolutely ape shyte if i killed one of his drills.
2. It looks like ill need to buy loads of products based on what youve said.... How much would this be setting me back, and can i just get these products from like say halfords or something?
3. What would you recommend using to strip the frame down? I dont wanna use too much thinner because again, my dad would go ape shyte. I guess i could sit there sanding it down with fine finishing paper (P-###) i dont remember the name of it, ill have a look tomorrow but that will take forever. I should have a coarser sand paper somewhere in the shed but im not too sure.
To answer those:
1 - It's entirely possible, drills aren't meant to be used constantly for hour after hour, and it burns the motor out eventually - you're condensing a lifetime's use into a day. I used to use a really good quality Bosch drill that my dad gave me years ago (he never bought cheap stuff), and that lasted years of use for drilling and quite a few lengthy polishing sessions (with hindsight I wish I'd kept it just for drilling and used a cheap one for polishing). When building bitch ex's bike (the silver and candy red Bandit) I killed a brand new Tesco drill on just that one bike (but there's 8 hours polishing on those header pipes alone). I just dusted the polish residue off it, took it back and exchanged it for another (or refund, can't remember which) - buy 'em dirt cheap and treat 'em as disposable, rather than wrecking an £80 tool.
2 - The Polishing Shop (in my link) sells everything you'll ever need, either separately or as kits, as cheap (or cheaper) as anywhere else. I bought a 20 piece kit for £40 about 15 years ago. I still have the spindles, the coarse stapol mops and half of each of the compound blocks left, and the other mops I've just replaced over time as they've worn out. To do ally with simple shapes (so you don't need small bobs for nooks and crannies etc) all you really need is a stitched cotton mop, a soft open calico mop, a block of medium and fine compounds and a spindle (to mount the mops on the drill). The budget kit here has all you need for £9.18 plus vat:
http://www.thepolishingshop.co.uk/acata ... _Kits.html
3 - Thinners is no good (unless your paint finish is super soft). Your choices are paint stripper (Nitromors - but it's nowhere near as effective or nasty as it used to be since the tree huggers stopped 'em using the main active ingredient) or attacking it with a wire brush on your electric drill, or maybe a hot air gun, if it's a soft paint. Be aware that if you use the wire brush & drill option and you get careless then things like this can happen (which stings a bit, then goes septic and requires a course of antibiotics, lol:
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LOL nice way to rip off Tescos By the way, i worded that badly beforehand. By electric i meant corded drills, ones that plug into the mains.
Ill ask mama to get me that, doubt she will cause ive already asked for £50 worth of bike parts Ill have a look in halfords none the less, if its only like 5-6 quid more then ill just get that instead.
Thinners did a hell of a job for my paint beforehand, but it was only a day old when i tried it so it was very very soft. Ill have a go and ill post back here tomorrow. That looks really nasty. I have those wire attachments for the drill, ill have a go tomorrow.0 -
GT-Arrowhead wrote:LOL nice way to rip off Tescos By the way, i worded that badly beforehand. By electric i meant corded drills, ones that plug into the mains.
Yeah, it needs to be a mains drill. Cordless don't spin fast enough and the battery will be flat in no time. It wasn't ripping them off - it didn't say anywhere in the warranty that polishing was excluded, lol...That looks really nasty. I have those wire attachments for the drill, ill have a go tomorrow.
Yeah, it wasn't great, lol. It was worse than it looks in the pic. The wire brush hit my watch starp first (at about 8000 rpm), then dragged right across my hand to the web between finger and thumb, removing a fair bit of skin. I was using it to clean up a load of rusty fasteners prior to zinc plating, so rust and dirt was in the wound and despite disinfecting it and giving it a good clean out it got infected and wouldn't start healing, so I had to get a coarse of antibiotics. Still got a small scar on my wrist. Stupidest thing was that I went inside, cleaned it up, bandaged it then went back outside to carry on working and within a few seconds did it again (with hindsight I think I was slightly in shock and should've called it a day, or done a different task, lol). Luckily the bandage took the brunt of it, snaring the wire brush and snapping the shaft, lol:
After that I did call it a night and went inside, I updated the bike build thread on the Triumph forum, describing what I'd done and posting those pics, and gave 'em all a good laugh - a few keyboards got coffee spat out on 'em, lol... 0 -
Got a polishing kit via Halfords . Did a similar job on step sons motorbike . I actually quite enjoyed it but then I am quite anal about keeping my equipment shiny ( Kowalski you should see my bell end ) 0
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Er, I'd rather not, thanks. Fredblob might be up for it though, if you ask him... 0
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Even i would be laughing at myself if i did it again in a space of a few seconds. 8000 rpm? Is your drill a V8? unless that is normal for a drill, which i doubt.
Coulddobetter, how much did the kit cost you?
