Need help with customer request

E

ezd96

New member
:nixweiss



I have a customer that is reconditioning his 16' 1960 Orlando Clipper all aluminum hull boat. He wants me to clean and polish the outside of the hull. Anybody have suggestions how to approach this situation.



Thanks in advance.

Dave
 
Need to know more about the condition of the boat. Is it repainted? Original? Most boats are gelcoat, so you need slightly different products to handle them. Meguiars carries a full line of boat and RV cleaners, polishes and waxes.
 
The hull is only aluminum and is not painted. I will be looking at the boat this weekend for the first time and will take photos to post.



My first thought would be to wash the hull with a 50/50 solution of water and muriatic acid.(I have tried this process with the diamond plate side rails on the bed of my truck with success then polish.What a pain!)



Second, Maybe some sort of polish just for aluminum Mothers,Meguires ect..



Just like to know if it is this simple or is there one more process I'am missing and a polish that may be better than a off-the-self brand.
 
ezd96 said:
The hull is only aluminum and is not painted. I will be looking at the boat this weekend for the first time and will take photos to post.



My first thought would be to wash the hull with a 50/50 solution of water and muriatic acid.(I have tried this process with the diamond plate side rails on the bed of my truck with success then polish.What a pain!)



Second, Maybe some sort of polish just for aluminum Mothers,Meguires ect..



Just like to know if it is this simple or is there one more process I'am missing and a polish that may be better than a off-the-self brand.
Click to expand...



You are correct about the wash but I would be VERY careful with the muratic acid as it will etch the metal if used improperly. I use a product called Autosol when polishing the aluminum tanks and wheels on Transport trucks and it works great. It is probably going to take a long, long time but it will polish up like a mirror if you do it right. I use a wool pad with autosol at around 1700 rpm and just keep going until the metal is nice and shiny. Good luck.



P.S. A nice product to use is jewellers rouge. It usually comes in a bar and you may be able to buy it at the local truck stop. I know you can get it from www.eastwood.com if not. A little different to use but really does a nice job.
 
Shineshop is right about the Autosol. It is an excellent product, but as he said, it will take a long, long time. I did my 12' aluminum fishing boat. I used a foam pad on a rotary. It took darn near 3 hours!!!! And the process is really messy!!!!



Autosol is available in autoparts stores like Lordco or others.

It is made in Canada by:



Canadian Trade/Autosol,

Mississauga, Ontario

Canada

L5S 1L4



(it is made from the original German formula)



If anyone has an easier answer on this one, I would really like to hear it!



I hope this helps!! :)

Cheers!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top