| Author |
Message |
Kevin Hatch
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 10:08 am: | |
I was thinking I'd like to polish out the aluminum skirting on my GM 4905 a little, at least just to make all the panels match a little better. Is that do-able? What process should I take in doing so?
Thanks |
g
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 11:42 am: | |
I polished the side of a GM a few months ago. I found out the hard way the the oxidation can be difficult to remove and the softness of the aluminum made it difficult to polish to a mirror finish. In addition, I am not sure the bus looked much better then the original work. You might want to think about an aluminum cleaner and let it go at that.
I now have an MCI 9 and the stainless is a whole different animal. Easier to polish and looks great after hours of work. If I had to do it again, I would not polish aluminum again. Clean and let go. |
Brian Brown (Blue_velvet)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 12:13 pm: | |
Anodized alum. won't ever look like a mirror-finish... and shouldn't. Anod. alum. looks more like an airplane than a chromed hot-rod. And the matte finish is much easier to keep clean than polished SS.
Now, you shouldn't use any harsh cleaners on it, because if you remove the anodizing, it'll oxidize and dull (or worse) in no time.
Some mild detergent and a little elbow grease or high-pressure water (like from the big bay carwashes) should be all that's required to keep anodizized alum. looking great. My alum is going on 45 years-old now and looks much better than the ten year-old paint above the beltline.
HTH,
Brian Brown
PD4106-1175
Longmont, CO USA |
Richard Bowyer (Drivingmisslazy)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 12:52 pm: | |
A very light coat of hydraulic brake fluid makes it shine great and seems to stay clean without picking up a lot of dust. Takes about 5 or ten minutes and a re-coat every month or two keeps it looking great.
Definitely do not, under any circumstances, polish off the anodize coating on your aluminum.
Richard |
Kevin Hatch
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 5:24 pm: | |
I did not know it was anodized. Learn something new every day, more like a lot of somethings every day eince I got this bus! =) Some of the bay doors look a different color than others. Do you think that'll clean off and with what type of cleaner? You can kind of see what I mean in this photo. Also notice where someone used some sort of sanding disc to remove the old bus line numbers on the front corners. Is there anything I can do about that?
[IMG]http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a337/nevaehkevin/205259-10-1.jpg[/IMG]
Thanks for your help gentlemen! As usual, you've saved me some heartache and or headache!!
Kevin |
Brian Brown (Blue_velvet)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Wednesday, March 01, 2006 - 6:02 pm: | |
The bay doors had probably been replaced at some point and are slightly different colors and/or in different stages of oxidation. My '06 has a couple of '07 bay doors and the rib patterns are even different. Haulers had to do this routinely when one got bashed-in.
I would put some car wax on any exposed alum. you find (like where they sanded the numbers off). Once the alum. starts pitting out, it'll just keep going... sorta like rust. And once the anodization's gone, you'll have to keep protecting those exposed areas.
Nice looking coach! I seem to remember it for sale in OK awhile back, if it's the same one. An ex-band bus, IIRC. The sides under the windows look fairly "oil-canned", but otherwise a great-looking '05. As for me, I much prefer the stock "hump" cap and clerestory window, but somebody wanted it to look like an Eagle. *grin*
I wouldn't worry too much about the color of the alum., as long as the layer of anodization is in place.
-bb |
Sojourner (Jjimage)
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Thursday, March 02, 2006 - 8:55 am: | |
Here "What is anodized?"...link;
http://www.construction-guide.com/anodizing.htm?keyword=anodize&engine=google&contextual=n o
Old (not sure about the new) brake fluid will soften old type paint & foreign substances off any metal & most plastic surface.
It water soluble...can be rinse off.
Wear vinyl glove.
FWIW
Sojourn for Christ, Jerry |
motorcoach1
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Saturday, March 04, 2006 - 5:39 pm: | |
WOW just think you could anodize your whole coach what ever color you wanted it. thanks sojorn |