Hi folks,

Could someone suggest an effective cleaner for alloy body panesls, etc., pls? I have been experimenting with the motorcyclists' favourite - Autosol - which I have found good enough in the past for small areas. But, on panels, it just transfers the black oxide (?) stuff onto rags/dusters and then back onto the metal... How do people with all-ally bodies - or, perish the thought, Airstream caravans - cope?

Altrans was a liquid made by DEB (as in Swarfega) for cleaning ali truck bodies etc. I think it is highly alkaline - or maybe acid, can't remember! It is intended to be used diluted for its purpose. I have some which I use undiluted to clean corroded non ferrous objects. You can leave a brass item in it for some time with impunity. Mazak type materials start to fizz and bubble quickly...

Might be worth a try? I get mine from my local hydraulics fittings suppliers.

Regards, Stuart

Thanks for the tip. That's a new one on me.
(I suppose the trick is to find something strong enough to make a difference but not so strong that it poses a risk to the alloy surface.)Rgds.

Stuart,

I have sent them a query -- and will post the/any response, in case it should be of interest to others.

Cheers.

DEB Altrans- see:-

http://www.deb.co.uk/ukdeb/(kpuhn1i3ofafcsnik4syed2x)/product.aspx?id=258

Jeff.

Yup, that's the site I have accessed. I'll ask about a sample -- as I don't want to buy 20 litres to try it out!

Mine came in a 5 litre container, but it was a while ago.
Regards, Stuart

Be very carefull with Altrans,we used to use it on our bulk tippers,if it is not diluted correctly (might be better to over dilute ) it will pull the shine off the ali and leave it a matt finish.

Actually, I think I might first try my everyday car's Autoglym shampoo and see if that works on its own. The panels are already good; I just want them pristine (!) and want to keep them that way. Thanks for your interest.
Cheers.

Ah, then in that case a friend recommends a good wax polish once you're happy with the state of things.

Regards, Stuart

I heard that the use of baby oil lightly clothed onto clean alloy keeps it in pristine condition! Can only assume this to be an old wives tale?

I use the wife's "Cillit Bang" to clean the alloy wheels on my modern - works a treat. Just don't leave it on too long & rinse off well.

I might try that somewhere where it doesn't show.

I believe a lot of VSCC racers are cleaned with petrol and wire wool. Looks good IMHO!

Probably not the quality of finish you are after though!!!

Steve.

I have tried parrafin on a cloth and rotated by electric drill great results.
Chris

Hi,
Just to take a slightly different tack, try using one of those rotary polishing mops. I got one from Netto for £12 or some such a couple of years back. With a mild abrasive like T Cut or tooth paste it should polish up a good panel OK. Autosol is pricey for the volume you get, try something cheaper then you can splash more on with impunity.
To take another slightly different line does anyone have a good way of getting a new 'scuffed' sheet to the mirror finish - or is it all down this polishing? I've got a reskinned Speedex body to do at some point in the future (ie when it does get skinned!)
Dave

I have tried just about every kind of polish ever made on my ally bodied RTC Special, and this is the method I have now settled on using for the last few years.
What I do is give it the once over at the start of a season with Brasso, this results in the biggest blackest stickiest mess you have ever seen, now instead of trying to polish it off with a dry clean cloth I rinse it off with a rag well soaked in white spirit.

Then the trick is use "Silvo" metal polish wich is really for cleaning the family cutlery collection, this dries to a white powder and is really easy to polish back to the bare metal again.

You can repeat the Silvo treatment fairly often then, as it is not such hard work to do.

Phil Procter

Many thanks for the chance to tap into all these experiences and for all the suggestions. Bryn

UPDATE:

I have decided to give MAAS metal creme (sic) a go.
see www.lastingshine blah blah. And will post results in due course. It's a bit pricey but seems to be accepted by some impressive trade users with tasks even bigger than mine. Cheers, Bryn.