Do you want your car to retain its shine and beauty for a long time, the steel parts of any mechanisms to work like clockwork, and the plastic parts to magically get rid of scratches? In all these cases, one cannot do without such a finishing operation as polishing. Its essence is to smooth the surface, reduce roughness and impart a mirror shine.
To polish any surface, from the engine assembly to car glass, special compounds are used - the so-called polishing pastes.
.
Composition of polishing pastes
All types of polishing pastes contain two main components: abrasive powder
and
an emulsifier binder
. The abrasives most often are oxides of chromium, titanium and aluminum, diamond powder, CBN and epoxy composites, and the binding component is usually petroleum products: oils and polymers. Some manufacturers include auxiliary substances: silicones, Teflon and wax. They give the polished surface additional shine and protection, but their presence is not always justified due to the complexity of application. It must be said that the developers keep the exact formula of their products secret.
Polishing technology
Any kind of hard surface can be polished by hand
or using a power tool (
polishing machine)
. The first method is used for processing small areas and allows complete control of the process. The second option is usually used if it is necessary to polish a large area with a minimum of effort.
Technologically, the polishing process occurs in two stages:
1.
rough (preliminary) polishing;
2.
finishing (finishing).
For each stage, certain types of polishing compounds are used, which differ in the size of the polishing particle fractions.
maintains an optimal range of polishing pastes for finishing polishing in
fine
,
medium
and
coarse grits
. We tried to select the most universal brands of pastes for processing different types of hard surfaces by machine and manually.
Let's look at the main options for using this material and decide how to choose and buy the right polishing paste in the Composite Stroy online store (in Moscow or delivery to any region of the Russian Federation).
Polishing aluminum at home
To restore the characteristic shine of an aluminum surface at home, various folk methods and household chemicals are used.
Tools and devices
What you need to have on hand to get rid of scratches and dullness, and restore the original aesthetics of objects: for this, use a special paste for polishing aluminum. You can also deal with the problem using a number of common cleaning products and kitchen products, including:
- soap solution;
- glass and porcelain cleaning products;
- cream of tartar, table vinegar;
- baking soda, salt, lemon, alcohol;
- sorrel, sour apple, kefir.
In addition, you will need the following set of tools for polishing aluminum:
- fine and medium grit sandpaper;
- felt-coated polishing discs;
- metal brush;
- rags.
When choosing products and devices for polishing aluminum products at home, you should take into account the composition and characteristics of the material being processed. Food-grade aluminum should not be polished with abrasives; gentle methods for eliminating defects are appropriate here.
Pre-cleaning
If you plan to work with a painted part, at the initial stage of the procedure it is necessary to carry out preliminary cleaning, remove coating residues and oxidation particles. For this, various solvents and abrasives are used.
Tartar polishing
Cream of tartar solution copes well with darkening and deposits on metal:
- dissolve cream of tartar in a container of hot water, add lemon juice and bring to a boil;
- moisten a soft cloth in the cooled solution and wipe aluminum objects to a mirror shine.
Polishing of aluminum can be done with cream of tartar.
If the tartar is diluted with a small amount of water to a paste-like consistency, you can obtain an effective remedy for soot, oxidation and various contaminants on metal products.
Application of polish
As a special product for the care of aluminum products, polish has a number of advantages:
- helps quickly eliminate scratches and other visual defects;
- allows you to polish the aluminum surface to a mirror shine;
- does not contain ammonia and other aggressive substances;
- forms a protective layer, provides a barrier against oxidation.
Paste for polishing aluminum in Moscow and other regions is presented in a wide variety of products.
The nuances of using polish:
- The surface is pre-cleaned of paint coatings and dirt using a metal brush.
- Alternately, roughness is eliminated using medium and fine grain abrasives.
- After grinding, a paste is applied to the aluminum and rubbed in a circular motion using a rag until it has a reflective effect.
- Remains of the product are removed with a clean napkin.
To increase resistance to minor scratches and dirt, the surface is varnished after polishing.
Car polishing paste
Any vehicle during operation is subject to undesirable mechanical influences, as a result of which roughness
,
scuffs
and even
scratches
. Therefore, car polishing paste has been and remains an indispensable tool in the car enthusiast’s arsenal. This is one of the most accessible tools for independent use. Using polishing paste you can get rid of minor damage to the body and restore it to its former shine.
Multi-stage processing involves using a different polishing agent at each stage.
1.
To eliminate visible traces of ingrained dust, scratches and traces of pebbles, use compositions with large and medium polishing components (
Oskar's M-50 coarse
and
Oskar's M-100 medium
).
2.
For final polishing and achieving a mirror-like shine of the body, use products with small abrasive particles (
Oskar's M-150 thin
).
