Tunnel Polishing Tips. Anyone Have any Pointers
- Thread starter skank
- Start date
I agree once you start you can't stop........mothers and terry cloth works about the best if you must
Had a tunnel, rails, intercooler etc polished in 05. Looked good, but like the other guys already said, was a pita to keep looking that way, especially the tunnel. Won't be doing that again, I got better things to do with my time.
Mothers and Mothers drill ball.
If you are going to do it... use better products that are made to make the job go faster.
There is a big difference between "shiny" and "polished". Polished aluminum is actually more reflective than chrome... I've only seen a few polished tunnels, lots of shiny ones.
Kraven is right... start with sandpaper... gets it nice and flat too. Work thru 400/600/800/1000 grits and then switch up to polishing. This sounds like more work, but if you work up thru the grits it actually makes everything go a lot faster.
I have polished 2 vintage airstream trailers that were over 80 hours each in polishing and THAT was a pain in the azz.
Trust me, if there were an easier way to get top notch results, I would have gone that way. I tried all of the wipe-on products like Hoosiers polish, Miracle polish, CT2 etc and none of them gave the depth of shine that good ole elbow-grease gives.
Mothers works for sure.....but too much work, IMO. PLUS you wont get any milling lines or blemishes out of the surface.
I would first go to http://www.perfectpolish.com and have a look around their site. They have good tech sections and methods
Check out some of these polishing tips: (Ignore the "cyclo polisher" its used on BIG jobs) http://www.perfectpolish.com/QuickGuide.htm
There are a lot of other sources, but you cant get the professional grade products at the local auto parts or industrial outlet and they have all the tech support you need. They have the same supplies that the major airlines use to polish 747's.
These guys have a great price on "KITS"..Price out the "power ball" or Flitz ball at you auto parts store and you will see this is a value.
I recommend Kit #3 for the best results.
http://www.highwayshine.com/cat/Wheel+Polishing+Kits+Kit+Selections.html
Check out their wheel polishing kits http://www.perfectpolish.com/Kits%20and%20Components.htm they have good sizes that are perfect for tunnels and comes with an instructional video. Don't get confused with the cyclo polishers and stick to the wheel kits and you'll have everything you need.
Again the sandpaper rout is the fastest way... work up from 400 through 1200 grit wet sandpaper to save some effort. Especially since you will need to get through any clear coat (clear anodize or clear powdercoat) that some mfgs use. Dont skip a grit or you will be working really hard to get the previous grits scratches out.
Also, As a tip... If you have snow eliminators or better boards on your sled, drill out the rivets/remove the boards so you dont keep catching the wheel on the grips.
On the RAW chassis (2007 -2010) if you drill out the rivets holding on the running board edge tubes and unbolt them from the tunnel, you will have an easier time and spend less time/better results than leaving them in place.. Takes only a couple of minutes to rivet them back on.
To seal it after you polish it, especially if you live where they use salt on the roads use a good metal wax. I like the "Terminator" sealant... great stuff and sheds snow too. Cheap as well.
http://www.topoftheline.com/16ozmaxpains.html
Hope this helps,
Good luck
There is a big difference between "shiny" and "polished". Polished aluminum is actually more reflective than chrome... I've only seen a few polished tunnels, lots of shiny ones.
Kraven is right... start with sandpaper... gets it nice and flat too. Work thru 400/600/800/1000 grits and then switch up to polishing. This sounds like more work, but if you work up thru the grits it actually makes everything go a lot faster.
I have polished 2 vintage airstream trailers that were over 80 hours each in polishing and THAT was a pain in the azz.
Trust me, if there were an easier way to get top notch results, I would have gone that way. I tried all of the wipe-on products like Hoosiers polish, Miracle polish, CT2 etc and none of them gave the depth of shine that good ole elbow-grease gives.
Mothers works for sure.....but too much work, IMO. PLUS you wont get any milling lines or blemishes out of the surface.
I would first go to http://www.perfectpolish.com and have a look around their site. They have good tech sections and methods
Check out some of these polishing tips: (Ignore the "cyclo polisher" its used on BIG jobs) http://www.perfectpolish.com/QuickGuide.htm
There are a lot of other sources, but you cant get the professional grade products at the local auto parts or industrial outlet and they have all the tech support you need. They have the same supplies that the major airlines use to polish 747's.
These guys have a great price on "KITS"..Price out the "power ball" or Flitz ball at you auto parts store and you will see this is a value.
