My Dad has a 1950's Lotus VI with bare aluminium panels. Every year after show season is over he puts it to bed for the Winter by waxing all the panels & covering them with plastic. Come Spring he peels the plastic off, cuts the wax back & spends a weekend polishing & buffing with Brasso.
It's probably worth mentioning that various panels are made out of different types of aluminium, i.e. the panels that are original to the car are a better quality aluminium than the aluminium he bought to re-manufacture damaged or missing panels when he was rebuilding the car.
He has some type of aluminium acid that he occasionally uses to get rid of light aluminium corrosion which makes the panels look dull, he used it on one panel this year and it has burned a milky corroded effect into that panel that no amount of polishing or buffing was getting out. I sourced a different type of aluminium acid which has helped but it hasn't eliminated this mark entirely. Marketed as an aluminium de-smut deoxidiser;
I know that bare aluminium bodywork isn't going to be that common but has anyone come across products which they have found makes caring for aluminium a lot easier?
Also,
I've suggested to him that he probably shouldn't have to wax & cover the whole car ever year, if he gets an A1 finish on it, there must be a way to seal the shine to stop it oxidising? (e.g. if you T-cut an old car Turtlewax would keep the finish looking good for a while).
If anyone has any first-hand knowledge of aluminium wonder products, I'd be interested to hear of them!
Thanks,
Chris
It's probably worth mentioning that various panels are made out of different types of aluminium, i.e. the panels that are original to the car are a better quality aluminium than the aluminium he bought to re-manufacture damaged or missing panels when he was rebuilding the car.
He has some type of aluminium acid that he occasionally uses to get rid of light aluminium corrosion which makes the panels look dull, he used it on one panel this year and it has burned a milky corroded effect into that panel that no amount of polishing or buffing was getting out. I sourced a different type of aluminium acid which has helped but it hasn't eliminated this mark entirely. Marketed as an aluminium de-smut deoxidiser;
I know that bare aluminium bodywork isn't going to be that common but has anyone come across products which they have found makes caring for aluminium a lot easier?
Also,
I've suggested to him that he probably shouldn't have to wax & cover the whole car ever year, if he gets an A1 finish on it, there must be a way to seal the shine to stop it oxidising? (e.g. if you T-cut an old car Turtlewax would keep the finish looking good for a while).
If anyone has any first-hand knowledge of aluminium wonder products, I'd be interested to hear of them!
Thanks,
Chris
