[Mgs] Cleaning aluminum

[Rick Lindsay]

Hello Friends,

Merry Christmas and all the other salutations of the season!

I write to you this Christmas Eve to talk about engine restoration.  Specifically, I want to ask about cleaning aluminum.  I have always used cloth, steel wool or ScotchBrite lubricated with WD40 or lacquer thinner and I like the results.  However, the finish does not look 'new'.  I'd like to know a technique to get that really clean white-aluminum finish of freshly cast aluminum.  I've tried media blasting but the shop I visited used steel balls not glass, plastic or shells.  The result was a dull gray finish that I didn't like.  I ended up painting the part with 'Cast Coat Aluminum' engine paint - a sad, second-class solution, if attractive.

So today I ask; How does one get that 'new part' aluminum finish?

best regards,

rick
'08 M-B C300
'03 L-R Discovery
'96 BMW 740iL
'83 Ferrari Mondial QV
'79 Ferrari 308GTB
'61 M-B 180b