Long Time Reader, First Time Poster

[Woodbilly]

I’ve been a visitor to the Airforums since I purchased my trailer 14 years ago. Not having any real hands on experience to share I didn’t become a member.
I’ve just started stripping the clear coat off my 1998 Bambi in preparation to polish it and now feel I will need the expertise and moral support this forum can offer.
My trailer’s condition varies from pristine shiny metal on the sides to heavily corroded and pitted end caps and a couple of dents thrown in to keep it interesting.
If that’s not enough it seems the trailer might have the newer Alcoa clear coated rear corner panels. My 2011 vintage Removall 220 didn’t even touch those but did a pretty good job on all the other panels.
As for a TW I’ve postponed getting a conventional truck and planning to use the Ford E-250 cargo van I purchased for my relocation from the big city to my Lakehouse. It can carry pretty much anything I want to take along without strapping things on the outside. Leave no toy or tool behind. I’ve installed both front and rear hitches, extendable tow mirrors and brake controller all myself.
I’ve done all the repairs to the trailer so everything is working and made a few small mods as well. If I survive the polishing project then laminate floors are next.

[Rich W]

Hello Woodbilly, greetings from central Kentucky and welcome to the forum. Looks like you have a big job ahead of you. I'm happy that I finally got mine washed, Walbernized and winterized in 24 hours time. (HOA limit)

When you get her all cleaned up be sure to post some pictures

[uncle_bob]

Hi

Welcome !!!

For the purposes of keeping replies (semi) coherent, it's a good idea to enter your trailer description in your user info. That lets people quickly see what year / model / type of AS you are talking about as threads "evolve". It's also sometimes helpful to have at least your state entered, if not both city and state.

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Polishing is very much a "less is more" sort of thing. You can indeed grind right through the aluminum panels. Accept ahead of time that deep pits are *not* what you are going to polish out.

Bob

[dbj216]

Greetings from Colorado: Always enjoy new members who have completed pretty big projects themselves. We towed with a E-350 Ford van for many, many years. I'd have another if they still made them, especially with a Power Stroke diesel.

Panels with Alcoa coating on them would be nigh impossible to polish. If your stripper won't cut it, then maybe second thoughts on polishing. I've polished a 66 Trade Wind and a 86 Limited. I have a 75 Overlander to do. The trailers look nice freshly polished, but a year in the elements will diminish that "mirror" look. Every water spot, bird or bug splat, or leave stain will show right up. Drives a perfectionist nuts. Luckily I'm not a prefectionists.

Glad you decided to participate.

David

[Woodbilly]

I thought I had entered my location, trailer and TV info but I guess it didn’t stick. Surely it wasn’t newbie user error. I re-entered it and hopefully correctly those time. I’ve got no illusions on having a towable mirror and only wanting to made the trailer presentable. I wished I had stripped the clear coat years ago when it first started to fail. The corrosion under failing clear coat is much worst that the gray patina you get from bare aluminum.
I ran across a posting saying the Alcoa clear coat could be removed with 3 or 4 applications of ZipStrip. I found some at a local hardware store but have yet to try it. It does contain that chemical that all the other eco-friendly strippers brag about not having so it might work. The few other posts I’ve found say it can’t be stripped or it has to be sanded off.
If the a way to reasonably match the Alcoa finish I’d be more that happy to go that route and leave those panels alone.
My results so far have been mixed. The 8 year old Removal 220 is working but requiring multiple applications. The Citristrip seems to work better but leaves a hard to remove residue.
From left to right Citristrip after some cleaning, Citristrip after just a water rinse and then the shinier Removall 220 results. A wet Magic Eraser seems to work best on the Citristrip residue but I really would prefer it cleaner before I start polishing. Any suggestions?

[uncle_bob]

Hi

In the world of boats, the process of pulling the old clear coat is just step one. The next step is to apply a new layer of the stuff. Since boats are not RV's, indeed the process varies a bit. ( most boats with clear coat are fiberglass )

Spraying any finish onto aluminum is a bit exciting. Normally there is a primer that is very aluminum specific as the first layer. Finding a clear spray finish that is durable .... not so easy. Indeed this can lead off to an AS painted the color of your choice .... (which then gets into chips and scratches and re-paints and ..... )

Bob