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Q&As since 1989


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Aluminum polishing shortcuts

Metal Polishes are mixed by people all over the U.S.A., taking other people products and copying or adding things too them, with little or no experience. I wonder what one of these home brewed polish maskers will do when the proportions of various chemicals achieve the right balance and somebody shakes a bottle to blow their hand off. Or a toxic gas like chlorine suddenly is released. Apart from the fact that many are doing no more than stealing somebody else's formulation. These practices are risky and foolhardy.

Plus add to this the fact that something like 90% of the polishes on the market contain anhydrous chemicals that actually destroy many soft alloys over a period of time. Most polish manufacturers are not only aware of this but choose to keep it quiet. The fact that somebody messing with aluminum says his polish contains a rust inhibitor, indicates that he is not professional enough to understand the term anti-oxidant. The only way to polish a rough surface is with abrasives of one nature or another, If a polish is super fast when applied by hand it normally means there is little or no abrasion and lots of wax, wax is soft and gathers dirt and dust. So it may look good for a while, but at the end of the day all you are doing is coating the surface with a reflective glaze that will get contaminated quickly. Only a properly polished job where the surface is smooth will last any length of time. That in itself takes time to achieve, especially by hand.

Steve Clark
- Belfast, Maine, U.S.A.