And yes, what Kowalski said!0 -
Well ive had a look on the halfords website. Looks like ill have to use my saved up lunch money to get this one
Ive seen this, it looks half decent for £15.
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... 65594#tab3
Would this be good to have beforehand?
http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stor ... 65557#tab10 -
I had to laugh, despite the pain, but it was less funny when it went green, lol.GT-Arrowhead wrote:Well ive had a look on the halfords website. Looks like ill have to use my saved up lunch money to get this one
Ive seen this, it looks half decent for £15.
That's pants. You've only got two compounds and two of the same soft mop (which is only any good for finishing polish). Just buy the Polishing Shop kit - it's got everything you need for less money.
For stripping it, I'd just take it to your nearest powdercoater and ask them to dip it in their stripper tank (full of seriously nasty chemicals you can't buy retail, that'll strip your paint off as easy as your mum strips on her webcam
). It'll save you an awful lot of work. 0 -
Arrowhead I will try and rake it out , split with ex and stuff in storeage . If I can find it you can have it for the price of a pint. Or nothing if you want .got 3 or 4 heads and different polishing compounds .can't remember what it cost . ( live in Walton on Thames ) would be happy to drop it off if you want . Send me a pm .0
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My kit cost £40 many years ago, but I've had my money's worth from it.0
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Kowalski675 wrote:
That's pants. You've only got two compounds and two of the same soft mop (which is only any good for finishing polish). Just buy the Polishing Shop kit - it's got everything you need for less money.
For stripping it, I'd just take it to your nearest powdercoater and ask them to dip it in their stripper tank (full of seriously nasty chemicals you can't buy retail, that'll strip your paint off as easy as your mum strips on her webcam ). It'll save you an awful lot of work.
Theres fack all like that around my area unfortunately. There is a car body shop nearby and thats all. I doubt they have a vat for dipping stuff in. Ive already started anyway, check my sig link on the Arrowhead to see what ive done so far if you want. I got myself one of those fast spinning hobby drills. LOL at the mum joke, was pretty good. But still, fack you! 0 -
GT-Arrowhead wrote:Kowalski675 wrote:
That's pants. You've only got two compounds and two of the same soft mop (which is only any good for finishing polish). Just buy the Polishing Shop kit - it's got everything you need for less money.
For stripping it, I'd just take it to your nearest powdercoater and ask them to dip it in their stripper tank (full of seriously nasty chemicals you can't buy retail, that'll strip your paint off as easy as your mum strips on her webcam ). It'll save you an awful lot of work.
Theres fack all like that around my area unfortunately. There is a car body shop nearby and thats all. I doubt they have a vat for dipping stuff in. Ive already started anyway, check my sig link on the Arrowhead to see what ive done so far if you want. I got myself one of those fast spinning hobby drills. LOL at the mum joke, was pretty good. But still, fack you!
There must be plenty of powdercoaters in London. Doesn't matter if it's an industrial place that you wouldn't trust to coat your frame, you only want it dunking in their vat of evil chemicals. It's seriously nasty stuff that will strip powdercoat, it'd have your rattle can paint down to bare metal in no time, like it was kids poster paint. Even quicker than your mum strips for the milkman, lol... 0 -
Hahaha, theres no milkman around my area...probably all been stabbed! I would assume that shes a bit old for that anyhow.
There might be, but i like doing stuff myself. Experience!
Theres one thing im a bit worried about. Its not all that clear in this picture, but there is sanding marks allover the frame running in all directions. Will this cause a problem for me when i polish? I have fine sand paper that i intend to sand the whole frame with by hand once ive got all the paint off. Will i be okay? :S
http://s1322.photobucket.com/user/Se7en ... sort=3&o=10 -
Christ, look at the thickness of paint build up on that - it must weigh about as much as the frame, lol.
Sanding scratches will polish out, just means the job will take longer. Of course, if you'd had it chemically stripped, there's be no sanding scratches... Get the finish as smooth as you can by wet sanding with your wet and dry paper first, starting with a medium grade then working down to 1200 or so.
Oh, and your mum may be no spring chicken, but she still loves it up her... 0 -
Yep, thats a result of me being a lazy cnut when going for a respray, and now i am paying the price! God knows how much it weighs. But all i know is i am turning it from the worlds heavist Arrowhead into the worlds lightest.
Thats good news, ill still give it a once over with fine sand paper just to make it a bit better and easier in the polishing process.
You fukka. Leave mama alone! 0 -
That's not what she said. Well, not the second part, anyway... 0
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Well ive had a look again. I think i am settling with this paint stripper. I honestly cannot be farked with all of this sanding stuff. Its taking forever. I havent bothered to give it another sanding session.
My uncle might be able to lend me his polishing kit as hes got one. He used it on his car wheels and they look incredible, so it should be something really good.
