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Old 07-13-2010, 11:03 PM   #21
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When I get to making the exterior presentable - or strip the interior panels vinyl wallpaper coatings and refresh the interior - I will be using some flavor of Alodine... But I think I will let Aircraft Spruce "store" it for me until then
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Old 07-25-2010, 01:02 PM   #22
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I tried the Rain-X and that did not work at all for very long. I put it on a test section one week ago and water spots already. As a matter of fact the water spots seem harder to remove then just Mineral Spirits alone.
I did get a brain storm and am trying some paraffin on a section to see how long it will last. I realize it is only a wax, but curious minds want to know. It is very soft especially here in Texas, we'll see.
Becky... I am still interested in learning how your tests are going. Water spots are my biggest nightmare. I can't seem to keep up with them.
Keep us informed
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Old 07-25-2010, 03:26 PM   #23
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Becky... I am still interested in learning how your tests are going. Water spots are my biggest nightmare. I can't seem to keep up with them.
Keep us informed
Al
I just went out with a damp rag to see how the water spots wiped off. The Rain-X section didn't really have any. The Metal Gloss section didn't have any to speak of either. The McGuire's had a few & they didn't wipe off (neither did the bird droppings that streaked down the side!) I think a lot has to do with the fineness (if that's a word) of the polishing that's done. I know I have areas on my trailer that have a finer finish than others. Those areas that aren't as fine of a finish collect & keep water spots more than the really fine areas. I think I'm going to go over the areas that seem to spot more & try to get them really smooth--like a piece of glass--and then apply the metal gloss to the trailer. I don't know--it's such a crap shoot! I do want to hear about your wax, though. I also want to hear from someone who has used the Alodine product. Anyone know the procedure for applying that product? I may be pressured to try it out if it's not an ordeal to apply it!
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Old 07-25-2010, 06:06 PM   #24
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Alodine 1001

Here is the Tech Spec for the Product Alodine 1001. It sounds like an etching process prior to painting. Please read the area on Polished Aluminum. Plainly states to paint soon after preping to prevent corrosion.
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File Type: pdf 1001 Alodine, Technical Process Bulletin.pdf (96.1 KB, 68 views)
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Old 07-25-2010, 07:24 PM   #25
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The above is known; if we are not clear coating then wax as the only defense is not quite working. Pilots I know who do their own work passivate everything using Allodine or similar product as soon as possible once they've fabricated the item.
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Old 07-25-2010, 07:43 PM   #26
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Water Spot Problem

I don't know if anyone has ever tried this on a polished Airstream. I used to use Mr. Clean Auto Carwash System. It is unit that attaches to the garden hose and had soap and a filter in it. The filter part is the part that might help. It is some kind of de-ionizer. You are supposed not to have to dry it...and it won't water spot. (I quit using it because I every time I wash Bambi now I dry it with towels and detail it. I can't wax or polish it if it is wet. Also I do it early in the morning so the sun doesn't dry or water spot it).

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Old 07-29-2010, 05:07 AM   #27
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Polished Airstream Weather Protection

Hello Becky,

Your product test indicates rain X and metal polish protected your polished aluminum you worked so hard to achieve. Did these products cloud the polished aluminum? Was the rain X the same product I put on the windshield of my car? The local car wash has a rain x sign in the wash bay, and I wonder if that product is mixed with the rinse water making water bead up on my car.

The Swift aircraft polishing video sold by Nuvite suggest cleaning off the polish residue with corn startch, and then leaving the surfice alone. I suppose the Nuvite polish somewhat fills the pours of the aluminum surface and protects it from corrosion (water spots). This video also recommends keeping your polished aluminum airplane in a hanger. I am finding that sections I clean with lacquer thinner between polish passes tend to water spot more than sections I clean with corn starch.

I was thinking stripping and polishing my 86 34 footer would be a poor man's refinishing of the faded plastic coat. I was willing to do all the work since I work for free. I assumed I could wax my trailer once a year and have it look better. Now I wonder if I have created endless summers behind my polisher?

Need that magic product that will maintain the reflectivity of polished aluminum and protect it from the elements. I'll bet someone has found a product or method that protects their polished Airstream.

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Old 07-29-2010, 06:08 AM   #28
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Hello Becky,

Your product test indicates rain X and metal polish protected your polished aluminum you worked so hard to achieve. Did these products cloud the polished aluminum? Was the rain X the same product I put on the windshield of my car? The local car wash has a rain x sign in the wash bay, and I wonder if that product is mixed with the rinse water making water bead up on my car.

The Swift aircraft polishing video sold by Nuvite suggest cleaning off the polish residue with corn startch, and then leaving the surfice alone. I suppose the Nuvite polish somewhat fills the pours of the aluminum surface and protects it from corrosion (water spots). This video also recommends keeping your polished aluminum airplane in a hanger. I am finding that sections I clean with lacquer thinner between polish passes tend to water spot more than sections I clean with corn starch.

I was thinking stripping and polishing my 86 34 footer would be a poor man's refinishing of the faded plastic coat. I was willing to do all the work since I work for free. I assumed I could wax my trailer once a year and have it look better. Now I wonder if I have created endless summers behind my polisher?

Need that magic product that will maintain the reflectivity of polished aluminum and protect it from the elements. I'll bet someone has found a product or method that protects their polished Airstream.

David
The Rain-X I used was the kind you use on your windows. It didn't seem to cloud the finish. The Metal polish didn't cloud the finish. The McGuires did bring it down a little bit. I can't definatively say that either product will keep water spots off the polished aluminum, because neither has been on there more than 6 weeks.

