Polishing Aluminum Step Zero & One
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- čas přidán 30. 09. 2021
- There are many types of aluminum and some are harder to polish than others. Cast aluminum is one of the most difficult kinds of aluminum to polish, but it's one of the most beautiful when it's done right. In this video I take a 20+ year old used piece of cast aluminum that was purchased on eBay and first challenge its worthiness for this job. While this may seem like a spoiler in the description because the job continues beyond this point, please understand that this is not the first cylinder head that I put through these paces. This video demonstrates WHY you would want to have high standards for any part that receives this kind of treatment, as well as the most effective use of your time while starting this process.
A successful CZcams channel uploads at least twice a week. Videos about time-consuming, laborious processes are not profitable videos for me to make, but I understand how much satisfaction I receive from having done these kinds of jobs myself, and I want to share what I know about these jobs with all of you. I want all of you to experience that satisfaction from your efforts. My videos are typically time-consuming long-haul jobs that can not conform to Google's algorithm schedule. The kinds of videos I make CAN NOT follow that schedule, but I make these videos not for Google or their algorithms. Monetization might provide me with $60-$80 of ad revenue for it, while being subjected to ranked promotion and politicized filtering, but like I said... this is not for them, it's for you. I want this to be a resource for anyone who needs guidance and I want it to be available in your time of curiosity and need. If not for my supporters on Patreon who bridge this gap that the algorithms create for me, I would have wrapped up and quit my production years ago. Please understand that the names scrolling by at the end of my videos are the people who get this, who want me to keep making these kinds of videos, and who want YOU to have these kinds of videos. Everyone who has contributed or who continues to contribute to my production on Patreon page are the reasons why all of you have it. If you wish to support what I do here, you can do so at www.patreon.com/jafromobile. Every donation helps me help the willing, and I spend everything I make from it on doing this.
I open with the background of what inspired me to start doing this, who helped me the most once I attempted it for myself, and what I accomplished with my efforts. I believe these things are important qualifications to share because these techniques have been applied to automobiles for over 100 years (the "brass cars" of the 1900's-1910's) and repeated on many cars and motorcycles throughout the post-war era of hot rodding through today. It's an artisan's touch to engine building that does not improve the mechanical performance of an engine in any measurable way. To put it simply, it's for the fans. It's for attention. It's an aesthetic treatment. But for the one doing the work, the parts only receive this kind of treatment because that car is loved. It's a visual demonstration that it's their favorite thing. The maintenance it requires is why it's typically only seen on SHOW CARS, and why it's most often applied to high performance builds. That car owner has been receiving dividend payments of adrenaline and attention with it that made them fall in love with it. They do this because they want it to stand out among a crowd of others like it, but most importantly to make an impression on everyone who is a FAN of it. They want to make more fans of it, and people love shiny, unusual things. It's an extremely effective tactic as it makes people stop walking, and look at it. And keep looking at it. And then start looking FOR it.
Please consider how you're using these techniques and why they're beneficial to you if you wish to do this to your parts. I don't want to lose any friends over the punishment endured by anyone trying to accomplish this. If your car spends more time with the hood open than closed, then this might be for you... but it's a whole lot of work to maintain, and God forbid you break it like I did.
I have several MAJOR announcements in this series that extend beyond the polishing job and provide more context of my goals, so please come back and watch the rest. More coming soon, Stay Tubed! - Auta a dopravní prostředky
Got an awesome Pantera owner here in town, original owner and has maintained the car impeccably and loves it deeply. I Love watching and following along with this polishing detail Jafro, thank you!
That's excellent! Brother, get a ride in that thing! It will change you. I know the insanity of what you're already riding in... but it's two opposite worlds orbiting the exact same sun. It's a beautiful, 50 year old oddity of engineering to experience. You'll find out what really happened to me when I was 9, what created this. A big block V8 5-speed without a driveshaft. It changed me forever.
tom and jafro the 2 most underrated youtubers
Aye, it's Tom!