I recommend Kit #3 for the best results.
http://www.highwayshine.com/cat/Wheel+Polishing+Kits+Kit+Selections.html
Check out their wheel polishing kits http://www.perfectpolish.com/Kits%20and%20Components.htm they have good sizes that are perfect for tunnels and comes with an instructional video. Don't get confused with the cyclo polishers and stick to the wheel kits and you'll have everything you need.
Again the sandpaper rout is the fastest way... work up from 400 through 1200 grit wet sandpaper to save some effort. Especially since you will need to get through any clear coat (clear anodize or clear powdercoat) that some mfgs use. Dont skip a grit or you will be working really hard to get the previous grits scratches out.
Also, As a tip... If you have snow eliminators or better boards on your sled, drill out the rivets/remove the boards so you dont keep catching the wheel on the grips.
On the RAW chassis (2007 -2010) if you drill out the rivets holding on the running board edge tubes and unbolt them from the tunnel, you will have an easier time and spend less time/better results than leaving them in place.. Takes only a couple of minutes to rivet them back on.
To seal it after you polish it, especially if you live where they use salt on the roads use a good metal wax. I like the "Terminator" sealant... great stuff and sheds snow too. Cheap as well.
http://www.topoftheline.com/16ozmaxpains.html
Hope this helps,
Good luck
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amazing
that camper trailer is amazing, nice fn job!
that camper trailer is amazing, nice fn job!
well if your going to go through all the trouble then consider slushbuster as part of the process..NO snow or ice sticks if applied correctly for a considerable time...you would have to goggle it to find out where you can get it..but geez l agree with the others of possible wasted time...l would rather respraypaint after everyride with a color that l liked possibly cheap chrome spray paint...lol....
I have polished things like my clutch guard, it turned out nice. I find the shine lasts longer than I expected. If you want to get really hardcore, use wet sanding, you can get it to a mirror finish, but it is lots of hours as Fbomb stated. You can use that time to make your sled faster 
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I have polished things like my clutch guard, it turned out nice. I find the shine lasts longer than I expected. If you want to get really hardcore, use wet sanding, you can get it to a mirror finish, but it is lots of hours as Fbomb stated. You can used that time to make your sled faster, or drink beer 
S
Spaarky
Well-known member
How about this scenerio, buy a used sled, tunnel has never been polished. It has some scratches in the tunnel. You are a perfectionist, and if you polish, you would like it as perfect as possible.
Would a person start with sanding first then also??? Also, I know you wouldnt be able to get all the scratches out...
Also do you need to start with sanding on a stock tunnel? Dont most of them come with some clear annodizing or summn. They are a lot smoother than aftermarket...
Us flatlanders cant ride every weekend, so we have to have summn to do...
Would a person start with sanding first then also??? Also, I know you wouldnt be able to get all the scratches out...
Also do you need to start with sanding on a stock tunnel? Dont most of them come with some clear annodizing or summn. They are a lot smoother than aftermarket...
Us flatlanders cant ride every weekend, so we have to have summn to do...
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How about this scenerio, buy a used sled, tunnel has never been polished. It has some scratches in the tunnel. You are a perfectionist, and if you polish, you would like it as perfect as possible.
Would a person start with sanding first then also??? Also, I know you wouldnt be able to get all the scratches out...
Also do you need to start with sanding on a stock tunnel? Dont most of them come with some clear annodizing or summn. They are a lot smoother than aftermarket...
Us flatlanders cant ride every weekend, so we have to have summn to do...
Would a person start with sanding first then also??? Yes, I would if I had lots of free time. Scratches are hard to see, and plus aluminum isn't perfect when it comes from the factory. I find that wet sanding works better. Sanding like mountainhorse said, makes the aluminum very flat and smooth, which makes the mirror finish after you polish it. This is assuming your tunnel isn't painted. Mountainhorse "Start by using 400 grit wet/dry paper (Use it wet) and work up thru 2000 grit (400, 600,800,1000,1200,1500)."
Do you need to start with sanding on a stock tunnel? Dont most of them come with some clear anodizing or summn. They are a lot smoother than aftermarket... I don't know the answer to this, but i know that my Skidoo doesn't have any type of finish on the tunnel.
You might try to find a spare piece of aluminum to practice on first if you want to see what the results will look like.
i have done many motorcycle frames and various other alum. parts. Honestly if your planing on skipping the sanding dont even do it. It takes longer to get a polish that doesnt look near as good.
What F-Bomb said.... I did a polished finish tunnel on my last Yamaha and I'll never do that again.
Too much work. I will do it about once (1 time) a year and that is it.
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