Stripping & polishing a 34 footer is a HUGE job, but of course you CAN do it! However, I don't know the magic sealer to keep water spots to a minimum (ones that don't require a pass with both a polisher & a cyclo each year). I think that I had worse spots on my polished '86 than the '76 I previously polished. The finished polish job was finer on the '76, so I may try to work on the areas on my '86 that seem to be not as fine a finish--maybe the water hangs up on areas that aren't like glass. I don't know.....

This I do know. You WILL have to go over your polish job at least once a year to keep it up unless you have it clear coated again. But that's not the poor man's way!
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Old 07-29-2010, 03:43 PM   #29
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Maybe the rain has a lot of acid in it here in Texas. None of the products I have tried lasted more than a couple of weeks. I did notice that you are right Becky on the polish job needs to be as good as you can get it. The area's where the polish is really good, not hardly any water spots, and the area's that are not as good water spots a plenty. Looks like I am back to the polisher for a super fine finish if I want to even have a chance to keep the spotting in check.
Thanks for the observation Becky.
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Old 07-29-2010, 04:26 PM   #30
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You may not care for this idea but it worked for me.

I was having problems with water spots and had to keep going back over the areas I had polished so I came up with the following after much testing.

After polishing at the end of the day I would go over the polished area with mineral spirits then Turtle Wax and then wipe it down with self rising flour.

After that I never had a problem with water spots and re-waxed with Turtle Wax every spring.

There is a thread "finally got started" that has more info on polishing than you will care to know.
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Old 07-29-2010, 08:20 PM   #31
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You may not care for this idea but it worked for me.

I was having problems with water spots and had to keep going back over the areas I had polished so I came up with the following after much testing.

After polishing at the end of the day I would go over the polished area with mineral spirits then Turtle Wax and then wipe it down with self rising flour.

After that I never had a problem with water spots and re-waxed with Turtle Wax every spring.

There is a thread "finally got started" that has more info on polishing than you will care to know.

What do you think the self rising flour does? Just curious if there is a chemist or scientist here who would know why self rising flour would make a difference on the finish?
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Old 07-30-2010, 01:30 AM   #32
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I shined my previous Airstream, then maintained it sneakily. I got one of those house wash hose attachments where I could put a fluid in a chamber and have it mixed with city water. I'd fill that chamber with the rain-x screen wash (the generic Rain-off stuff, usually $1.88/bottle at Walmart) and spray it over the entire body, then brush it over with a long arm soft brush, then spray it again.

I'd do this monthly in summer and every 2 months in cooler weather. It would take maybe 10 minutes to do the whole thing, with two bottles each time.

A great saving of time and money.

I got pretty good results. Rain would always bead off the roof, and wouldn't even bead on the sides, but roll right off. Cleaning bugs was "fairly easy" with a couple of good pre-soaks with the same stuff
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Old 07-30-2010, 12:00 PM   #33
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Maybe the rain has a lot of acid in it here in Texas.
It could be the opposite of acidic, base, which often means salt. That would be more of an issue in well or surface waters. Anyway, the further you get from Ph 0, the more corrosive it is and, I guess, the more spots.

After following this thread, the problems seem to be with older trailers that can be very shiny rather than newer ones with clear coat. Makes me glad to own a newer, not so shiny, one.

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Old 07-30-2010, 01:42 PM   #34
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I was told wipe it down with flour and self rising was what I happened to have on hand.
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Old 07-30-2010, 03:00 PM   #35
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I was told wipe it down with flour and self rising was what I happened to have on hand.
But tell me, what purpose does the flour serve? What does it do chemically, or physically? I'm just wondering......

And Gene, yes, the problem is with polished trailers (some not quite so old) that do not have clear coat on them. You're safe!
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Old 07-30-2010, 03:35 PM   #36
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polished

Quote:
Originally Posted by garry View Post
You may not care for this idea but it worked for me.

I was having problems with water spots and had to keep going back over the areas I had polished so I came up with the following after much testing.

After polishing at the end of the day I would go over the polished area with mineral spirits then Turtle Wax and then wipe it down with self rising flour.

After that I never had a problem with water spots and re-waxed with Turtle Wax every spring.

There is a thread "finally got started" that has more info on polishing than you will care to know.
I have no idea what the flour is susposed to do. It was one of the things that came up when I was polishing the AS so I tried it along with many many other things and it seemed to help.

I did stop having water spots once I did the above.
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Old 07-30-2010, 04:41 PM   #37
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Mmmm, breaded trailer, fresh baked in the sun. Yummy.

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Old 07-30-2010, 05:50 PM   #38
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Being a photographer I used to use a solution of water and glyceryn to prevent my negs from water spotting.I wonder what would happen if someone tried to spray glycerin on the shell and wipe off on a small spot to see how long it lasts.When water hits it it sheets off,but I don't know how long it would stay on the wax.Worth at try.
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:18 PM   #39
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Being a photographer I used to use a solution of water and glyceryn to prevent my negs from water spotting.I wonder what would happen if someone tried to spray glycerin on the shell and wipe off on a small spot to see how long it lasts.When water hits it it sheets off,but I don't know how long it would stay on the wax.Worth at try.
Where would I get the glycerin at? I'm willing to try anything at this point
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Old 07-30-2010, 07:23 PM   #40
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Where would I get the glycerin at? I'm willing to try anything at this point
Do you have any friends who make soap? Or local homemade soap makers? Glycerin is a waste product of soap manufacture. They may give it to you for free.
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