Questions about polishing an aluminum trailer?

[72Blazerod]

Hi guys,

I have afew questions about polishing my 1960 16ft U-Built trailer. I have heard that Nuvite polishes are the best. I have a drill to do the compounding and a Cyclo 5 to do the finish work. The man at Nuvite told me I should use about a pound of G6, a pound of S and a quarte pound of F7. Now what do I do about my windows and the drp-rails around them? Do I leave them on?? What about the lights an reflectors? Should I use a special cleanser to wash it down before I begin to polish? Any info would be helpful. Also, what do I do about my seems? Do they have to be "stripped" of silcone before I begin?

Thanks,

Rod

P.S. Here is a picture of the old girl now.

[Ferroequine]

You'll need probably a pound of "C" to polish out the small scratches & swirls the G6 will leave behind. I only used G6 in areas that had a lot of filliform on them; otherwise, I used "C" to compound with instead. Then cyclo with F7, and cyclo with S.

Is that U-built made out of aircraft-grade aluminum? If not, it may not shine up to a mirror finish like the older Airstreams (or so I've been told).

[53flyingcloud]

Originally Posted by 72Blazerod

Hi guys,

I have afew questions about polishing my 1960 16ft U-Built trailer. I have heard that Nuvite polishes are the best. I have a drill to do the compounding and a Cyclo 5 to do the finish work. The man at Nuvite told me I should use about a pound of G6, a pound of S and a quarte pound of F7. Now what do I do about my windows and the drp-rails around them? Do I leave them on?? What about the lights an reflectors? Should I use a special cleanser to wash it down before I begin to polish? Any info would be helpful. Also, what do I do about my seems? Do they have to be "stripped" of silcone before I begin?

Thanks,

Rod

P.S. Here is a picture of the old girl now.

Rod,
Congrats on your unit and...efforts
Question..
Do you know if the surface has been anodized in the past??
If so, you may find this unit to be difficult to polish..
I'd try to polish a very small section where it's not too noticeable and see what happens..
This way, you won't embarrass the Ole gal with a blotched look..
ciao
53FC

[72Blazerod]

How can I tell if it is "anodized" or not? I know it does not have clear coat and the original owner that built it told me that if I wanted to polish it up I should use "jeweller's rouge." Anothe problem that I have is that I am in Canada and there is only one distributor of Nuvite here (and of course he's all the way across the country). So I cannot just go out and pick up some Nuvite to give it a try. If I am getting the Nuvite I have to order the whole thing at once. Is there a quick easy method to check if it is anodized?

Rod

[overlander63]

Originally Posted by 72Blazerod

How can I tell if it is "anodized" or not? Is there a quick easy method to check if it is anodized?

Rod

Rod, if the aluminum is anodized, it will have an almost "grainy" feel to it, and aircraft (polishable) aluminum will be almost smooth.

[ALANSD]

If you can't polish an alternative could be aluminum paint, many older AS that have that done really look good though not mirror shiny, also its easy to maintain.

[72Blazerod]

Overlander63,

The aluminum is very smooth, just oxidized. I am sure it is not anodized.

Rod

[72Blazerod]

Okay, let me re-phrase my last comment. The sides are very smooth, the top, front, and back have very fine 'grooves' that look like they have been machined in. The groves are perfectly straight from the front to the back, and are much less than a millimeter deep. Actually about as deep as the thickness of a hair (or two).

Rod