Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's.

Topic: Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's. (Read 874 times) previous topic - next topic

Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's.

January 15, 2006, 10:18:56 PM

I have some aluminum tubing that I'm gonna use for a cold air intake and I'm polishing it up. I picked up a buffing wheel and some polishing compound from lowe's the other day, I'm only on the first compound (for cleaning up the surface) but it seems to be coming along pretty well.

What I wanna know is- is it ok to use different compounds on the same buffing wheel?

Also what's the best thing to use to clean the compound residue off the surface?

Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's.

Reply #1 – January 15, 2006, 11:04:55 PM

One compound per wheel is highly recommended. Cross-contaminating the compounds will lead to ugly results and a clogged wheel, and probably a lot of swearing on your part.

To get the residue off, any fine polishing cloth or a cloth baby diaper is perfect. Personally I use the diaper method (no, a baby never used it). It's thin enough to push into small crevices easily.

Would highly recommend that you buy a few more wheels though. The ones that have the stitched reinforcements on the side, those are really durable. Nothing worse than the fuzzy stuff flying everywhere from the wheel disintegrating. Anyway, what I usually do is have one wheel for the rough cut, one for the medium, and two for the finishing compound that get alternated. A trick that my dad taught me is to clean off the wheel with a screwdriver; as it's spinning, stick the screwdriver blade up against it and it will remove most of the clogs and build-ups. Just have to be careful not to ruin the wheel that way...or the screwdriver.

Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's.

Reply #2 – January 15, 2006, 11:29:15 PM

Ahh ok...

I have one of the wheels with the stitched reinforcement although it still seems to always have little threads flying off it while I'm working.

I can tell I'm not gonna get these pipes "perfect" because they were put through a mandrel bending machine that tore the hell out of them...:disappoin I wet-sanded them with 800 grit sandpaper before I started with the polishing and that helped a little. I think I'll just try to get them shiny, but not perfect.

Anyway about the cloth- I tried to get the residue off with a paper towel and it wasn't really budging. I put a little mineral spirits on the towel and it came right off. Is that ok?

Guys that do polishing...got a couple q's.

Reply #3 – January 16, 2006, 12:27:25 AM

I use a chisel to clean the wheel - so a little cotton get's into the air :lol: BTW, I wear a mask so I don't have to breath that . I've always resorted to washing the residue off with soap and water - seems to work for me...