Polished pipes

[Diver6127]

It was asked before in another THERAD if aluminum pipes can be polished with a dremel. Of course it can be done with minimallydesired results. I offered to do the work for Christian and MilitaryMaxx. They asked me "how much" and honestly, I don't know how much to ask for since the work is not that difficult and pretty easy work for me, at best. I guess $5 TOPS for bulkheads and maybe $10 for chassis since there is more anodizing to be removed. Regardless, I am only going to offer this for RCNT members. Here are a few pics of an exhaust pipe I did for my NTC3 as well as the work area where I do it.

This is before

This is after. Sorry for the blurred pic. It's actually mirror polished.

This is the actual buffing machin I do the polishing on.

This is where the sandblasting takes place. Anodizing is taken off without a sweat here, and I use a fine grit media in it so it comes out with a satin finish as well.

This is where all the wrenching and anything involving r/c's and 1:1's take place.

 

[militarymaxx]

Diver, tell me what you think. You seem to be the HMFIC when it comes to polishing. Anyways, this is what I used:

dremel coarse 180-220 grit brown wheel
dremel medium 280-320 grit gray wheel
P800 grit wet/dry paper (using it with water)
mothers aluminum polish using the felt dremel pad (slow speed)

The pic really doesn't do it justice. I can actually see myself in the finish.

 

[Maxx Trooper]

that looks like some industrial machines. hey, after the RCNT Florida bash, i will send u my Paris turbo pipe to get polished. could i get a paypal name and the total?

later

 

[Diver6127]

Originally posted by militarymaxx
Diver, tell me what you think. You seem to be the HMFIC when it comes to polishing. Anyways, this is what I used:

dremel coarse 180-220 grit brown wheel
dremel medium 280-320 grit gray wheel
P800 grit wet/dry paper (using it with water)
mothers aluminum polish using the felt dremel pad (slow speed)

The pic really doesn't do it justice. I can actually see myself in the finish.

Looks good. The mothers polish looks like it did some pretty good work on it. I don't know about the types of wheels you're using because I generally use the dremel for sharpening surgical orthapedic instruments. I do all my buffing on the buffing machines and they use the highspeed yellow polishing wheel we get from our supplier. I forgot the suppliers name.

Originally posted by Maxx Trooper
that looks like some industrial machines. hey, after the RCNT Florida bash, i will send u my Paris turbo pipe to get polished. could i get a paypal name and the total?

later

Maxx, yes it is all industrial equipment. The motor for the buffer itself is over 100 lbs (3 phase 220v) The casing itself weighs another 340 lbs+. Had to use a chain block to unload it and 4 guys to lift and position it. We didn't have a cherry picker to lift it. The induction blower, grey rectangular item to the left, is industrial as well. Has a 2 stage HEPA filter in it.
BTW Maxx, check your PM's. I'll send all info there.

 

[meow_nyc]

awesome work bubb.. way to go!

 

[Diver6127]

Originally posted by militarymaxx
Diver, tell me what you think. You seem to be the HMFIC when it comes to polishing. Anyways, this is what I used:

dremel coarse 180-220 grit brown wheel
dremel medium 280-320 grit gray wheel
P800 grit wet/dry paper (using it with water)
mothers aluminum polish using the felt dremel pad (slow speed)

The pic really doesn't do it justice. I can actually see myself in the finish.

Also forgot to mention, a good polishing compoound won't need all those steps. The compound itself will "cut" into the metal and smooth it over. Basically "erasing" scratches. Pits are a different story. Those have to be filled and polished. The "erasing" effect can't come without highspeed and pressure. Yeah, it can be done with a dremel, but with what I use, I can basically fade it to a finish that seems to be flawless like a mirror because of of a 4 angle buff.

It's just something I learned over the years when it came to polising surgical stainless steel. Took me the better part of my first 2 years apprenticing to get it down to a science. Doctors inspect everything under a microscope, literally! Especially when micro instruments are used. Basically zero tolerance for error in callibration and polish.

 

[newnitrofan]

Hmmm polishing is hella nice and all but well other than the bling factor are there any real benefits. Dude Diver you seriously can't tell me that is your house there in those pics. I mean your garage in there cuz if that's the case I'm movin in there you have a regular chop shop in there.

 

[Diver6127]

That is my garage. It's a 2 car garage. Used to hold a car in it, but turned it into a workshop for the family business. My Dad's cadillac used to be in there, but the business was in more need for the garage, so he rented a garage to keep his cadi in.

Oh, and for the bling factor, other than that polishing is just for show. I prefer the satin aluminum finish myself but I polished the pipe just to show a before and after thing. I'll probably take off the polish and just keep it satin.

BTW, what you don't see in those pics is the basement that is connected to the garage via a door. In there is another sand blaster, buffing machine, ultrasonic cleaner and 2 more workbenches to wrench on. There's a whole lot to show but in a nutshell, everything needed to overhaul an engine, do body work & paint a car and even general carpentry is there. Only thing I can't get in there is a car lift so I don't have to roll under a car on a creeper or lay on some cardboard. It's a nice place to get away from it all!

 

[meow_nyc]

yeah, and when he's nowhere to be found, for sure he's there for the whole day to fix up something or play with his cars... sometimes i wanna :hammer: his head but what can i do, it makes him happy.

 

[Diver6127]

Originally posted by meow_nyc
yeah, and when he's nowhere to be found, for sure he's there for the whole day to fix up something or play with his cars... sometimes i wanna :hammer: his head but what can i do, it makes him happy.

You should see her face when my brother wants to go bash at the park. Even better was her face when I took over the dining room table when I was assembling my NTC3. Glad I have a workbench in the garage now.