Today on "relative levels of insanity"
We appreciate the videos Jafro 😆
I’m going to bed. I’m exhausted. My arms ache. My fingers are bleeding. My nose is full of silver snot. And all I’ve done is was watch this video.
Someone knows!
@@Jafromobile Hahahaha. Yep
I love and respect your sickness. It helps me realize that artists still exist.
Hahahaha this is the first detailed video I've seen where you teach us something that you never want us to do, but yet show us exactly how to do it. Love it
This is the most 90s job ever. Thank you, I love your videos.
Period correct for the car then... Perfect! 😊
People see polishing, I see stress relieving of the casting,
Now we're talking. I swear it gets softer... I could use it as a pillow.
I learned my lesson by polishing the "Subaru Turbo" pipe on my old car. I spent probably 25-35 hours on it.
The car has become part of an H-beam or nails or something many years ago. But I still clean and polish that pipe on my shelf every once in a while..
This is typical Jafro doing his micro focused thing, one step broken down at a time. Some may get bored, but they won no trophies for their effort, lack of effort. Doing things by hand is often misunderstood and taken for granted by those that haven’t the first clue as to what this level of dedication requires. As a practitioner of this type of working ethic, I don’t think about it. You know what is required and you do each step and inspect and reevaluate it. It isn’t for many. Most don’t want to and fewer have the focus to endure and press on. I admire it because I am a practitioner and I get it. Lazy doesn’t even visit here. Rock your work and press on Jafro. Your work is awesome ass! Stay safe my mates!😊👍🏻😷
Your work is truly what defines the word Craftmanship. Doing the things that can only be done with personal time, effort and experience to achieve a truly unique and special result. Thank you for showing the world. The next time I see something polished in an engine bay, I'll be able to appreciate what went into it.
Ohhh yessss!!!! Damn near did a backflip when I saw a 40+ minute video from Jafro!!!! Now if we get a new Turbo Tom video I'll be on cloud 9
Your content and voice over is so great. Also love your sense of humor. I've learned so much from your time here it completely changed the way I build engines from big v8s to single cylinder tractor engines. Keep doing what you do and don't ever stop! Excited to see your GSX back on the strip!
Ive done the timing covers, valve covers, water outlets etc on my SRs and KAs, one 4g63 valve cover...looked at the heads and told myself, "youd have to be crazy, that is way to much detail".
jafro, major props. i dont have the patience of a monk
Throttle bodies... DSM throttle bodies are where I draw the line. Take the detail of the intake side, and shrink it to 1/16th the size, wrapping it around a cube. No. Just... no...
yeah I want to try to polish both the inside and outside of all three parts of my transmission case (M5BF2)... equally crazy...
@@Jafromobile would clear coating it help with having less maintenance in polishing it? ( planning on trying that for my 2 gen hemi K-code moded/twin plug cast or billet stock looking aluminium/magnesium valve covers and figured it was ok 👌 for a daily driving ( as the black rhino 🦏 lining isn't for me 🤢 and it collects smoot and dirt or falls off ect. ). and like it or not i know that my charger will be in the rain driving 🌧 at last 1's in a 5 year period the block is darker candy apple 🍎 with silver flakes paint or powder coated, im stuck like your 6-bolt block / same spot for now that's why i haven't coated yet. parts collect time for me for now ) and yes the belt is a weak link in the 2g 90's DSM's and yep the 3 or 1 rod does end up going out the side of the block and i found they can drop the valves or bend them, not in any order as i have see more than one way they can die on N/A engine's as i didn't work on a lot of turbocharged or blower cars in my local area ( 2000's ) as 🤷♂️ i guess people didn't want to spend extra money for it instead they bought N/A v8s ( or rarely v6 or diesels and no v10+ ) if they wanted more power and or got the screw supercharged v8 fords or brand X ( and didn't do enough for the bottom line 💰to matter aka 4 in a 3~ year period of any maintenance at all ) if they had a hole in their back pocket to burn 💴 ect.
