So you’re Jeep has been proudly flaunting our aluminum fenders and corner guards and rockers and bumpers and whatever else for a while now. You’ve been all over with these parts– on-road, off-road, to work, to play, on vacation… you name it! But you’re noticing they are looking a little worse for the wear. They don’t have the same brilliant luster as when they first arrived at your doorstep.
Here, we’ll show you how to return your aluminum body armor to the same shine it had when it was new.
One of the great features of aluminum is that it doesn’t require paint or powder coat, and if you live in a place like Southern California, it doesn’t require a finish at all. Unlike steel, which will rust, your aluminum will only tarnish over time. And unlike rust, this tarnish can be polished right up.
Aluminum Polishing Before and After
Polishing your Aluminum Jeep Armor is super easy. You will need:
– Scotch Brite pads or very fine grit sand paper.
– Aluminum polish—we like Mother’s Mag and Aluminum Polish.
– Lots of clean rags.
– Mother’s Power Ball (mini).
Before you begin polishing, start with a car wash to clean everything up and to see what you’re really working with. If you notice that you have some larger scratches, use the Scotch Brite Pads to rub them out. The pads are actually quite abrasive and will rough up the aluminum to give it a brushed look. If you are looking for a shinier polish, you can use 800-1600 grit sandpaper.
When you’ve dealt with the larger scratches, you can start in with the polish. Dip your Power Ball (or your rag) into the jar of polish and begin to work the polish into your aluminum. A Power Ball or rag will work better for this application than a buffing wheel, which is too large and will be difficult to work into all the corners of your armor. Work the polish until it turns a dark grey or black color. The change in color indicates that you’re done polishing that area. When this happens, take a clean rag to wipe all of the polish off.
At this point, just wipe the surfaces gently, without using a lot of elbow grease. The key to getting a nice finish is consistency of pressure—if you use more pressure in one area and less in another, you will end up with an inconsistent shine.
This will get your aluminum back to its original luster. If you want an even shinier finish, you can repeat the process, and use more pressure or use sandpaper instead of Scotch Brite pads.
Let us know how your aluminum clears up!
