Polishing Metal

[thunderpantz]

I'm going to be getting the fazer tidied up this year. What the best way to polish the metal. ie: swing arm, pegs

[noggythenog]

I say go straight to Doddsie on this one..he is champion cleaner and polisher.




I go cheap & cheerful with wiping with oily rag or good old brasso coz ive got some needs used up....that's why my bike isnt as shiny as Doddsys.

[fazersharp]

Brasso is very good on the alloy - like the pegs and hangers. I think the general concensus on the swing arm is that it is a pig to strip and do and best left as it is.

[mickvp]

You get specialist aluminium polish thay can do wonders when used with a proper polishing wheel etc.

Britemax twins are great for aluminium and other metals.

If you want a cheap home solution you can fill a pot with boiling water, and add vinegar in a 1:2 ratio with water, leave part in to soak. Finally, you can polish it up with a toothbrush or small vikan brush, and either white vinegar, or ketchup and the mild acidity will remove the oxidisation.

[Doddsie]

Once its clean, keeping it clean is pretty easy. Id go with what Mickvp says, he knows of more cleaning products than Ive ever heard of.

[Exupnut]

Doddsie's better @ polishin cans



;-)

[Doddsie]

 

[mickvp]

Oh, and autosol works well too, which is handy because Halfords stock it so you can get your hands on it pretty easily.

Doddsie, your far too modest mate, your bike is blinging 

[darrsi]

Don't know if you have stainless pipes, but Optiglanz is savage at removing rust and making them look new in minutes!
Just make sure your eyes and hands are protected, it's genuinely evil gear.

[Deefer666]

Autosol is shit, its not a polish as such but more of an abrasive paste which is why it looks great to start with but quickly dulls and tarnishes. I use Belgom Alu which draws the dirt out of metal instead of scraping it away like Autosol does. And Belgom leaves a waxy barrier on the metal that water just beads up and rolls off.
 

[thunderpantz]

Cheers for the replies guys! I'm with deefer on that on though. I've used autosol In the past with not much luck. Will give that belgom a bash

[Geordi Sussex]

My advice

Watch YouTube
Find somone what can watch you do it as it's not as easy as it looks
Get the tools
And have fun

I just picked up a angle grinder. Mops and compound

I'll be getting a 2nd hand swingarm and polishing that for practice
If it works I'll be installing that

Then I'll polish the one that's on my bike to resell it and make some money back

Failing that find a company to do it

[Chris]

I highly recommend Gtechniq M1 metal polish or Mequiar's metal polish. You can also use 00grade wire wool to give it a bit more bit for particularly stained/dirty areas.

Chris