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Polishing Cockpit Surround and Window Pillars

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HealeyRick said:
smaceng said:
HealeyRick, I'm not sure if any of the BE windshield pillars were painted aluminum. Both of mine, being the later rod type windshield had unpainted aluminum, which may have been anodized or iridited, I don't know. Most aluminum, if not coated with something will oxidize and get that caulky finish over time.
Scott in CA
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I've always believed it to be silver painted and apparently that's what the concours standards were according to this old email I dug up online:

"Richard & others, According to the Chief Concours Judge the "correct" silver color for the window posts and wheels (bugeye & Mk-II wheels) is PPG Delstar Acrylic Enamel, DAR 2593X H, Silver Poly. This was stated in an 'spridgets' email on 8 August 1998 by George Marinos. Bruce Gearns, editor of the standards, was susposed to add this to the standards. I don't have a copy of the 'current' concours standards so I can't say if it was ever done. Biff Jones '59 Bugeye, 'Kermit' '62 Sprite, 'Ole Gray' '71 Midget, 'Freebie' https://sprites2.homestead.com/ "Biff""

Of course, the standards are subject to revision when original cars are found. The one thing I'm sure of is the pillars have a matte silver finish and not a shiny chrome-like one.
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Hmm...well, if that is the case, I suppose I could go that route on the pillars. I could see how having the pillars and wheels match would be nice.

Whatever was on my pillars before is completely ruined.

If the PPG Delstar Acrylic Enamel, DAR 2593X H, Silver Poly were the correct color, where would one find this, or have it matched?

Thanks,

- Chris
 
60Bugeye said:
So far, so good on the sanding and polishing. I still have some hairline scratches in the finish after the initial polishing compound, but I have another two grades I plan on using to see if that helps. The piece I am working on is the over-the-dash strip.

- Chris
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Hi Chris,

I was just driving thru and was reading your post. I`ve used "Never Dull" on lots of items to include the surround when I had my `59 Frogeye. A little elbow grease & WaLa; Like new. What you may also want to try is "Fine Grit Steel Wool". You`ll be amazed what that does to Alum as well as "Chrome"!

These are 2 very inexpensive ways of getting some detail work done with Great results. Of course; After doing the above; Some Chrome Polish of somesort to help protect the finish.

Try it; "You just may like it"!!


Russ
 
60Bugeye said:
If the PPG Delstar Acrylic Enamel, DAR 2593X H, Silver Poly were the correct color, where would one find this, or have it matched?

Thanks,

- Chris
Click to expand...

Chris,

Here's an easier solution:

"Tim, As others have already pointed out your rims should be silver in color. The 'Concours' guys say PPG Delstar Acrylic Enamel DAR 2593X H (Silver Poly) is 'the' correct color to use. Or if you are not interested in being absolutely 'correct' you can use Krylon metalic silver followed by a coat of Kyylon clear the next day. The difference between the two (Krylon vs. PPG) is minimal and would take an "expert" to tell the difference. Biff Jones '59 Bugeye 'Kermit' '61 Sprite 'Ole Gray' "
 
Now I have another job.

Paint windsheld uprights with the same paint I used on the wheels, got that from Moss.

I think I will wait till spring.
 
I used 1200 grit dry to clean my anodized pieces then Mothers aluminum polish,with a final coat of wax. A lot of hand work and the MOthers will blacken your hands but it is well worth the effort. Used the same technique on my carb bells.

Mark
 
Ment to say earlier, get one of those flapper sanders thingees for your elec drill. the small size one. Does a good job on alum.
 
I just happened to have some super fine steel wool and Never Dull from cleaning my drum cymbals. Using the steel wool on the sanded piece is working nicely. This is my experimental piece since it is the over-the-dash strip that I will likely cover with dash material (I like that look).

As for the other pieces, the more I look at them, they are definitely not anodized. They look like they were polished at one time. The PO before my father-in-law may have done this. Unknown.

Also, they each have significant enough scratches/dings that steel wool alone will not address. Sanding should take care of it.

I'll hit the hardware store this weekend for some paint for the pillars.

This little stuff is going to keep me busy over the winter!

Thanks again for all the tips!
 
Anodize may be removed with oven cleaner.
 
Whitephrog said:
I had my cockpit surround pieces polished by a guy who has a shop next to Knox Custom Chrome where Jack and I had our chrome pieces re-chromed. The guys did a great job.

As for the pillars... here's a photo of a NOS set that I own. They are definitely painted.

www.spritespot.com/gallery/view_photo.ph...amp;id=DSC00798
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Hi There Whitephrog. What is the contact info for "Knox Custom Chrome"; Phone, Website etc etc?

Thanx in Advance,

Russ
 
A Dremel tool with a 120 grit flapper wheel is very easy to control on the Aluminum bits. Takes care of scratches very quickly. These were in very rough shape.
 

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leecreek said:
A Dremel tool with a 120 grit flapper wheel is very easy to control on the Aluminum bits. Takes care of scratches very quickly. These were in very rough shape.
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Very nice. I did one of mine by hand with varying grades of sandpaper. I do have a dremel but I didn't think to pick up a flapper wheel and use that. Excellent suggestion.
 
Anyone know if reanodizing is cheaper or more expensive than chromeing? Does it lend itself to a home made setup any easier?

Inquiring minds and all that.


Kurt.
 
Neither chrome or anodizing is a home project. Anodize can end up with a dull or brown tinted finish, so iriditing, which is less thick, will more likely be acceptable. The cockpit surround really did not look like chrome, as it had some slight dullness to it. Mine, as an example, is probably way to shiny, compared to the original. But I can always dull it down easily enough. I had mine shined up and then I waxed it.
Scott in CA
 
Polishing and anadizing was about 300+ bucks.
 
Here is the finished product next to an unfinished piece.

surround.jpg
 
Nice! I just started working on mine, although only on the 600 grit phase it already looks a little better.
 
60bug said:
Nice! I just started working on mine, although only on the 600 grit phase it already looks a little better.
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I just noticed you are from Sacramento. I grew up there, and that is where my Bugeye came from this last November. It was in my father-in-law's garage in Fair Oaks for 23 years.

Cheers!
 
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