[MAR-Ktech]

Greg63: I believe the moldings are aluminum not stainless. The coating you are removing is the anodized surface of the aluminum. Once you cut through the anodize surface the soft aluminum remaining is easily polished to a bright luster. As you have found, this is a lot of work and difficult to accomplish with uniform results. The polished aluminum will not be as durable without the anodized surface and will likely become dull from exposure to the elements. Also, it will be much more easily scratched and scuffed if left without anodizing.

If you have a company locally that does anodizing of aluminum, they can chemically remove the anodize surface so you can repair and polish the parts. The parts can be then anodized again to protect the bright polish. If you do this, be sure the company is equipped to process bright aluminum. It would be good to have them anodize your "practice" door molding first to make sure that you are satisfied with the results.

An alternative method of protecting the moldings after polishing is to coat them with a clear coat paint. Glisten by POR 15 works well for this and has good adhesion even to polished aluminum. It is not as durable as anodizing, but may work well for moldings that are usually protected from the elements. As with anodizing, it is recommended that you use your practice door molding to make sure your procedure gives the results you are looking for. Be especially careful assembling the front fender spear tip to the fender molding to avoid scratching through the coating.

Mar-Ktech