Long overdue update,
Backdate work is progressing and we are now primed and almost ready for color, we’re using Glasurit and I’m sticking with Irish Green. Sunroof delete and complete roof reskin turned out fantastic, the donor roof was in great shape and local so we got lucky. Decided no ducktail which I think will be a good look, the look will be aggressive enough given the flares so no need to go crazy. It's really coming along and starting to look like the car I envisioned, hopefully we'll have finish paint on in a couple weeks.
While the car sits at the body shop I've been working at home to restore the window frames. After searching through this site I found enough info to give the courage to try restoring them myself. I'll say it's become much more difficult than I expected, but in the end they will look awesome. I've decided to go with the brushed aluminum look rather than a mirrored polish. Here is the difference:
I plan on going with Braid fuchs (9" front, 11"rear) which will have a brushed aluminum finish, rather than mixing up metal finishes I think going with brushed window trim, decklid grill and horn grill will tie it all together.
Lot's of trial and error on the aluminum frames but the process that I've found to work the best is:
- Strip Anodized layer with Easy Off heavy duty oven cleaner, do not use anything else as it will not even come close to doing the job.
- 5" orbital palm sander: Start with 100 you will see the anodized layer peel away, surface will feel slightly rough so I use 180 as the last step with the palm sander. Try not to build up too much heat as these parts will warp.
- From here it's all elbow grease: I used 3M dry/wet automotive sandpaper and it worked the best. I used water which seemed to help. Start with 220 and work your way up to 2000.
- Now to the polishing wheel, I used Mothers metal polish and out of all the brands it seemed to be the best performer. If you are going for a mirror finish you will want to do a rough polish, then use 0000 steel wool and then back for a final polish. If your going for the brushed aluminum look just stop after the steel wool.
Once your done off to a local shop for a clear anodize. I'll say that if you're a perfectionist or have severe OCD go ahead and send it to King of Trim or another trim restoration shop. Throughout the process you will see so many imperfections and nearly loose your mind, but if you can live through the visual shock it's actually not that hard to do. My frames were beat with scratches, yet in the the end they will be nearly perfect so it can be done.