Both headlights and car glass can be treated with polishing paste. Of course, for this you should use a product with less abrasiveness. for example, Oskar's M-150
with superfine fractions of aluminum oxide in its composition.
Ways and methods of polishing aluminum
To level out the roughness of the material and level out deep scratches in industrial conditions, complex technologies are used that involve working with chemical reagents. The process is performed using specialized equipment.
Electropolishing
This method involves restoring the coating and polishing aluminum to a mirror finish. The procedure involves processing the product in an electrolyte solution:
- the acid composition is heated in a special bath with an additional lead layer;
- lead cathodes are attached to aluminum;
- a current density of 10-50 A/dm² is passed.
Electropolishing of aluminum
Processing time is on average 5 minutes.
Chemical methods
The process of chemical polishing of aluminum is carried out using a special bath with a steel plate at the bottom:
- the tank is filled with a solution of sulfuric, nitric and phosphoric acids;
- the composition is heated to 90-120°C, depending on the composition of the material being processed;
- the aluminum product is immersed in an acidic environment for 30-45 seconds, then it must be rinsed with water;
- the processing algorithm is repeated 5-6 times;
- At the final stage, treatment is carried out with nitric acid 30%.
The electrochemical method of polishing aluminum involves the combined action of chemical reagents and electricity. In this case, the material being processed acts as an anode electrode, which is connected to a current source. The product is immersed in a reservoir with electrolyte, while the function of the second electrode is performed by copper cathodes.
Decorative etching
This technique for restoring aluminum products is a type of electropolishing. In this case, the workpiece is placed in a solution of phosphoric and chromic acids and exposed to anodes. The electrical voltage increases from 25 V to 40 V, and the ambient temperature during the process changes from 50°C to 80°C. As a result of processing within 15-20 minutes, the surface of the aluminum is covered with a chaotic pattern. Next, the product is thoroughly washed under running water, dried and painted with a special paint for organics.
Metal polishing paste
After grinding the parts of machine components and mechanisms, the final stage will be treatment with metal polishing paste. Critical working surfaces must be flat and smooth in order to avoid rapid wear of the unit parts during their operation. Visible parts made of chrome, steel and aluminum are also treated with polishing paste.
Depending on the nature of scratches and roughness on the metal, it is permissible to use any of Oskar’s
- coarse, medium or fine. All of them are problem-free for both manual and machine polishing.
Procedure using GOI paste
One of the best-selling polishing mixtures is GOI paste. It can be used on any type of surface, from stainless steel to glass or plastic.
To start polishing with GOI paste yourself, you should apply it to any material. Flannel or other soft material is ideal. You can use a polishing wheel.
The basic rule for GOI type pastes is the prohibition on applying the mixture directly to the surface to be polished.
After this, you need to rub a cloth with paste on any piece of metal. This will help remove large pieces that could damage the surface of the stainless steel. To improve the dissolution of GOI, you can rinse a cloth in gasoline before application.
When polishing, it is important to avoid sudden movements and not to press too hard on the rag, so as not to add new scratches. When the surface of the car acquires the required shine, it is washed with water or kerosene.
Polishing paste for plastic
Both in everyday life and in production, plastic polishing is often required. Motorists especially need this, because both inside and outside the car body there are many plastic parts that are subject to wear even to a greater extent than metal ones.
To properly polish the dashboard and external finishing parts, you will need a microfiber cloth, polishing paste for plastic with small fractions of abrasive particles (for example, Oskar's M-150 fine
), as well as a little patience to achieve the perfect shine and shine.
I noticed that there is no article on polishing aluminum on the bikepost. I decided to share my experience in polishing crankcase covers. Who is interested in all the attention under cat. It all started a year ago. The decision to polish the lids was the only one and irrevocable. But I approached this without any knowledge or understanding. All I had was some sandpaper of unknown grain, and a polishing wheel made from felt felt and GOI paste. The result, frankly speaking, was not so great: the scratches were removed poorly, the polishing was also not perfect, the reflection was cloudy.
Below is polished this year, above is what happened to the lid during the year.
