How do I keep aluminium components shiny?

[gordon taylor]

I've got some non-anodized aluminium bike bits (trike hubs especially) which are starting to get pitted - with oxidisation. I presume.

I've googled and found some American stuff that claims to protect motorbike forks etc - but is there anything in the UK that you know of that will keep chemistry at bay?

Thanks.

[rogerzilla]

Keep polishing 'em, really.  Good lacquer works for a while, but eventually lets moisture in.  Aluminium is a bit like brass in that respect; you can buy lacquered brass door furniture, but after two years outdoors it looks terrible and you have to apply paint stripper to remove the remaining lacquer and polish regularly thereafter.

Road salt makes aluminium quite blotchy, and in some parts of America they can't even comprehend the problem because they don't use it.

For hubs, have you tried the old CTC trick of a short leather saddlebag strap round the hub shell?  The weight of the buckle stops it rotating, so it constantly polishes the hub when riding.

[steveB]

Remember Solvo Autosol, it's not made anymore, but that was the stuff to polish aluminium, especially the old casings on British motorbikes.

[Biggsy]

You can still buy Solvol Autosol:

www.google.co.uk/products?hl=en&q=Autosol&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wf

[gordon taylor]

Thank you. That's exactly what I wanted. I'll head down to the local car-bits place this afternoon.

[Treewheeler]

By not riding your best bike in winter...

[Martin]

+1 for Solvol Autosol; Halfrauds still sell an inferior substitute; you'll need to use spray laquer as well unless you are going to polish the stuff every couple of weeks.

[rogerzilla]

I polished and lacquered a crankset once.  The lacquer was completely ineffective, and I shouldn't have bothered.  The OEM stuff that Shimano use is probably catalysed or baked.

[Gus]

Get some marine wax for aluminium and start polishing.

[donpedro]

I've got some non-anodized aluminium bike bits (trike hubs especially)...

Most aluminium parts are actually first put trough a anodising process that ad no colour to the material, and then covered with thin clear coat. Still it oxidise and it could take a while to polish that coat away and get shine back again! You then have to keep buffing it up once in a while.

[Biggsy]

Anodising can be clear (or a milky near-clear) as well as coloured.

Attempt to polish with Autosol to test whether the metal is anodised or coated.  No black mark on cloth = not bare metal and cannot be polished without removing the coating first (which I wouldn't do).

[Jurek]

  For Solvol Autosol.
Is it really no longer available?

Better still, because unlike Solvol it contains a protective wax which will act as a seal after you've buffed, is Alu Belgom.
Favourite of the motorcycling fraternity.

I bought my last batch from Cetem Polishing Supplies in Scunthorpe, on 01724 281 305

[bobajobrob]

Autosol is brilliant stuff, you can still get it in halfords last time I looked. I polished my old Shimano 600 crank with it a year or so ago, brought it up like a mirror. It still looks pretty good. Most newer alu bits are coated with stuff so won't polish up.

[Biggsy]

For Solvol Autosol.
Is it really no longer available?

Click the link I posted above and you'll see it's still very available.

It is great stuff.  I used to use it for turning £10 bikes into £60 bikes