Aluminum polishing & protection advice

M

MAKZ06

Newbie
Not a paint related question but I’ve received such helpful advice here in the past that I thought I would ask to see if anyone has some experience and suggestions.
I just purchased a new toy. the main body is polished aluminum. Was never painted like the other production models.
What are the best polishing compounds and pads to use? Both by hand or with an elec buffer.
What about product to maintain and protect that shine from oxidation as long as possible?
I appreciate any suggestions. Thanks
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best thing i have found to protect polish once you get it looking good is ceramic coat. i have done stuff like bronze and brass that tarnishes real bad wherever you touch it. a coat or two seals and protects it. i can handle the stuff all day long and not have any tarnish fingerprints show up. easy to apply and you cant tell its on there like you could if you clear coated it.
 
Jim C said:
best thing i have found to protect polish once you get it looking good is ceramic coat. i have done stuff like bronze and brass that tarnishes real bad wherever you touch it. a coat or two seals and protects it. i can handle the stuff all day long and not have any tarnish fingerprints show up. easy to apply and you cant tell its on there like you could if you clear coated it.
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Aaah. Would not have thought of that. Which particular product do you like?
 
Well….i have used a few and i hate to sound like i am always preaching 3d but theirs last pretty long and its by far easier to apply than others. I use the graphene stuff. They are all easy to apply though but 3d buffs out streak free with a little less elbow grease. Gtechnique is also good as well as geyon.
 
We use Nuvite NuShine on the aircraft leading edges and other brightwork. Grade S by hand if it needs just a quick touch up, grade C then S if they get really bad. Once a year they get done by machine with a wool pad using S, then treated with Granitize X20-18 (Xzilon). Basically that gets wiped on and off like W&G remover. General cleaning after a flight is typically MS-260 glass cleaner and a microfiber towel.
 
Have had good luck with Mother's on my aluminum sit down hydrofoil and the guys that don't anodize use shark hide as well. .
 
Jim C said:
Well….i have used a few and i hate to sound like i am always preaching 3d but theirs last pretty long and its by far easier to apply than others. I use the graphene stuff. They are all easy to apply though but 3d buffs out streak free with a little less elbow grease. Gtechnique is also good as well as geyon.
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Great. Thanks for the recommendation.
 
EricB said:
We use Nuvite NuShine on the aircraft leading edges and other brightwork. Grade S by hand if it needs just a quick touch up, grade C then S if they get really bad. Once a year they get done by machine with a wool pad using S, then treated with Granitize X20-18 (Xzilon). Basically that gets wiped on and off like W&G remover. General cleaning after a flight is typically MS-260 glass cleaner and a microfiber towel.
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Thanks much. great info. I was wondering about whether I could use a wool or foam pad on my Flex buffer.
 
Jim C said:
best thing i have found to protect polish once you get it looking good is ceramic coat. i have done stuff like bronze and brass that tarnishes real bad wherever you touch it. a coat or two seals and protects it. i can handle the stuff all day long and not have any tarnish fingerprints show up. easy to apply and you cant tell its on there like you could if you clear coated it.
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MAKZ06,
I was quite interested when I first saw your post. I would take Jim C's advice on this as I consider him an authority on pretty much anything unusual. BTW your "New Toy" is really cool. What is it powered with.
 
Toolin said:
MAKZ06,
I was quite interested when I first saw your post. I would take Jim C's advice on this as I consider him an authority on pretty much anything unusual. BTW your "New Toy" is really cool. What is it powered with.
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Yes, I’m stocked with the papers, compounds, and pads to follow Jim’s method when I begin in the spring. His suggestion to use the ceramic coating to maintain the polish was one I would have never thought of.
The Panoz Roadster is one of the original 44, but it has many unique features not found on the others since it was the personal vehicle of one of the fabricator/engineers who worked at Panoz. It has the Ford 302 like the others, but was built with the newer gt40 heads and other upgrades that the others did not have on the somewhet anemic 5 liters of that day, It’s also the only one of the originals that had an independent rear suspension before they made that upgrade to the next gen AIV Roadsters. Of course the noticeable difference is the body being left unpainted. Took me a while to decide if I wanted it or not since I’m so OCD in regard to imperfections, sharp lines, panel gap and alignment, etc. This can’t hide the welds, waves, and all those imperfections covered by paint and filler on the others. I eventually decided I liked the rough look and it’s definitely one of a kind.
 
Just Googled the Panoz Roadster. Yours looks way better than the ones with bumpers and the huge teardrop hood scoop. All the extra bling ruins it.

1999-panoz-aiv-roadster-10th-anniversary-edition-916637518.jpg
 
Toolin said:
Just Googled the Panoz Roadster. Yours looks way better than the ones with bumpers and the huge teardrop hood scoop. All the extra bling ruins it.

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Yeah, that’s the 2nd gen AIV. They switched to the Ford 4.6 engine and because it was taller had to add the ugly hood scoop.
The one I have as far as I know, is the only one of the original 44, other than the prototype, which did not have bumpers.
 
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