Polished Aluminum

[emergpa1]

My forward cleats had become a little leaky by the end of the sailing season so they were on my list of things to fix this winter.
Then a couple of weeks ago i ran across an article in the Sept 2009 issue of Good Old Boat about buffing and polishing old hardware. So this Sunday I decided to waste a lot of time by removing my aluminum cleats and polishing them.
I sanded the old tarnished finish off using 120 grit sandpaper, then began wet sanding with 200 grit in steps all the way to 2000 grit. Then I used the polishing wheel and aluminum wheel polish shown in the photos. Overall a pretty easy task but it did take all day to do the four cleats.
I was curious if any of you guys had done this, and especially, how long they stay shiny, and how did you keep them gleaming through the season? I would imagine that the aluminum tarnishes pretty quickly.
Keith

 

[bria46]

I use Sharkskin products.

 

[Joe11688]

My forward cleats had become a little leaky by the end of the sailing season so they were on my list of things to fix this winter.
Then a couple of weeks ago i ran across an article in the Sept 2009 issue of Good Old Boat about buffing and polishing old hardware. So this Sunday I decided to waste a lot of time by removing my aluminum cleats and polishing them.
I sanded the old tarnished finish off using 120 grit sandpaper, then began wet sanding with 200 grit in steps all the way to 2000 grit. Then I used the polishing wheel and aluminum wheel polish shown in the photos. Overall a pretty easy task but it did take all day to do the four cleats.
I was curious if any of you guys had done this, and especially, how long they stay shiny, and how did you keep them gleaming through the season? I would imagine that the aluminum tarnishes pretty quickly.
Keith

You did a nice job Keith!

 

[25yearslater]

Wow Keith, very impressive.

 

[Scott On Eagles Wings]

A couple of coats of clear spray lacquer will prolong the nice shinny appearance some, However they will still tarnish You can get the spray lacquer anyplace they sell spray paint.

 

[RichBone]

They sure look good. You could try waxing them.

Rich

 

[emergpa1]

Thanks guys.
I think what I will do is to try ro hit them with the mag wheel polish every time I am at the boat. I will let everyone know at the end of the season how well it works. One of the things the article didn't address was how quickly they tarnished and how the author maintained them.
A related topic, my teak finish didn't last a year. It is cracked and pealing. It began where there were still tinny bits of grey weathering in the deep crevices of my very weathered teak that I couldn't get to with sanding. So now I am faced with refinishing or replacing. My conclusion is that if the teak is very weathered and has moderate to deep cracks and crevices, then the finish is not going to be sustainable.

 

[Scott On Eagles Wings]

I may be able to help you out. What finish did you use and what prep work did you do prior to application?

 

[emergpa1]

I may be able to help you out. What finish did you use and what prep work did you do prior to application?

The teak or the aluminum?

 

[Scott On Eagles Wings]

The teak

 

[OdayDave]

Wow Keith -

You do excellent work! Thanks for sharing.

Dave
O'Day's 222 and 25

P.S. Let me know when you will be coming to WI this summer so I can take you and your friend out for a day of sailing.

 

[emergpa1]

Wow Keith -

You do excellent work! Thanks for sharing.

Dave
O'Day's 222 and 25

P.S. Let me know when you will be coming to WI this summer so I can take you and your friend out for a day of sailing.

on the 22 or the 25? lol
Keith

 

[emergpa1]

The teak

Ok give me a day or two to get back. Thx
Keith

 

[OdayDave]

the 25

on the 22 or the 25? lol
Keith

I still have both, but we will be sailing the 25. I may have to part with the 222, but may not. We'll see how the Commodore tolerates two big sailboats in addition to the other boats in the fleet (12 foot sailing dinghy, two rigid kayaks which are actually hers so they don't count, two inflatable kayaks that are mine, a Walker Bay dinghy, and a rarely used windsurfer). Early indications are that she only wants one big boat, and I do hate to see the 222 high and dry all summer. She belongs in the water (the 222 not my wife).

On that note, I had better get back to my work. More snow tonight, but just a little. Spring is officially here in less than a month but it will be a while before it's truly spring in Wisconsin given how much snow we have on the ground. A few weeks of nice warm weather are needed to melt everything. On a positive note, a good snowpack is good for the Great Lakes levels which are a little below normal.

Dave
O'Days 222 and 25