Polished my UIM...Pics (56K Okay)
Eats, Sleeps, Dreams Rotary
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 3,154
Likes: 1
From: Queens, NYC
Originally Posted by spot_skater
Yes, I do have a lot of extra time on my hands, lol. Just moved to a new area, work nights, started my TII swap project and I figured while all of this **** is off might as well make it pretty.
And I didn't do much, if any of this, by hand. I busted out my trusty Black & Decker Wizard (dremel-style, but cheaper).
A buddy of mine with an FD recommended Eastwood's metal polishing kit (www.eastwood.com). $75 and two days later, it was at my door.
Process is basically like Classic Auto said... This is how I did it though.
Sanded everything down with an 80 grit abrasive roller on my dremel, with a bit of grinder's grease. This got the nasty cast grayish **** off. Used a small cone shaped grinder to get the tight spaces. Then I used another 80 grit cone-shaped abrasive "roller."
Do that again with a 240 grit, and then a 320 grit. Wipe it all down/clean it up with some prep-sol/acetone.
Then I changed attachments and went with a small (2") buffing wheel and some tripoli polish. After that I cleaned it up again with some prep-sol, and buffed it with some polishing compound, and a smaller buffer. Last night as I was doing the last bit of sanding (buffed/polished today) I forgot to wear a respirator/dust mask. I was hacking up black **** for a good while...
I know I could have shipped it somewhere and gotten it done, but the same could be said about the rest of my car. I'd rather have everything inside, and under the hood done by me. Just going to be a nice feeling if someone asks "where'd you get the work done?" and I can respond with "my house and garage."
All that aside from paint and body-work of course. Next up is the LIM, after I clean up the plenum, of course. :angry: In the mean time I've gotta clean up my engine bay then drop in my TII motor (it's just about stripped now). After that it's haltech time...
Thanks for the kind words.
James
And I didn't do much, if any of this, by hand. I busted out my trusty Black & Decker Wizard (dremel-style, but cheaper).
A buddy of mine with an FD recommended Eastwood's metal polishing kit (www.eastwood.com). $75 and two days later, it was at my door.
Process is basically like Classic Auto said... This is how I did it though.
Sanded everything down with an 80 grit abrasive roller on my dremel, with a bit of grinder's grease. This got the nasty cast grayish **** off. Used a small cone shaped grinder to get the tight spaces. Then I used another 80 grit cone-shaped abrasive "roller."
Do that again with a 240 grit, and then a 320 grit. Wipe it all down/clean it up with some prep-sol/acetone.
Then I changed attachments and went with a small (2") buffing wheel and some tripoli polish. After that I cleaned it up again with some prep-sol, and buffed it with some polishing compound, and a smaller buffer. Last night as I was doing the last bit of sanding (buffed/polished today) I forgot to wear a respirator/dust mask. I was hacking up black **** for a good while...
I know I could have shipped it somewhere and gotten it done, but the same could be said about the rest of my car. I'd rather have everything inside, and under the hood done by me. Just going to be a nice feeling if someone asks "where'd you get the work done?" and I can respond with "my house and garage."
All that aside from paint and body-work of course. Next up is the LIM, after I clean up the plenum, of course. :angry: In the mean time I've gotta clean up my engine bay then drop in my TII motor (it's just about stripped now). After that it's haltech time...
Thanks for the kind words.
James
Keep up the good work. Yo whats next?
Jason NYC
NYRA PRez
www.nyrotary.com
Originally Posted by My5ABaby
Which one?
There are different levels to chose from. Start with type5 I think it is if the manifold is fresh. Then to type1 i think it is for a finer finish. Then the final buffing compund. Call them, they are very very helpful.
Originally Posted by The Wankler
There are different levels to chose from. Start with type5 I think it is if the manifold is fresh. Then to type1 i think it is for a finer finish. Then the final buffing compund. Call them, they are very very helpful.
i found a nice kit that had all the clay bars for polishing alluminum on Ebay...its actually for a motorcycle but it will work. i tried to use this on my wheels but i had a hard time keeping the buffing wheels form turning black....i take it its just dirt building up?
Originally Posted by spot_skater
So I'm pretty close to being done polishing my UIM. Total time spent so far is about eight hours. I got a little bit lazy on the plenum, so I'm probably going to wind up going back over it.
