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Thread Number: 23273
How does one polish up the Kirby vacuum body |
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| Post# 265270 , Reply# 1 1/29/2014 at 19:22 (3,732 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
Hope It's Not A Secret
Not sure if you're still looking for an answer after a month, but I finally proved to myself what I suspected was the answer. I've read all kinds of suggestions from simple metal polish and microfiber cloth, to 0000 steel wool & alcohol. Not to mention Crème of Tartar in boiling water among many others.
Well, I suspected buffing was the only way, but tried all the other methods first. Even sanded out scratches with 80 grit sandpaper, followed by 100 grit, 120, 240, 400, 600, 1000 and finally 2000 grit paper. Then the 0000 steel wool and metal polish. Pffft, no joy. Broke down and bought a couple 8" buff wheels and compound. The second I touched the wheel to the aluminum, I knew that was the ticket. Tried it on a Delta bench grinder, but that's way too awkward. Put it on my Hitachi SP18VA variable speed polisher. Man, what a joy! A little effort goes a LONG way, especially compared to sanding by hand. I believe you could do the bulk of minor scratches with some medium "Scotch Brite", then straight to the buffing wheels. If the machine is already disassembled, you could probably knock it out in an hour, depending how fussy you want to get. Also, if you will be using a very high speed machine, you'll have to be careful. Start slow and learn how it can grab edges, and how to avoid that. Wear heavy gloves and keep alert. Your work can be ripped violently from your hand. There's a lot of nooks and crannies in a vacuum body that can catch the wheel. Just start slow and get a feel for it before going crazy. Here's a link to a kit similar to what I put together, followed by a picture of the 13 year old, commercially used vacuum I polished: CLICK HERE TO GO TO ornery's LINK 
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| Post# 265272 , Reply# 2 1/29/2014 at 19:30 (3,732 days old) by kirbykid (Horseheads,New York 14845) | ||
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I have a 8 inch bench polisher and a 14 inch polisher. They both do great, but they can be VERY expensive. | ||
| Post# 265276 , Reply# 3 1/29/2014 at 20:12 (3,732 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
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Another Suspicion
I suspect the same results can be achieved using much smaller wheels mounted in an electric drill. Of course it would take longer, but with the right compounds and wheels, you could still get it done on the cheap.
CLICK HERE TO GO TO ornery's LINK 
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| Post# 265295 , Reply# 4 1/29/2014 at 22:22 (3,732 days old) by kirbykid (Horseheads,New York 14845) | ||
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I have tried it with drills. There isnt enough speed or power to them. The best way to go is either a bench grinder with polishing wheels or a angle grinder with polishing wheels. | ||
| Post# 265348 , Reply# 5 1/30/2014 at 07:41 (3,731 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
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How About A High Speed Drill or Die Grinder?
My vacuum sat on Ebay for a couple days with about 25 page views and a couple watchers. After the buff job and pictures replaced, I got one offer at 11:30PM, and another person bought it at 2:30AM. Shiny is EVERYTHING!
Gal I work with just asked how I would go about polishing the aluminum on her Harley, if I couldn't take the engine out? I mentioned the small kit from Harbor Freight, coupled with a high speed 1/4" drill or maybe even an air die grinder, which can get insanely fast, like 20,000RPM! Any other suggestions? TIA, John | ||
Post# 265353 , Reply# 6 1/30/2014 at 09:14 (3,731 days old) by jfalberti  (Visalia, CA) |
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I've used the Handi Butler | ||
| Post# 265368 , Reply# 7 1/30/2014 at 10:54 (3,731 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
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Love Aluminum
That picture above shows a side of the nozzle that had really deep scratches and gouges. I used a file followed by progressively finer sandpaper. If the last thing to touch it is a medium Scotch Brite, the cutting compound can blend that super smooth. Mirror finish produced by the loose wheel and white rouge. Aluminum seems even easier to work than wood.
I calculated the surface feet per minute with an 8" buffer at 3,500 RPM to be about 7,300. Using an air die grinder at 20,000 RPM with a 1-1/2" wheel would be 7,800 SFM, about the same. SFM = PI x D x RPM / 12, or SFM = .262 x D x RPM CLICK HERE TO GO TO ornery's LINK | ||
| Post# 265381 , Reply# 8 1/30/2014 at 11:37 (3,731 days old) by sonnyndad () | ||
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I have had pretty good luck with clamping the piece of metal in a Rockwell Jawhorse, and attaching a polishing wheel to an older Makita drill, and using Blue Magic Metal polish cream. In my experience, Blue Magic polishes circles around Mothers. | ||
| Post# 266541 , Reply# 11 2/7/2014 at 04:59 (3,724 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
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Don't Buy Harbor Freight Aluminum Polishing Kit
I bought Harbor Freight's #98707. Figured the small wheels and bobs could get into tight areas. Well, maybe they can, but they can't polish anything at their rated RPM, which is 2,800 for the wheels, and 20,000 for the bobs. The bobs are kind of hard don't take the compound well. Anyway, I'm returning it. Guess it was worth a try, but I wanted to warn others before they waste their time.
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| Post# 268918 , Reply# 12 2/22/2014 at 04:34 (3,709 days old) by vacuumguy (London, Ontario) | ||
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Thanks for all of the great suggestions everyone. This has been very helpful for me and also my very first post! Have an awesome day! | ||
| Post# 268923 , Reply# 13 2/22/2014 at 06:39 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 268924 , Reply# 14 2/22/2014 at 06:40 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 268925 , Reply# 15 2/22/2014 at 06:41 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 268926 , Reply# 16 2/22/2014 at 06:47 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 268964 , Reply# 17 2/22/2014 at 14:00 (3,708 days old) by will09 () | ||
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I assume Royals are also aluminum Isn't polishing compound abrasive? My concern would be getting it in the motor causing wear. Not to put down your work they look great yet I would rather take the machine apart then polish it . Lot's of work though to take it apart. | ||
| Post# 268967 , Reply# 18 2/22/2014 at 14:39 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 268981 , Reply# 19 2/22/2014 at 16:22 (3,708 days old) by ornery (Northeast Ohio) | ||
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Mmmm Good! | ||
| Post# 269050 , Reply# 20 2/23/2014 at 01:33 (3,708 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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| Post# 367650 , Reply# 21 2/28/2017 at 09:10 (2,606 days old) by gsheen (Cape Town South Africa) | ||
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So I saw this link in another thread. Polishing has improved in 1010 days lol
My new compound I have made for polishing dyson bins is amazing on Kirby.s too | ||
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