as for the polished look its nice 👍 but the older guys in the club and others warned me not to do the full look that same thing as you said as i wouldn't keep up to what is need for bare aluminium as im usually busy with work or family time but i do try to take good care of my classics ( just a little more 💤 looking aka what the dealership's would have delivered it with but high end 👌 ) aka need something a little less needy for me to keep up with 👍 🤠
ps. the heads ( silver aka fake aluminium look ) are iron M-8 casting hemi and the block is iron fount timing cover is aluminium but i will probably coat in a different colour than red or clear 🤷♂️🤔
@@richardprice5978
In short, on raw polished aluminum, YES. There are specialized clear coats out there that are for this very purpose/ application. VHT is one of the vendors that comes to mind. They produce a Urethane Clear for this and I have used it with good results like most of the stuff VHT makes it is good quality and works well as long as you follow the directions and the basic properties of painting.
There is also the choice to use a good metal sealant like ZoopSeal. That stuff is excellent and I highly recommend using it on your raw polished aluminum to prevent it from hazing up, and to keep you from the constant maintenance and touch-ups that it entails when left untreated.👍👍🙂
Sweet, just spent yesterday listening to old videos while driving to and from Lynchburg.
Wow! I'm glad I got to be a part of that! Yeah, I'm glad I waited that extra day for the new content because you needed to be looking at the road! lol!
I was so impressed with this video and couldn’t quit watching it. I had to see every detail. I learned a lot as well. I did want to mention that none of the sanding needs to be done by hand. You can start with a dremel and 120 grit and get your flat surface. For all edges, corners and tight spaces I use a dremel wire wheel #447. It won’t leave noticeable scratch’s without using a magnifying glass. I use wire wheels on drills for the big areas and then maybe 240 grit sandpaper. From there I go to 400 grit then to 600 grit and I do wet sanding using a spray bottle. I then buff and polish. I like using the bars to buff it out which are usually black,maroon and then the polish is either white or green. It will make aluminum look chrome. Cleaning has always been the same and I just use a mild car was soap and water. As mentioned I do have to dry it. You should let the tools do the work for you and shave off about half the time. It will look like the head was dipped in chrome
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Jafro, you're my hero.
haaah, I knew you would eventually get around to rebuilding the numbers block for your GSX.
love the Cleveland V8s btw.
Yes, we talked about this... we kicked it around a loooooong time ago. I had to do it!
Well Jafro,
After 11 years after selling my GSX I just bought another one. I had been hoarding parts that where rare even then. Now I get to use them all. I’d just like to say it’s because of you I still have not given up on my DSM love.
Thank you for keeping the DSM world alive.
This is the video I've been looking for. I've got two Ducati 250 engines from the 1960's and want to do them justice. I'm 74 years old -- lifelong musician and have painted houses for decades. So I know enough about preparation to jump into this with eyes wide open. So thanks. One nice thing about labor intensive work like this is that there won't be many copy cats. If the process took three hours everyone would have gleaming aluminum work. Not going to happen in this age. Thanks again -- this will be my ongoing reference.
Yes yes yes!!! Finally... Was checking the channel yesterday and the day before and thinking it was about that time again!
Those two days I was cursing loudly at Tim Cook through my display trying to save this project. lol!
Good job. I’m a die maker. When I polished my bike engine I used radius gauges and made up some polishing bobs for the internal rads. Using various diamond pastes. In step 1.
The obvious areas I was using jewellery tools diemakers files even a jewellers eye glass. And of course gauges.
Then I put the fairing back on the bike and you could only see about %20 of what I’d done.
Insanity and. Never again.
Some say polishing is therapeutic: I'll take their word for it!
😲When I was 16 I once decided to polish my wheels, after stripping 3 sanding 2 and a finish polishing one they all turned out great when I gave up and painted them.
That's how to both go big AND go home. ...cause we've got other stuff to do! Then we go home and find that they actually sell polished wheels! ;)
@@Jafromobile 😂TRUE It is therapeutic watching this. I got to learn something as well. Nice work Jafromobile!! Cant wait to see how it comes out
You sir have a whole different level of patience. New level of appreciation for people that have polished bays.