The right cover is already varnished. This year I took into account the mistakes, smoked a certain number of manuals, and conducted an experiment. We will need: 1 Sandpaper with a grain size of 2500 (35 rubles) 2 Sandpaper with a grain size of 1000 (25 rubles) 3 Sandpaper with a grain size of 250-500 (depending on the cleanliness of the surface) 4 Polishing wheel 5 GOI paste (30 rubles) 6 Car varnish (I don’t know how much it costs, it was a gift from friends when they found out what I was doing) 7 Citric acid x4 (30 rubles a bag, I think). So let's get started. A few words about the 638 Java engine. They don’t get too hot; the hand can withstand any heat after any mileage. That's why I use regular polish. At the same time, they are exposed to dirt, water, dust, oil and other crap that is harmful to the shine of aluminum. Over the course of a year, the lids became tarnished and returned to their original state. I also had quite deep scratches and chips on them. So I had to remove them with coarse sandpaper and then finish everything with fine sandpaper. It's not difficult to dismantle, but there is one problem. It is necessary to thoroughly wash the oil caps from all sides. Otherwise, when you do, and you will, touch the back side and then touch the clean surface with your dirty hand. Removed, washed (or the part was not so clean) We take the coarsest sandpaper and remove deep scratches. Working with aluminum needs to be gentle and at the same time confident. You only need to sand in one direction: forward, backward, left, right, up and down. Otherwise, nothing will work out, I found out through experience... In general, it’s like in sex, forward back forward back.
To prevent this from happening, you need to sand in one direction. Have the large nicks been removed? Now we need to remove the aluminum dust. Removed? Great, we take 1000 grit sandpaper and go through the entire part in the same direction. Achieving uniform shine. At this stage you should see some kind of halo in the reflection. Sanded? It should look something like this:
Again we remove dust from the entire part, and then move on to 2500 grit sandpaper. And again we sand in the same direction. At this stage you will see yourself in all your glory. It all depends on diligence and the desired result. I tried to get the shine to be about the same as the chrome mufflers. Well, we sanded the part evenly, but after 5-10 minutes it will not be so shiny. We don’t need anything, so we take a container so that the part can be completely immersed in citric acid. I diluted 4 bags per 8 liters. In principle, you can do less, you just need to wait a little longer. Cleans like a charm. For comparison, I stuck the crankcase halfway into the water after the first stage and went to lunch. After half an hour the result was like this.
And the galvanized bucket became so shiny overnight.
But we got distracted. It's time for the most important area - polishing. We take a drill (or a sander, it all depends on what kind of attachment you have), put a felt boot on it (come on, guys, we’re in Russia, how can we live without a felt boot) and apply GOI paste to this very felt boot. Not a detail, it's important. And methodically, with moderate pressure, we begin to polish the part. The polishing process itself can be easily determined by the increased heating of the part and the operation of the grinder (in our case, a drill). If the speed starts to drop a little, reduce the pressure and polish. When the paste begins to wear off, either add more or remove the remains. I removed the excess with the back of the sanding attachment.
The GOI paste itself should be easy to apply to the nozzle, especially if you apply a little pressure. The paste is made on the basis of paraffin, which easily dissolves in gasoline and melts when heated. It should be noted that all your hands will be covered in waste paste mixed with aluminum. Here we either put on medical gloves, or then wash with gasoline and warm water. We go through the entire part, wipe off any remaining paste, check the uniformity, whether there are stains left from the paste. If necessary, we go through it a second time. Well, that seems to be all, we could end our story here, but no. We want to maintain the shine. Therefore, we take the part, in our case the lid, and lower it into citric acid.
I let it sit for an hour and then left it overnight. I didn't notice much of a difference. Dropped? Great, now let's go sweep and wash the garage. Well, how to wash it, you need to wet the floor after sweeping, and if the garage is very dirty, then wet it before and after. We don't want dust to settle on our lids. We take out the part from citric acid. Does it shine as it should? If not, finish it with GOI paste and again. If you are satisfied with everything, we wipe, dry, degrease, varnish, dry, and assemble the engine.
PS do not forget to protect all decorative surfaces in the polishing area from flying dirt. It is also worth considering that a wooden workbench acquires a characteristic gray color from aluminum dust. You can wash it with a brush and warm soapy water. PPS has now moved on to the next phase - searching for black arcs.
Epoxy Resin Polishing Compound
Experts know that after hardening, epoxy never immediately obtains a perfectly smooth surface. Epoxy resin products also require polishing using polishing paste. Epoxy resin is a sensitive surface that is sensitive to thermal effects. Oskar’s polishing paste
with particles of different fractions.
Both retail and wholesale customers can easily buy in the Composite Stroy
polishing paste for cars, stainless steel and other surfaces.
We try to maintain favorable prices for the entire range in Moscow and Russia. Depending on your need, you can purchase products from us in containers of 250 g
and
1000 g
.
Delivery in Moscow
and the territory
of the Russian Federation
is carried out by the company’s vehicles or through transport and “PEC”. For more information on how to place an order, see the “Delivery and Payment” section.
Treating headlights with toothpaste
Not only the car body or rims need polishing, but also its headlights, which are also subject to mechanical stress. This work can be done with your own hands using regular toothpaste or GOI paste.
The technology of polishing using toothpaste is very simple. Simply apply the product to the surface and use a toothbrush to rub the paste in a circular motion. After reaching the required condition, the headlights are cleaned of toothpaste residues and washed with water.
