Re: Restoring my MFG
OK Guys here we go.
Now that I have this piece, (first of four) straightened out, I need to decide on a finish. Aluminum extrusions like these come in a verity of finishes. Some of the more common ones are..
1. Mill finish. Standard, raw aluminum from the factory.
2. Brushed finish. Usually brushed with a wire wheel to add a grain.
3. Bright finish. Polished or plated.
There are others, like anodizing, powder coating,etc., but that's a story for another day. For restoration purposes, A Mill finish would be ideal. But this finish takes the longest to achieve. A Brushed finish is the easiest to do, but not very original looking. If the aluminum is in good condition, a light pass on a fine wire wheel, can remove minor scratches and improve the look considerably. Lastly is the Bright finish, and this is what I've chosen to do. If money was no object, I'd send it out and have it plated. But hey, that's a bit extreme. So, it's going to be polished.
My aluminum trim was not in very good condition. Several hours were needed just to get it back to it's original shape. Once I got that, it was time to inspect the surface of the metal. I found lots of scratches and gouges. These would need to be removed, if I wanted an original looking trim.
I've done my fair share of this kind of work, and there is no magic wand here. ( I wish there was) The process is step, by step, by step.
Miss one, and you'll work harder on the next.
First, get the surface prepped. Clean off all the crud! very important, you no not want to grind any contaminates into the surface. A wash with acetone works well. Next, get the surface even. In other words, remove all of the gouges and scratches. I use 100 grit sand paper. (dry)The starting grit depends on the condition of the surface. You can start with 220 or 320 grit if the surface doesn't have a lot of flaws. Sand evenly, and flair the deep ones out to what looks good.
Next, go over the entire piece with your starting grit. Again mine was 100 grit. This is were things get boring and tedious. It's a long process, so pace yourself. Below is my trim, that has had all the dings and gouges removed. I'm just about done completing the initial pass of 100 grit. It has taken me a couple of evenings to get this far. A good start will yield good results. The first step is the toughest.
The flash from the camera has made it difficult to see the surface, but you can see how I have the aluminum sanded to a uniform finish. It's coarse but it's a start. In the next couple of evenings, I'll go to 320 grit. If it doesn't come down easily, I'll go to 220 grit over the entire piece. From there, I'll work my way up to 600 grit and do so wet from there on. I hope 1000 grit will get me to the point where I can start the polishing wheel.
So guys I'm gonna be busy! I'll try to post my progress on Sunday night. Stay tuned.
Time to get the aluminum edge trim in order. I spent the next several hours bending, twisting, banging and beating it into submission. Finally got it looking pretty good. I'm no stranger when it comes to working with aluminum extrusions, but this one put me to the test. 