I have never watched a 43 minute video without pausing or getting distracted before until now. This was amazing content with great and entertaining voiceover. Thank you for your effort and for recording and suffering through the whole process. You've convinced me to not polish my sheet aluminum cargo roof box which is why I found this video. I'm off to watch part 2.
Enjoy my hundreds of hours of manual labor, and the thousand hours I spent editing these cliff notes. Some of the things we want out of life are like this.
PS: If it's sheet aluminum, you don't need to sand it. At all. Go right to the polishing wheels. This is for cast parts. ;)
Maaa’!!! I hit that like 👍🏻 button so many times but it only allowed me to just like your video once🤣🤦🏻♂️.
I did the same thing to a 1600cc VW engine. Talk about work!!! I was 16 when I started and was 20 when I finished. And I’m sure like you, back then I didn’t have many friends to tell me otherwise. 🤣🤣🤣
Keep up the GREAT WORKS
Bro, I’m in the middle of living this nightmare right now. I had no idea what I was getting into when I decided that I would polish my aluminum N-54 engine block on my 2007 BMW 335I.
I wish I had seen this video two months ago when this all started. Some nights working till four or five in the morning. Try every imaginable, tool, sanding, and buffing combination. It’s enough to drive man crazy and once you’re halfway in, you’ve got to see it through all the way.
Thank you for the needed boost of confidence I needed to finish this thing up. Amazing work by the way my guy.
Some of the most thorough productions anywhere. Great stuff as usual!
As always, amazing detail in your video's Jafro. Thanks for your hundreds of hours to produce each and any every episode.
The pauses at each rooster call had me chuckle 🤭
after years and years i still watch and rewatch your videos the way you was watching the DeTomaso's. Thanks for the great content with a lot of useful details 🙏
Only Jafro could film 45 minutes of grass growing and achieve 490 likes and ZERO dislikes as of this posting
Takes me back about a decade ago when I did this exact process to my lsvtec head block and transmission take over a year before that car got put back together
Wish I'd found this video before investing countless hours working on a 42-year-old Suzuki motorcycle engine. But... Better late than never right? At least now I know the answer to the question plaguing me: "There's got to be a better way than this?" Nope. It requires more time and energy than any sane person would want to invest. And now I know... That's just fine. Thanks for the Body Spreader tip, that's gold.
Truly admire the effort. Never in my lifetime will I ever dare do this to my own vehicle. However, oddly satisfying to watch someone else do it. (in fast forward)
Exactly what I've wanted. Nice job! Can't wait for part two.
Full respect for your dedication.
Holy crap! Can’t wait to see the finished product. Digging the old pics of the polished head, something I could never do but I do enjoy looking at it!
back in the 80`s i polished my uncles harley forks with never dull and used a shop rag imbedded with polishing cream and many hours to do it. i was proud to see his forks outshine his friends` forks on their scooters. its nice to see someone who knows the struggle with alum. and no i haven`t done it again to that extent.
I'm sure I have all the products you mentioned. All of them are a part of this series. There's even one that goes beyond a perfect polished finish but it's super-elbow-grease-intensive. Nev-R-Dull is a miracle product for polishers. It also does a truly incredible job at removing caked-on polishing rouge from a polished part.
@@Jafromobile never dull is the best i know of.
So much dedication to detail mate. I appreciate your time in to making your style of content. Thank you and keep it up.
Spectacular work!
watching you polish this head is so satisfying! thank you . and also, thank you for not showing yourself polish other kinds of head.. =)
Or cock. And by cock, I mean rooster. Of course. Because... oh nevermind.
Thank you. Greatly appreciated!
i love your videos no1 else comes close to your attention to detail and commitment.
It’s good to see you back at it.
Annoying bird 🐦 sadly. I bet the cat enjoys that sound lol.
Nice job & it's just amazing how much stuff is still sticking to the head after the bath.
Be safe.
