stainless and aluminium polish

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Hey everyone,New to the site and relatively new to tig welding.Question is, after welding stainless and aluminium, what is the best way to get a mirror finish?I'm assuming its a mixture of buffering and some sort of solution but any help would be appreciated. Cheers, Sam.
Reply:Usually it's sanding with progressively finer grits followed buy buffing with various polishing compounds.I can remember what my old shop teacher told us about polishing our alum projects. You need to loose all the scratches from the preceding grits, before moving on to the next grit. if not, chances are you won't get the scratches out. There no real short cuts, though power tools will help decrease the time it takes between grits. Best practice is to try as hard as possible to minimize the damage in handling so you have the least amount of stuff to take out when you go to polish.I know there have been several threads on this topic in the past..No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Yes the whole minimising the damage is becoming apparent! hahaThink my biggest thing is i want to remove all the heat marks (ie; the rainbow) from stainless. some people may like that i'm not sure. But i'm looking to make a very clean piece.
Reply:Passivation after welding or abrasives use is generally a good idea - more especially so if the item fabricated is to be decorative or artistic. You can use dynabrade dynisher for mirror like finish.
Reply:try some 3m polishing compound and a highspeed buffer., if the surface is scratched, you'll have to sand the scratches out, depending on the finish your wanting to achieve,  start with a rougher grit and progress with finer grit, then go to the polishing compound and buffer.  also while your sanding try to use a sanding block so you dont put gouges and dips in the material..tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:As long as my metal is free from nics and scratches I just polish the mill finish or I use an 800 grit and wet sand the nics out. I usually spray a phosphoric acid, and the wipe it off. Then I just hand polish with mothers brand aluminum & mag wheel polish, it works easy, quick, and the results are amazing Attached Images
Reply:Never thought of using mothers, but it DOES work well on wheels!
Reply:SIMICHROME!  Beats the heck out of Mothers.http://www.simichrome-polish.com/http://www.competitionchemicals.com/simichrome/[ame]http://www.amazon.com/Simichrome-Polish-50-Gram-1-76/dp/B000BGOC0W[/ame]40 years ago when I was introduced to Simichrome polish I got it from the nearest HD motorcycle shop,  but that was before Mother's started pushing their product out of Huntington Beach California.  Now I mail order it when I need a tube.  I hand buffed the outer cast aluminum cooling fins on the cylinder heads of my Suzuki TItan to a mirror shine with it.  It has cleaned and polished everything metal that I wanted polished since.I like Simichrome far better than the standard Mother's you find almost everywhere today. It works faster and polishes slightly rough surfaces which I can't seem to get the Mother's to do.   But Mother's has a billet polish that I haven't tried yet.  It's not quite so ubiquitous in the stores: http://www.mothers.com/02_products/05106.html- MondoMember, AWSLincoln ProMIG 140Lincoln AC TombstoneCraftsman Lathe 12 x 24 c1935Atlas MFC Horizontal MillCraftsman Commercial Lathe 12 x 36 c1970- - - I'll just keep on keepin' on.
Reply:I use this stuff, works well.  Local international truck dealer sells ithttps://www.zephyrpro40.com/s2/Scripts/default.aspTiger Sales:  AHP Distributor    www.tigersalesco.comAHP200x; AHP 160ST; MM350P,  Spoolmatic 30A; Everlast PowerTig 185; Thermal Dynamics 60i plasma.  For Sale:  Cobra Mig 250 w/ Push-pull gun.  Lincoln Wirematic 250
Reply:Nuvite makes a series of polishes for aluminum that most of the owners of polished aircraft use.  They're designed for power tools and work faster and leave a better finish than anything else I've tried ...  Mother's isn't even close.  Their website will help you choose the best grade (coaseness) to start with, and the correct technique.  You can order it directly or aircraft supply like Aircraft Spruce.Dynasty 300DXSmith He/Ar gas mixerMM350PHobart Handler 120Smith LW7, MW5, AW1A
Reply:You can also go to Caswell Plating's website http://www.caswellplating.com/ they have pretty much about anything you will need for polishing..  I think if you asked them if they had something to polish a turd, they would have it..    I have ordered quite a bit of smaller items from them, polishing wheels, bullets, rouge and such,I also bought a few pounds of superchrome and superclear powdercoat powder from them also.. excellent products and service..tackleexperts.comwww.necessityjigs.comhttps://www.facebook.com/groups/mach...dingequipment/
Reply:speaking of polishes, is there any one polish specifically for removing the "white" HAZ on TIG'd aluminum?