Need Help with Polish

rebel beck · 06-13-2007, 11:21 AM

I started polishing and now I have a problem and hope someone that has had the same problem will chime in. Our trailer is a 75, but sometime thru the years a couple of panels where replaced 2 on the end, 2 on the front and the door. So last night I started working on the door with a few passes of the Nuvite 7 I could tell it was just not cutting down to the mirror look like the rest of the trailer. I'm sure it can shine but how? Now I'm real worried I'm going to have a 2 tone trailer.

Gen Disarray · 06-13-2007, 11:38 AM

I have noticed something simmilar on my 68, I have also read here that you can expect differences from pannel to pannel. So I suspect that you dont have to much to be worried about. Some areas of the trailer will take more passes than others is my (limited) experience. Good luck with the project!

dwightdi · 06-13-2007, 12:16 PM

1975 units are plasticoated. Are you sure you have chemically removed all the Plasticoat before you started polishing?? If not it will never turn out the same. Even if you did remove it there might have been a switch in the alloy of the alumimun that was used for the repairs. Some just need more polishing other alloys do not polish as well no matter what you do.

rebel beck · 06-13-2007, 01:15 PM

Yes the clear coat is stripped.

InsideOut · 06-13-2007, 02:28 PM

So the portion you are trying to polish on your door...it's a replacement section? Right?

If so, it's probably a different alloy of aluminum as others have mentioned. We have a small patch on our street side that is a different aluminum composition...it'll never polish the same as the original panels. You can buy the "right" aluminum when doing repairs, but a lot of people don't because it is not as readily available. It may look okay when new...but it oxidizes differently and discolors over time.

It's a chemical composition thing...like comparing 12kt gold to 18kt gold...yes, they both are considered "gold", but the actual composition is 12 parts or 18 parts real gold (of 24 total parts) and the remaining is "some other metal". So 12kt has 50% gold and 50% something else and 18kt has 75% gold and 25% something else. They look and polish differently because the "something else" effects it.

Have you started polishing the other replacement sections? Do you know if all the replacements were done at the same time with the same materials? Are you having as much trouble with them?

Shari

rebel beck · 06-13-2007, 04:40 PM

Shari,
I have only done the door, now it looks kinda shiny but has a mat look to it, if that makes since, I'm going to talk with Tom at Perfect polish and see what he can suggest at this point. I have noticed newer trailers that are polished and they look great so I'm thinking there is some way to get it to match or come pretty close.