How to protect the trim?

[Denvermike]

I took the trim off the doors, rear seat windows, and the top of the rear fenders of my 66 Barracuda. Most of it has a session with the buffing wheel and is looking very good! What would be a good way to protect them from mainly oxidation? Clear powder coating is not in the budget.
Thanks,
Mike

 

[440abody]

They are stainless steel so no need to coat them with anything. What you are seeing is years of weather and such beating them up. Polish them up with the buffer and they'll look good as new if not better. To keep them looking good occasionally clean them with a good metal cleaner/polish like Meguire"s chrome polish and they'll look good for years to come.

 

[2 Darts]

The front and rear fender top chrome pieces on my '66 Dart GT were aluminum, not stainless steel. If the object is polished aluminum, the best protection is to have it anodized.

The surest, and most destructive, way I've seen for determining if a metal is stainless or aluminum is to touch the metal to a running grinding wheel. If it sparks, it is stainless steel; no sparks, it is aluminum. Another way is to spray the object with oven cleaner. Let it sit. After an hour or so, wipe the residue off. If the metal is cloudy, it's aluminum (Wash well, dry, and re-polish). Or leave a drop of ammonia on the inside of the trim overnight, it will turn black. Stainless steel will not be affected.

 

[440abody]

Your right! Didn't read all the words!