Hi, I've struggled with the same problem. I have hand sanded with emery, wet and dry (done wet with a little detergent added) and plain old sand paper. Working through grits to remove the inevitable deeper scratches/gouges. I have also use random orbit sander, that works quite well. IU have used 3 grades of Scotchbrite pads, maroon, grey, and white. The white is too fine (doh).
But the problem i have had is what to do with the surface after getting the finish you desire. I couldn't afford on my projects to have the Al anodised, and I haven't found a laquer that will work on Al. If you don't treat the surface you'll always get black marks from the Al. Maybe that's not a problem for you. Alistair
'82 westy, diesel converted to gas in '94 http://www.members.shaw.ca/albell/ On 11-Mar-05, at 2:36 PM, Jeffrey Earl wrote: > Thought I'd pose this to the all-knowing list, as I > know we count many experienced metal-workers among our > ranks. This project has nothing to do with Vanagons > other than the fact that once I finish it, I will > again be allowed to go Westy camping. > > I have some 1x1x48" aluminum 90-degree angle stock, > purchased from the local hardware store, to which I > want to apply a brushed-metal finish such as that > commonly seen on stainless steel, rather than it's > normal dull gray surface. I've considered building a > small jig or guide to be attached to my drill press, > to allow me to slide the 48"-long stock against a wire > wheel or similar. > > Common hardware-store choices include: > Brass wire wheel > Steel (stainless?) wire wheel > Sandpaper-flap wheel > Sandpaper drum > 3M-type Scotch-Brite abrasive plastic wheel > etc. > > It needs to be something affordable and commonly > available to the home user. > > Would appreciate any and all comments or suggestions. > > Thanks! > > Jeffrey Earl > 1983 diesel Westfalia "Vanasazi" > http://www.vanthology.com/ > > > > > __________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Yahoo! Small Business - Try our new resources site! > http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/resources/ > |
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