I am de-anodizing some of the aluminum trim on my truck and was wondering about what to use to protect it later on. I have heard of using Mothers mag and aluminum polish and Never Dull. Another thing I have been looking at is Glisten PC from POR 15. I was wondering if any of you have used any of these methods/products and what was your results. Also with using the chrome waxes how long do they hold up for you all?

Thanks for any info.
Also here is a link to that GLISTEN PC stuff. GLISTEN PC-POR-15 Inc.

 

Polish the crap out it and clear coat it. As long as the paint stays on it, it will stay shinny.

 

There's a product that the hot rodders use called "Zoops Seal". Personally, I haven't tried it but it might be worth looking into.

 

There is a product made that you rub on with a rag a couple of times and then once a year after that. Its called Everbrite. You might check out their web site for more info.
Clear coat looks great for a while but the sun causes it to crack and deteriorate.

 

I've used automotive clearcoat for this on several applications. PPG Shopline/Omni series seems to work fine and I use a hardener with it. It won't crack any more than if it was applied over a paint basecoat. After getting the anodizing off, I lightly sand (1500 grit) the surface, then polish it up. When that's done, its really important to clean/degrease the surface completely before clearcoating. My preference is 2-3 wet coats with proper flash time in between.
I've yet to see spraycan clearcoat come anywhere close to the gloss/finish and durability of using automotive clearcoat, plus the ability to polish it afterwards like you would the paint.

 

I would probably try the Zoops Seal or EverBrite except for they say it needs tooken off and re-coated every 1-2 years? Another thing I have heard is that the clear coat doesn`t stick very well because of the aluminums smoothe surface? SteelToy you say you have used clearcoat. How long has it lasted for you and how often is your vehicle driven?

 

Honestly, if I were to trust any of those products... it'd be POR-15.

I just recently covered the entire underside of my truck box with POR-15, and I mean EVERYTHING got covered. My truck box is upside-down in the back yard sitting on some wooden blocks so I can work on it.

Anywho, while I was working on it with the POR-15, I noticed that there were some rather ugly spots on the bottom of the box. Naturally, I ground them down and continued to work on my truck... but when I stopped working with my grinder, I accidentally set my grinder down on a location that was covered with POR-15 (2 coats), and the grinder was running at nearly full speed... it ended up scratching through the POR-15 to the metal surface, but it only made marks as wide as a dime's thickness when the entire grinding blade was touching the surface.

My first thought when I saw it happen was "****!"... not my hard work! To my surprise, it barely got through both layers of the POR-15 and to the metal...

Exactly why i'd trust POR-15 products. It won't chip, crack or peel...

Chances are that the semi-gloss coating I used on my box has the same properties as the Glisten PC. I'd be willing to try it.

 

650, I used it on a 78 F-150 if I remember the year right, also a 76 GMC truck as well as the side panels on my 57.
The trucks were daily drivers, painted between 1990 and 1995, there was never an issue with the paint or clearcoat anywhere, including the trim. The 76 had a black accent within the trim that was re-painted before clearcoating. Dunno whatever happened to them after 2002.
I painted my 57 in 1987. It's not a daily driver, but I've never had any problems. This pic was last year but I think that I would have had an issue in over 20 years. Other trim is stainless and was just polished out with occasional re-polish.

The biggest issue with painting trim is cleanliness/surface prep. Even after polishing, there is enough tooth left in the surface to accept a clearcoat.
But mine is not the only way, I post to simply say what has worked for me. As mentioned, the simplest is to polish the surface and apply a top dressing once in a while. Looks like the POR works well too.