Do you approve of this? lol. http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Paintin ... 889/p154030 -
Kowalski675 wrote:There's nothing difficult about metal polishing. Stainless steel is easier than ally, but it's not brain surgery - there's a knack to it, but you soon pick it up with practice. You want a polishing kit and an electric drill (or bench grinder, or air grinder and compressor). Don't use an expensive drill - polishing kills them, so use a cheap tesco job, and exchange it for another when the motor burns out.
For polishing ally (and assuming you're starting with a bare ally surface with no deep scratches) you want to start with a medium compound on a stitched cotton mop for the first polish. Don't load too much polish on the mop (you'll get black streaks where it builds up) and use the edge of the mop, not the flat (hold the mop at about 45 degrees to the surface of the metal). Polish a few inches of tube at a time, passing the mop back and forth, don't press too hard, you don't need a lot of pressure (unless you're taking out deep scratches, for which you'd use a coarse cutting compound and sisal mop). For the second (finishing) polish you do the whole lot again, but with a fine compound on an open, soft calico mop - that brings it to the real mirror shine. Wipe any excess polish buildup off with vienna lime and a microfibre cloth.
For stainless steel it's the same process, but you can usually get a good shine without the fine mop (with tarnished stainless start with the coarse stapol mop and cutting compound, that'll rip through even the heaviest tarnishing. Then switch to the medium compound and stitched cotton mop for a good mirror shine.
It's a time consuming process, and you will get absolutely fu**ing filthy - I wear a balaclava, cotton mask and goggles, otherwise you're washing polish out of your hair for weeks and you'll look like you're wearing mascara. You'll need to give the shower a good wipe down after you've finished, or your mum won't be happy - you won't believe just how filthy you get after a few hours polishing. I wear earplugs too - hours of an electric drill whining away in the crook of your elbow will give you tinitus without them. Every time I do it I say never again, but I always go back on my word. It's oddly cathartic, once you get into it, and the results are very satisfying.
Here's a few things I've polished (some of the Triumph parts, like the footrest assemblies, clock surround and rear hub centre, started with an anodised finish, and were an absolute bastard - I wouldn't do that again without having them chemically stripped first):
To show just what a difference you can make with a few hours work (eight hours on these exhaust headers), here's before and after:
No doubt somebody will be along shortly to say that all you need's a brillo pad, a bit of spit and some autosol, but I'd be surprised if there's anyone on here who's done as much polishing over the years as I have, lol.
Be aware though, that it will (as you've said) oxidise, so you'll need to repolish regularly to keep a mirror shine (but it doesn't take as long as the original polish to maintain it. Don't lacquer it - it'll yellow and flake over time (and on an off road bike will soon ger chipped and start flaking around the chips), and you'll need to strip it all off and start again.
What a load of bo11cks..he just made all that up and you fell for it! "Why have that extra tooth if you're not using it?" - Brian Lopes
Votec V.SX Enduro 'Alpine Thug' 2012/2013 build
Trek Session 80 -
Eh?0
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Polishing takes time and patience, this is a days work using metal polish wire wool and polishing cloths. No power tools at all just elbow grease. Process given its pretty much spot on though.
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Wow, thats a nice amp! (well i think its an amp)
What was the wire wool for? Was it a specialized sort of cloth?0 -
Looks like a Genesis.0
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Step83 wrote:Process given its pretty much spot on though.
I've had enough practice making metal shine over the last 20 years to know what I'm on about, lol.0 -
GT-Arrowhead wrote:Wow, thats a nice amp! (well i think its an amp)
What was the wire wool for? Was it a specialized sort of cloth?Kowalski675 wrote:Looks like a Genesis.
It is indeed a Genesis one of three i have two series 3 one series 2Kowalski675 wrote:Step83 wrote:Process given its pretty much spot on though.
I've had enough practice making metal shine over the last 20 years to know what I'm on about, lol.
Wasnt doubting it, only thing I would say is with the frame marked fine wire wool may help remove out the marks or at least start to until he needs to start using a medium compound on a cloth head0 -
Step83 wrote:GT-Arrowhead wrote:Wow, thats a nice amp! (well i think its an amp)
What was the wire wool for? Was it a specialized sort of cloth?Kowalski675 wrote:Looks like a Genesis.
It is indeed a Genesis one of three i have two series 3 one series 2
Very nice amps.0 -
I went in a shop called Polish Cottage, they didn't have any polish at all, not even pledge.
Don't bother going there for your Autosol (not to be confused with Anusol).Transition Patrol - viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=130702350 -
RockmonkeySC wrote:I went in a shop called Polish Cottage, they didn't have any polish at all, not even pledge.
Don't bother going there for your Autosol (not to be confused with Anusol).
LOL!!! Im assuming they had plenty of "Poles" in there.0 -
