buffing trim tips needed

[rod7515]

Im going to start buffing some of the trim on my Dart. There are 3 different types of trim to polish. The aluminum that I sanded and buffed seems to have come out well and Im happy with it. Now whats left is the stainless trim around the rear window and down the top of the trunk, the taillights that are pot metal plated, and then there will be the door sills. I think those are the different ones.
So the the first question is about the stainless trim. The trim that I have to repair and file, then sand, then buff. What are the steps of filing, sanding of what grits, then the buffing rouge you use?
Then when doing the plated pot metal on the taillights, i am assuming no sanding just buffing? and what rouge? also do I have to be careful of to much pressure or to much heat build up while buffing?
And lastly, when doing the door sill plates do you sand or just buff?
Thanks for any hints and help yo can pass on.
Rod

 

[Lee Robinson]

Im going to start buffing some of the trim on my Dart. There are 3 different types of trim to polish. The aluminum that I sanded and buffed seems to have come out well and Im happy with it. Now whats left is the stainless trim around the rear window and down the top of the trunk, the taillights that are pot metal plated, and then there will be the door sills. I think those are the different ones.
So the the first question is about the stainless trim. The trim that I have to repair and file, then sand, then buff. What are the steps of filing, sanding of what grits, then the buffing rouge you use?
Then when doing the plated pot metal on the taillights, i am assuming no sanding just buffing? and what rouge? also do I have to be careful of to much pressure or to much heat build up while buffing?
And lastly, when doing the door sill plates do you sand or just buff?
Thanks for any hints and help yo can pass on.
Rod

This is for the stainless. Repairing it is like doing body work. I'm a novice at repairing stainless and I did buy a book
on repairing stainless. Work out dents slowly and carefully. I did buy some fine jewelers files, but even those will
leave marks it takes a long time to work out. You can sand initially with 320 if you have a lot of scratches, either
by hand or with a DA sander. Follow up with 400, 600, 800, 1000, 1200 and maybe even 1500 paper. You should
try to remove the coarser grit scratches with every step up to a finer paper. If the moldings are straight and don't
have a lot of scratches, just try buffing. There is a green compound that is used on stainless. There maybe another
compound to bring out more luster, but I just use the green. I would just try to polish pot metal or aluminum by
hand. I have not had that much experience with aluminum. Someone else probably can give their input on those
materials. Repairing stainless is an art, that's why people that are really good at it charge a lot of money.

 

[dcl68]

This video is a good start.
I wet sand mine 400 up to 1500 grit then buff. Results are very good. Take your time and wear face shield and gloves.

 

[Murray]

Well I can get you started. Pot metal can only be plated- no polishing. The plater will do whatever repair is needed to make the surface smooth and ready for plating. Stainless is a very hard metal. It is usually worked and straightened like bodywork with little to no sanding because it will require so much polishing due to its hardness. In extreme cases it can be welded and ground down for repairs. Aluminum is very soft and usually anodized. The anodizing should be chemically stripped or polished through. It can be straightened with a minimum of sanding. It can be left natural or be re-anodized. If left natural it will need occasional polishing or waxing because it will oxidize without anodizing. In extreme cases it can be welded, but you run the risk of it not matching the rest of the un-welded trim. Door sills- this is my personal choice- I take good originals and lightly polish them. This preserves the original details but is more expensive. I am not a big fan of reproduction stuff.