Anyone have any suggestions on the best polish that will bring aluminum side moldings back to looking like new or close. Thanks

 

The anodizing is probably faded you'd have to remove that to properly polish it

 

You do need to remove the anodizing first. This can be accomplished with EZ Off oven cleaner in a well ventilated area. Then it can be polished. Not a fun job, takes some elbow grease.

 

Thanks for help. Would aluminum brite acid cleaner or muratic acid work in place of oven cleaner or would that be to strong? Don't want to ruin what molding I have, its to hard to find.

 

Fine sandpaper works too. Then a polish and a finer polish. If you maintain the trim with a fine wax/polish it will look great as long as you keep at it. Try this on a scrap piece and see what you think. The factory anodized the trim because it was relatively permanent.
Eric

 

You might damage the trim with the acid. I have used the EZOff and it works really good.

 

I talked with a guy who used fine steel wool and top coated with lacquer.

I wonder how durable the lacquer is?

 

EZ off is good, but the active ingredient is caustic soda. Another name is sodium hydroxide. It is sold under many names: Red Devil Lye and many others. It is commonly used as drain cleaner. It will strip the anodizing off.
Don't be stupid. This stuff will burn you! This stuff will blind you. It will cause you to have a rotten day in the respiratory department. (I don't think it causes cancer in California lab rats; so it has that going for it.) Best case scenario if you splash it on you it will itch. This stuff can put you in the hospital. Use personal protective equipment such as gloves and eye protection. For sure do it outside. I have made a trough out of wood and lined it with plastic stapled around the sides for an aluminum Ford grille. Any steel parts WILL dissolve in this solution.
The good news is after you finish you can flush it down the toilet for a clean drain.
Mix it with water and put the parts in. They will start to bubble. After about 30 minutes the bubbling will stop, or slow to a simmer.
You can check for complete anodize removal by checking with a volt meter or continuity checker. Anodize will not conduct electricity, but the bare aluminum will. If you have suspect you have not completely removed the anodizing in a spot, you can check continuity. You want a dead short. If you haven't completely removed the anodizing stick it back in the tank. You may have to add more caustic soda to your water.
Afterward, you will need to polish the parts. I use rouge and a buffing wheel. I made my wheel from a washing machine motor, a saw horse and a scuba tank holding strap. Whatever motor you have lying around and however you can mount it will work. Polishing is a long process and a complete lesson in itself. I am too lazy to type this process. Once you get it polished, you need to protect it because it will tarnish. I have used nylaic. This stuff used to be available from Eastwoods. I have no idea where to get it now. It is some kind of cool clear paint that is very difficult to apply properly.
I suggest if you have an extra piece of trim you use it for experimenting. There are no magic potions for this. You may also consider micro polishing and re-anodizing. These are expensive processes, but can be done if you are determined enough. Otherwise have someone do it.

 

As others have said remove the anodizing first then polish.

I use a anodizing remover then you can polish direct without sanding etc unless a repair in area has been done.

There should also be a place in your town that will dip them for you and strip off the anodizing for you.

I plan on doing a how to very soon . . .

I have also used a glass bead cabinet years ago to take off the anodize but then its more elbow grease to polish as the finish is somewhat rough vs the anodize remover.

 

On my 65 grille, used anodize remover, then started off with medium/fine sandpaper and progressed up the ultra fine, then used steel wool to get dull sheen, similar to the original. Faced with dilemma, low grade alloy aluminum that tends to tarnish quickly requiring regular attn. but since I am basically lazy decided to apply couple coats of clear. There is a clears specifically for alum, Eastwood carries it and imagine most auto parts stores. The pic is about 5 yrs old and about time for a redo? Forewarn to anyone considering taking on the project, it is extremely time consuming and a major pain in the backside.




If one can find a platter who anodizes it can get expensive. Before a 'do it myself' grille redo I considered having it chromed but the platter suggested if decide to chrome than best to go with a metal grille, with trim not sure it would be an issue.

 

I thought about having mine powder coated in a silver similar to the silver found on wheels.

 

I got lucky and found a NOS grille NIB for 1/2$ of a repo.

 

1/2 price? Were you pointing a gun at the guy when you made that deal?

 

Seem to recall member mentioning doing same but never got back as to whether or not he followed thru. Would be nice to see pic's and ball park figure regarding the cost, imagine aint cheap.

 

thanks for the help I will let you know how it turns out