Really looking forward to this ‘series’! I’m currently trying to pick up an Aluminium V6 that would benefit greatly from this! And most likely, I’ll be happy to never, EVER do it again! 😂
Excellent, poetry in motion.
I thought I was going to get a speedy method of polishing cast aluminium from the video
Not disappointed though, it appears that I doing it the same way
Yes I’m at that 10 hour point of a old v8 single plane manifold and needs another 30 hours to put in
I was looking for a cheat damn it
No cheating here
Great work
Thanks for sharing. I’m definitely not patient enough to do that. In fact, I don’t have patients to even watch you do it. I couldn’t even watch this video without skipping ahead.
That's alright bro! It could be the sole purpose of my existence is to serve as a warning to others.
Holy moly..... you're the best!
I meant u at World Cup you are a Dsm god in my eyes it was a Honor to talk to you and you took the time to answer any questions I had even while racing was going on that just shows he’s a real one and one of the main reason why I own 2 fast eclipse a Gsx and a gst rock on brother !!!
This is a awesome and time consuming hobby.
Best narrated video on YT
Simply brilliant.
Oh, another sickness to add to the list off insane jobs to do on your car. Keep them coming!
Well done sir! You are my type of insanity and love how you make it right! Thanks so much for sharing.
Hell yes sir your passion is unbeatable by any in my book good work keep it up cant wait for more I'm dying in anticipation to see the gsx back in action
Me too! If only I could find a body shop anywhere on the east coast that will answer their phone? I may have to buy/build my own body shop before all of this is over.
hi ! i love your clock ! because nobody knows how hard a good result is !! congratulations !
I don't own DSM's anymore, but i still love watching your videos. Every time i watch one of your videos I want to get another GSX.
I absolutely love your 80's references to awesome movies, the Karate Kid.
I miss movies with wholesome moral values that were relatable and entertaining.
Ahhh dang im late… well least im still here having my day made by another great Jafro video!
This was excellent and is much appreciated.
after cooking the stuff down from the head then polishing with polisher tool, I was priming then painting with the same silver colour, using heat resistant paint, which removes all this scratches you have. now looks beautiful
I love this channel
I used to hate polishing metal.
Some things never change.
I also like to use lolli sticks and firm foam from packaging to wrap the paper round.
Currently working on re-sanding and re-polishing a 2015 dirtbike Alu frame, these tips are awesome for my project! i spent 80 hours on it the first time then clear coated it and the clear coat ruined the polish, then it was stolen for 4 years and beat up. i got my hands full. probably looking at 120hr or more on the frame to get it mirror finish again.
Great job , I had no idea the time involved . Me like.
Big Respect To You man!!!
Great video. Sand blasting with 120 grit aluminum oxide to start saves a ton of time. It really helps smooth out the casting imperfections.
I just spend half the summer polishing a cast aluminum supercharger housing for an Audi S4. Great work. Albeit you say the cast metals are lower quality it looks as though the surface and density of your casting is quite good! This is gonna be a very nice polish!
I was 99.9% sure I was about to go pure psycho and do this on my first ever engine build because it's all or nonthing......and then I got towards the very end and my question about oxidation and upkeep was answered. Thank you very much for adding that in there! I'm out but this was very well done and congratulations. I'm going to go watch the next episode now just because I have to see this through vicariously.
I love your videos even though I have a 420a. I still have a love for the awd turbo (4g63). Someday I'll own one and all your videos will have great insight to what I'm working towards. Keep em coming.
1. I can smell this video and taste it. Be sure to wear a mask to keep this aluminum out of your nose!
2. The rooster had me laughing way too much.
3. You rock Jafro! This is great.
The timing of this video couldn't be better - I just bought a spare camshaft cover for my Alfa Romeo to do this to!
Beginning to regret it now 😄
You'll be fine! ;) Think of it as quality time together. Your car appreciates what you're doing for it. It told me.
