have you guys had any luck bringing your anodized trim back to life? mine looked great when i bought my truck but now looks pretty rough .i've tried every metal polish that i can think of with no success.is tthere a product made just for this?thanks.................WAYNE

 

Wayne, Welcome to FTE The best truck show on the net.

May I suggest Googleing anodizing and you doing a little boning up on what it is. Ya gotta remove it with a caustic substance like lye, then you can polish the trim to it's original luster. There are a couple good comercial products out too.

Anyways, polishing the anodizing aint going anywhere.

John

 

Wayne

I bought a grille from Ebay that was oxidized pretty bad and it wouldn't polish out either. I actualy used a horizontal grinder with a 3M polishing wheel and removed the anodized coating. I than had to use a rouge wheel and rouge to polish it out. I than used a high quality clear coat from Eastwood to cover it and protect it.

You can see the results in my gallery. The grill took me about 40 hours because of learning mistakes. POR-15 prep coat when applied will oxidize the surface again so don't go there.

jd

 

Another member provided a very good description of the process in a previous post on the topic. Salvaged a grill for my 65 from wrecking yard that had serious pitting, and few minor dents. Quote from metal reconditioing shop was between $400-$500. Decided to try recondition myself by using anodize stripper, available in some auto supply stores, then sandpaper starting with 220 grit,because of pitting and removing dents. Eventually progressed to 2000/3000 grit for final finish, then used an aluminum poishing compound. At lease for me, found the grill would tarnish quickly so used a good quality aerosol can of clear paint to seal. Understand there is a product, believe saw it in 'Eastwood' catalog that is a sealant for polished alum. If consider, may want to start with small item to determine if outcome is to your liking. Found the process time consuming but satisfied with the results. The response from member in the previous post probably more helpful, appeared member had some metal reconditioning experience. There were also number of members who provided other helpfull suggestions. Don't recall if any recommended clear paint to finish. May want to bookmark if you find it. Good luck!

dave

 

The anodizing can be removed with a lye based oven cleaner. The dow oven cleaner used to be lye based. It has been several years since I used it. It also works great as a degreaser.

 

The best way to remove the anodized coating is to soak the grille or trim piece in a soloution of sodium hydroxide and warm water. The peice must be removed from your truck. It will be very dull when removed from the soloution and must be rinsed. You will need a good aluminum polish and a generous portion of elbow grease to get back that factory shine. This will not fix any pits or dings, it will only remove the anodizing. It will also remove the black paint around the headlight, vertical bars etc..This will not work on emblems as they are made of pot metal.

 

thanks for all of the help guys.i` wasn't aware that the anodized couldn't be brigtened or polished.i'm a jeweler by trade,so i should be able to polish the aluminum if i can get the anodized finish off.where can i get some sodium hydroxide.jd_sylva,your truck is beautiful.i think it's incredible that it's been in your family that long.unfortunately i think i'll have to sell mine soon to pay my son's school tuition for next year.but,it will not be my last project.thanks...................wayne

 

Give these guys a look. This works MUCH better than oven cleaner and it's consistant across the part since the piece is submerged in solution. Just remember to use in a well ventilated area. Last time I looked it was about $12.00 Phil


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It's a chemical solution that looks like powdered detergent. ( Sodium
Hydroxide ) You mix a small amount with water and then soak your aluminum
part in it for about 10 - 15 minutes, sometimes longer. During that time
the part will start to react with the solution and the hard anodized
surface on the part will dissolve into the solution. (the solution starts
to fizz and bubble)
After you feel it's all gone, you rinse the part off with clean
water and the part will have a very dull, but smooth appearance. Then you
polish it just like you would any other piece of aluminum that you'd want
a nice finish on. This is also a good time to work out any dents or
scratches you need to fix. You can use buffing compounds, Wenol, Mothers,
etc. Then you have the option of either applying some kind of clear to
protect it, like POR-15's "Glisten PC". Eastwood has a clear also, but
it didn't hold up well when I tried it on some trim for another project.
Some people opt to just keep the aluminum shinned up and waxed
periodically, with Mothers, Eagle wadding polish, semichrome polish,
Wenol, Zoops, etc. If your car's not out in the weather all the time that may be
OK. If it's going to see weather it might be best to cover it.
This little jar will make several gallons of solution. If you
save it in jugs you can keep it for years. I have some several years old
that is still strong.
Good luck, Phil
( 63 1/2 Galaxie - 64F-100 4x4 )

Village Buffing Supplies
Boyd & Reba Hardin
902 East 22nd. St.
Kannapolis, NC 28083

Phone - 704-933-0084
Fax - 704-933-4180
E-mail - villbuff@vnet.net
Link - www.Villagebuffing.com

 

anodize is corroded alum! if it's colored you corrode it first then place in a room temp bath of colored water then dunk in a boiling water this sets the color.
Clear is the hardest to do right thats why most shops charge so much.
Theres been several articles in car craft about five years or so ago on how to do it your self. I did a ton of bike parts back then.

44dwarf

 

i'm gonna order the sodium hydroxide and give it a try.the trim peices are pretty long.do you have any suggestions on what kind of container i could use to soak them in.i thought about a kiddie pool.but the village buffing kit only makes 12 gallons,so it might not be enough to cover .................wayne

 

what about using a wallpaper trough for the long pieces?

 

You will have to build a soaking vat. Two methods come to mind, buy a piece of 3 or 4" pvc pipe, two end caps and cut a section out for looking and adding material. You could also split it in half and have a long tray.

Another method is build a box and line it with a heavy plastic to hold the liquid.

CAUTION: Read all labels on the product container. You will be dealing with a dangerious compound, that can cause burns to living tissue both human & or animal. Eye protection & rubber gloves are a must. I would recommend that you do it outside with a charged water hose close by. Water will dilute the mixed material should you get it on you. Keep pets and small children out of the work area.

Be careful & safe

John

 

the pvc pipe idea sounds great.i would like to polish my grill as well do you think it would fit in the wallpaper trough.machine shops use sodium hydroxide(caustic soda)to dip engine blocks.i was thinking about asking one of the local shops to dip the peices for me.do they use the same strength or would it be to strong.would it remove the paint from my grill as well.

 

I don't think mix strength has as much to do with it as length of time exposed. I didn't go overboard with my mix, and had to cycle it about 3 times.

The local sounds like a good idea, but start with a sample piece first to see how it comes out.

You can build a box for the grill pretty easily. Should you have a table that you aren't using, make a frame from 1X4s 4-6" larger than the grill and lay in a piece of 4-6mil poly. The plastic is your bowl/box.

Stay in touch with your outcome and the method that you used.

John

 

I sure whish I had found this forum before I spent all that time on my grille. It sure would have saved me a lot of blisters and polishing supplies. The end result is the same but it sure would have been a lot easier with chemicals. The good part about using the 3M wheels is that it polished out all of the little gravel gings those grilles accumulate over the years.

Handx please let us know how it turns out, and post some pictures of the finished product.

jd