Question on polishing aluminum 62 grille

[burbluv]

Hey everyone,
I am having a highly recommended shop repair and polish my 62 grille and bezels I picked up from Perro on the site. We had talked about chroming a the steel one I have but I am trying to stick to more original. The one thing he mentioned is since it needs to have the coating stripped before it is polished the shine will only last a couple of years but I asked him about sealing it in some way and he suggested clear coating it afterwards. It will give it back the protective coating and he said it could last another 20 plus years.
Any thoughts?
Thanks,
AJ
Posted via Mobile Device
Posted via Mobile Device

[theastronaut]

The shine may not even last a couple years if it's not sealed or maintained with metal polish, depending on the climate where you're at. Aluminum dulls out fairly quickly if it isn't sealed. You could use a metal polish like Wenol or Autosol every couple months to keep it in tip-top shape, or clear coat it. I'm not sure how well clear would stick to bare metal though, and if there is any future damage it would have to be stripped before the aluminum could be buffed out again. There is a company called Zoops that makes a sealant for polished aluminum that keeps it from oxidizing, and would allow the grill to more easily be repaired in the future if needed.

[oem4me]

I think a lot depends upon how close to original you want to go and how much you want to spend. The same polishing/anodizing process used on the part when it was new is still available today if you want to go totally factory.
Try Anobrite in North Hollywood, CA for a quote.

[1963c-10]

Hey burbluv I did a link on polishing out my 63 grill and stripping the anodization. Ill find it for you.