Polishing WS6 Wheels
Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 524
Likes: 2
From: Texarkana, Texas
Polishing WS6 Wheels i have already stripped the clear coat off and am in the process of polishing but I can't get the chrome shine like I want..
pics..
polished left, stripped only right
polishing equipment
pics..
polished left, stripped only right
polishing equipment
I bought one of those powerballs and the powermetal polish and, I could never get the shine I wanted. I had MUCH better results just using the normal mothers mag and aluminum polish with a lot of elbow grease and a clean soft cloth.
You might have to do some sanding first with very fine sandpaper if there's any imperfections in the surface, then use a cloth buffing wheel and jeweler's rouge to get them to shine. They have large buffing wheels to use with a hand drill and small ones that fit a dremel for getting in the corners.
Launching!
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 289
Likes: 0
Yes, I would go for the wetsanding first, finish with like 2000K grit, then I would go with jsut the regular mothers a few time snad finsish them off with the mothers "Billet" polish, its much better than the regular mothers, its like 9$ for jsut a small jar though, but it will let you get all the fine scrathes and swirls out.
once you sand them its a PITA to bring them back. i have 2 stripped wheels that look like chrome, and 2 that look a bit better than your sanded ones. I think im going to try the aluminum polishing wheels that you would get from eastwood.
Trending Topics
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo
When it comes to polishing aluminum you have to do it by hand and go back and forth instead of circular polishing. The idea is to lessen the look of scratches and by going one direction it fools the eye. 
Just wondering, what did you use to strip them? I have a set I bought to put on my car and on some places the clear coat is stained so I was thinking about just stripping them down to metal and polishing them.
If the stripped ones looks like chrome, why are you polishing them and making it worse? I stripped mine a few years ago and was amazed how shiney they were without sanding them. You have to know what you are doing before breaking out the sandpaper on aluminum.
you need to sand them over and over again lastly with 12-1500grit to get all the marks out then use a super high speed buffer with rubbing and polishing compound and this stuff its called tapila or tipala something like that lol hope this helps mine always turned out good...
http://www.eastwood.com/ew-wheel-buffing-kit.html
That will take care of your problem. If you have a bench top buffer/grinder buy a 6" spiral sewn buff wheel from eastwood along with some tripoli buffing compound. Once you're done with that switch to a loose buff and some simichrome and they should look awesome. If you want to protect your hardworking from waterspots coat them in sharkhide which you can also get from eastwood.
That will take care of your problem. If you have a bench top buffer/grinder buy a 6" spiral sewn buff wheel from eastwood along with some tripoli buffing compound. Once you're done with that switch to a loose buff and some simichrome and they should look awesome. If you want to protect your hardworking from waterspots coat them in sharkhide which you can also get from eastwood.
Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 524
Likes: 2
From: Texarkana, Texas
Sorry didn't see your post a first, I did 3 coats on each wheel jjust to make sure I got it all off.
Got it at walmart.
Thread Starter
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 524
Likes: 2
From: Texarkana, Texas
I seem to have found a nice polishing system, buffing wheels that are used for buffing paint, cheap form harbor frieght, and my mothers polish then hit it with some blue magic