What do you guys think? Don't be too harsh...
What do you guys think? Don't be too harsh...
Originally Posted by The Wankler
the clay bars are nice, but the tubes I put the link to are morelike a solid sandpaper. The type5 is soooo gritty, it removes casting like no tomorrow.
did you just use the soft buffer wheels for these or somthing else??? sorry for being a noob...i admire your work and would like to learn!
Thread Starter
The Cause of Death
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,202
Likes: 2
From: New York
The buffing wheels will turn black, breh. Don't fret.
What I did was use one buffer over the entire thing, using the correct compounds, then went over it again with another buffer, with no compounds. Then today I went over it again with a smaller FELT cone, again with no compounds. The felt cone turned black, as well. I also used it to pick up any extra polish that was on there, and got that buffed in, too.
I'm thinking about leaving the plenum alone, and just spraying some clear sealer type **** on it, which also came with my kit.
James
What I did was use one buffer over the entire thing, using the correct compounds, then went over it again with another buffer, with no compounds. Then today I went over it again with a smaller FELT cone, again with no compounds. The felt cone turned black, as well. I also used it to pick up any extra polish that was on there, and got that buffed in, too.
I'm thinking about leaving the plenum alone, and just spraying some clear sealer type **** on it, which also came with my kit.
James
i thought about getting the clear coat type material but wondered if it would be better to just leave it off or use it???
depending if it held up to the heat or not...
and thanks for the help!!!
depending if it held up to the heat or not...
and thanks for the help!!!
Thread Starter
The Cause of Death
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,202
Likes: 2
From: New York
Thanks for the compliments, all.
I started the LIM today. It's going to be much more of a ******* pain in the ***. More curves and ****, and vac nipples, etc. -sigh-
I'm gonna try to start a thread and have it linked to the "Major projects" thread at the top of this section. I already put one post in there, but I fucked it up, lol. Next one will hopefully be at the end of this weekend, and the motor should be in the car. If I don't get lazy.
James
I started the LIM today. It's going to be much more of a ******* pain in the ***. More curves and ****, and vac nipples, etc. -sigh-
I'm gonna try to start a thread and have it linked to the "Major projects" thread at the top of this section. I already put one post in there, but I fucked it up, lol. Next one will hopefully be at the end of this weekend, and the motor should be in the car. If I don't get lazy.
James
1. more question for the noob.
<<<<<<
when i tried polishing i turned the alluminum black (like the wheel)..am i applying to much pressure? not enough? what causes this to happen and how can i prevent it? is it normal (the black on the product you are trying to polish)?
should i just keep polishing then clean it off???
<<<<<<
when i tried polishing i turned the alluminum black (like the wheel)..am i applying to much pressure? not enough? what causes this to happen and how can i prevent it? is it normal (the black on the product you are trying to polish)?
should i just keep polishing then clean it off???
Thread Starter
The Cause of Death
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,202
Likes: 2
From: New York
Finished the LIM just now
Here's a few of my finished LIM, and of my UIM next to it.
I didn't go too crazy on the LIM, it's not going to be seen as much as the UIM. Pics should be relatively obvious in that respect. Plus I only spent about two days on it...maybe ~6-7 hours. It's a lot more curvy, and there's more nooks and **** than on the UIM. And the areas closest to the firewall didn't get paid nearly as much attention...
What do ya'll think?
I didn't go too crazy on the LIM, it's not going to be seen as much as the UIM. Pics should be relatively obvious in that respect. Plus I only spent about two days on it...maybe ~6-7 hours. It's a lot more curvy, and there's more nooks and **** than on the UIM. And the areas closest to the firewall didn't get paid nearly as much attention...
What do ya'll think?
Thread Starter
The Cause of Death
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 2,202
Likes: 2
From: New York
Originally Posted by RotorHead87
niiice...good job on the LIM...now pull off anything aluminum on your engine and get to rubbin'
And RotorHead87, that's what I started to do, lol. I just polished some brackets and the oil fill tube, lol.
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 616
Likes: 1
From: dallas, TX 75228
i'm assuming you can use jewelry buffing wheels and compounds right??
i buff jewelry at my job so i can always get wheels and compound stuff from there. (those little tubes that look like flares)
i buff jewelry at my job so i can always get wheels and compound stuff from there. (those little tubes that look like flares)
