Polishing belt line trim??????????

[Anonymous]

I've got a full set of original trim to go onto my '68 but some of the pieces are dull. As they're aluminium, normal chrome polish such as Autosol isn't any good. So I was wondering what to use to buff it up a bit????????

 

[andewilson]

auto sol is good but i am sure that it has a laquer on it from new so wet and dry trough that, and get rid of any scratches etc, then buff with autosol and a buffing kit off ebay etc, then finish with belgom alu also off ebay that finisfed it off and has a protecting quality to prevent it dulling



or pay a man to do it for you. i payed £300 to get 5 of these done

certainly easier than doing it myself

 

[mjknight71]

..depends on what finish you want....

the trim has an anodised coating this is what 'whites'...you can polish this too a certain extent with metal polish (brasso etc)...you can take slightly more off if you were to use polishing mops and waxes........OR.....you can wet 'n dry the anodising off then polish the alli up to a beautiful shine...this is hard and dirty work...I am 1/2 - 1/3 of the way through my set.......basically i took lots of damaged bits of trim straightened then knocked out dents etc then polished them to a mirror finish....BUT it will tarnish very quickly......i have spare bit forsale on a thread if you want some to practice on :mrgreen:

 

[clyde]

Polished mine using the metal polishing compounds (3 grades). Its been on a while now and isnt as mirror like as it was but its still very very good and ive done nothing to it since its first polish apart from wash it with the bus?

 

[Bookwus]

Hiya Spence,

The basic problem with the beltline trim is that it is factory anodized. While that anodization does great job of protecting the trim, the coating itself can weather and cloud up after years exposed to the elements. You could strip off the anodization but as mjk notes, the trim will then oxidize. That means you'll have to be doing regular trim polishing if you want the trim to look nice and shiny.

I had my trim stripped and re-anodized. It turned out quite well and I get more than just a few comments on it. However, re-anodization is ungodly expensive. If you just have to have anodized trim I'd suggest buying one of the aftermarket trim kits now for sale. I would have probably gone that way myself when I re-did my trim but the trim kits were not on the market back then.

 

[Frankie]

You can get an ali rubbing block from window supply companies they clean ali up really well then you can polish it with t cut metal polish.

 

[clyde]

Hiya Spence,

The basic problem with the beltline trim is that it is factory anodized. While that anodization does great job of protecting the trim, the coating itself can weather and cloud up after years exposed to the elements. You could strip off the anodization but as mjk notes, the trim will then oxidize. That means you'll have to be doing regular trim polishing if you want the trim to look nice and shiny.

I had my trim stripped and re-anodized. It turned out quite well and I get more than just a few comments on it. However, re-anodization is ungodly expensive. If you just have to have anodized trim I'd suggest buying one of the aftermarket trim kits now for sale. I would have probably gone that way myself when I re-did my trim but the trim kits were not on the market back then.

Like i said mines been polished (read anodize removed) and on the bus for well over a year and hasnt needed any re polishing. It sat in my garage polished for about another year before i got around to fitting it. No oxidizing for me.