Found this in the depths of my phone while trying to find some old picture it’s a great guide so I thought I would share.
have been polishing
aluminum on motorcycles
for about fifteen years now.
All of my polishing has been
by hand with no air tools. A
bench grinder with a buffing
wheel attached helps. I
have a 98 gsx-r 750 and
just recently polished the
outside edges of my rims.
My '90 750 was completely
polished, wheels, frame,
triple clamps, handlebars,
swingarm……everything that
was aluminum. It looked
great!
Polishing the entire wheel is
very tedious because you
first have to sand the
casting down on the wheels
so that they are smooth, but
leaving the cast spokes
painted and polishing the
edges is quite easy
because when the rims are
cut it smoothes out the
casting on the inside and
outer edges of the wheel.
First mask off any part of
the wheel you don't want
stripped, if any. Then get an
industrial grade stripper, I
recommend a spray on
stripper called Tal-Strip linked
over and leave for about 20
minutes. After that time
check for bubbling and peeling. Use steel wool
and wipe off paint, re-apply if necessary. Rinse
with water. Once you have removed the paint
from both sides it's time to sand them glass
smooth.
Start with 320 grit till the rim seems smooth. Then repeat the process with 400, 600,
800. 1000. and mirror fine sandpaper till they are
smooth as possible. Once you are sure that
there are no deep scratches and the rim is
smooth as glass then you are ready to polish.
The sanding should be wet-sanding with plenty of water
Now get some Mother's Mag & Aluminum
Polish linked by editor to product info at Amazon and start
polishing with a fine 100% cotton cloth. Buff
each side of rim about 5-6 times wiping clean
with a separate cloth each time. Once desired
shine is achieved remount wheels. You must
remember that once they are polished scratches
show easily. Finish by applying a coat of
automobile wax, I use Meguiar's. Some people
will tell you to have them painted with clear coat
but the paint will peel in time as the aluminum is
too smooth to hold the paint effectively. You will
only need to re-buff once every month or so. I
would go over my aluminum real quickly with
polish after each wash. If you keep it waxed it
will not oxidize, don't believe people who say it
will oxidize, just keep it waxed and give it a quick
I polish every now and then. You'll get the hang of it