I have a set of OEM VW wheels that had trashed clear coat on the machined faces thanks to our Midwest winters. I foolishly decided to polish them and quickly realized it was a terrible idea but decided to finish it since I already started it. My advice is, don't do it.. lol the finished product looks amazing but it's a lot of work and you'll regret the regular maintenance to keep the aluminum shiny. Of course now you can apply ceramic coating and extended the shine and keep the parts clean but you will have to keep the polishing the aluminum until the end of time.
@jafromobile... I feel for you. I also do metal polishing. I love the finished product, but the first few steps are horrific and tedious as all hell. I was taught by a guy who used to polish engines on Harley's for a few "HA's" and the direction of sanding is most important. Absolutely have to sand in the direction of the grain of the metal. There's so much time and involved and a very trained eye to turn something from a regular piece of metal and turn it into a mirror shine that is flawless. It is absolutely something that you have to be committed to. I also can't look at any unpolished metal without wanting to polish it even knowing the can of worms it opens. But i fell in love with it as soon as i finished my first project, which was a simple shotgun barrel and reciever. After that, I was addicted and have not stopped, and it's been 15 years since that shotgun.
So, I am aware of what you go through. Im glad to see someone else is addicted to it. People who do this need a "Polishers Anonymous" support group. LMAO!!!
Cylinder head brighter than my future already.
😂LOL!
It would've been really cool to know the difference of the head's weight when you first got it and after the 2.4 eternities you're spending cleaning, sanding, and polishing it.
2oz
So glad Im not the only one addicted to polishing stuff lol
3:19. Absolutely perfectly timed comedic cut. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
You seem closer to an engineer/fabricator moreso than just an auto mechanic. Thanks for the ideas on polishing up my cracked 2G valve cover.
You’re special Jafro.
AWESOME as always Jafro
Wait until the next one... you'll feel like this one is only mediocre! :P
@@Jafromobile brother, if I could come back down tomorrow ....... I would
f for nothing else to make your life easier
I work at a facility with a bead blaster. I cleaned my cruddy oxidized parts. Some turbo and exhaust parts and the thermostat housing so far. It is a lot of work but I enjoy it.
Jafro I'm doing a headgasket job right now and this video was echoing in my head as I was looking over all the crusty, scaly, oily aluminum parts. Like the call of the void I am now feeling a strange pull to polish everything. Damn you!
Hey a video!!!! Thanks!
That sandpaper you using is for a palm sander. Walmart 3M is whatcha want ;)
That was torture, love your dedication to the cause.
Mothers Aluminum polish - best in the game.
Thank you soooooo much!
I thought I was crazy for polishing my aluminum wheel nuts, but this...this..saluting you is an understatement
Seems more like extreme case of OCD then polishing as a hobby and yes don't worry i will never do this. Awesome job Jafro, love it.
Good stuff!
Very satisfying watch jafro good work 👌 people who have tried know the pain haha
diegrinder with a paint removing disc works brilliant for sanding the small flats, if you trim the width of the disc guard you can cut the discs down to fit in the smaller spots to save time.
DAMN..... THAT ultrasonic cleaner that was worth the watch.
18:22 ouch. i know the video is sped up but that REALLY drives it home! love these!!!
Right? See half an hour go by while I work on the exact same square inch. Calculate the square inches... ouch is right!
I started to polish my intake manifold a few years ago, after a couple of hours and very little progress, I decided it would look good black, still think about going back and stripping it down and polishing it
Intake manifolds are brutal. I quit one and painted it, myself. If you have to do it, polish what you can see on the outside. The back and bottom of it can't be seen at all. Just clean the rest. Or don't? Because you can buy polished intake manifolds. Relocating batteries and coil packs for that can be a pain, but so is polishing an intake manifold. :P
@@Jafromobile it’s on an SRT4 engine so only the top and in between the runners is really visible, the area around the injector bosses will be tough, but I think it’ll be worth it
That exhaust manifold bro looks really great... Been watching you for a long time Tom's turbo garage was the first real DSM videos I liked watching it till I came across yours unfortunately he sold his DSM I miss that car