Classic Car Owner Mick Hewitt on restoring the shine to his vintage Morgan
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By Mick Hewitt
Oxidized and tarnished aluminium electrical box: I believe this has never been cleaned/polished from leaving the factory
Restored aluminium electrical box using MAAS Metal Polish
Tarnished wing Mirror
Restored with MAAS Metal Polish
Metal Polishing Your Car by Hand
Metal Polishing your car by hand is a relatively simple process, but it’s important to take your time and do it properly to get the best possible results. To do the job right, you’ll need the right tools, which in this case I used:
- MAAS metal polish
- Muslin cheese cloth
- Microfiber cloth
Before you start Polishing
First, you must clean the surface of any chrome/aluminium components. A microfibre cloth, is ideal as it is gentle on chrome/aluminium
Furthermore, the delicate fibres of a microfibre cloth trap dust and debris effectively, ensuring a thorough cleaning action without damaging and scratching the surface.
Mix a weak solution of detergent or car soap with warm water, creating a soapy solution to wash your chrome/aluminium. Do not use this solution on the rest of your car
Since your chrome components need to be treated differently than the paintwork, use a non-abrasive cleaning agent to preserve the chrome's finish, removing grime, dirt and fingerprints effectively without causing any harm to the surface.
Once you have washed the chrome, thoroughly dry microfibre cloth the different elements since any remaining water can lead to watermarks.
Once you have your equipment, here are the steps you should take:
Step 1 - Apply the metal polish to the muslin cheese cloth. Use as little metal
polish as possible. It’s better to apply many thin coats of Maas metal polish.
Step 2 - Rub the metal polish onto your chrome/aluminium. With a tight, circu-
lar motion, rub the metal polish onto your chrome/aluminium. Apply the met-
al polish one part at a time.
Step 3 - Rub the metal polish away with a cloth. Before the metal polish dries, use your microfiber cloth to wipe it away, using the same type of circular mo-
tion with your hand. You shouldn’t need to use too much force, but make sure
you turn the cloth frequently to prevent metal polish from building up in the
fibres.
Step 4 - Repeat process until required finish is achieved.
Equipment used:
- Maas Metal Polish
- Microfibre cloth
- Muslin cheese cloth