Polishing vacs

[mac]

I've seen several threads discussing removing vac decals and cleaning them with different products, but would like to know if you know how to polish a vac. The brushed stainless verses the polished mirror like finish. Is this practical? Or doable in the field? In south Florida the brushed ones dull up after a few years and start to corrode. Not like rust, but you get small spots that multiply. I went to a place that I sold polished finish vacs over 10 years ago, and they still look great. Any suggestions?

 

[under pressure]

I think it all depends on the quality of stainless you are working with, I dont think a brushed style finish will ever get you a super shiny finish, but if you are going to try and get some shiny out of them atleast use a grinder with a buffing wheel to save your arm from a workout,

 

[mac]

I know just enough about polishing to be dangerous. I have learned that's it's easy to use too high of a speed on a buffer and overheat the metal. Although it's possable to buff one to a mirror finish, I'm just looking for a nice bright finish.

 

[MEP001]

I think it all depends on the quality of stainless you are working with, I dont think a brushed style finish will ever get you a super shiny finish, but if you are going to try and get some shiny out of them atleast use a grinder with a buffing wheel to save your arm from a workout,

A lot depends on the grade of stainless as well. Most vacs are made of 304 stainless, and if you sand out the brush marks it will polish to a near mirror finish. Older D/H vacs are made from high-carbon 316 stainless which is much stronger and harder, but will always look dull and gray no matter how much work is done to polish them.

I wouldn't think polishing an already assembled and mounted vac would be practical given the nooks and crannies.

 

[Bucksavage]

stainless vac cleaning

I have used a can of cloth or wadding soaked stuff (can't remember then name) polishes very well. You can get it in auto parts store. Its not really practical for large surfaces. After its polished I use a spray on stainless steel cleaner I bought at Home Depot. It comes in a silver can and is 16 to 20 ounces. works really well to clean stainless.

 

[Happycarz]

A professional buffer with a coarse wool pad, using 500 grit compound, work wonders on an old vacuum. At one wash I purchased, I was able to make the vacuums look new again. Shiny but not mirror finish. Well worth the 1/2 hour per vacuum.

 

[mac]

Thanks Harry, that's what I was wanting to find out. I'll be doing this job in about a month and will post some pictures if it works well.

 

[Happycarz]

Also, if you have some real bad areas, some coarse Scotch Brite pads help.

Then again, I've use NuWall at a 4:1 ratio to clean them up. Just have a water hose at hand to rinse them immediately after using the NuWall. On some stainless, the NuWall will leave dark marks/streaks if allowed to dwell too long.

 

[Randy]

I’ve always had good results using NuWall about 3 to 1. Like Harry said be quick to rinse it off or you’ll have a mess. Be sure to wear safety gear, the NuWall is very hazardous. You’ll be surprised at how shiny the vac’s will be when you’re done washing them down with NuWall.

 

[MEP001]

Then again, I've use NuWall at a 4:1 ratio to clean them up. Just have a water hose at hand to rinse them immediately after using the NuWall. On some stainless, the NuWall will leave dark marks/streaks if allowed to dwell too long.

I've used Klean Wall. It's a lot safer than Nu Wall (No hydrofluoric acid), but it will also stain if left to dry. The stainless will look new with no scrubbing.