Sound technical content, curated with aloha by
Ted Mooney, P.E. RET
Pine Beach, NJ

finishing.com -- The Home Page of the Finishing Industry

  The authoritative public forum
  for Metal Finishing since 1989

-----

Is it possible to electropolish aluminum motorcycle cylinders?

I polish motorcycle parts ( heads, barrels, tanks, frames), just about anything motorcycle related. I was wondering if electropolishing would work on aluminum motorcycle barrels, and if so would they look actually polished, or duller. Thanks for any help out there.

Brian Gechter
polisher - Seven Persons, Alberta, Canada
2004

2004

Yes, it's possible, Brian, and they will look highly polished, but... Electropolishing is an ancillary process to hand polishing; not a replacement. Which is to say that you still have to mechanically polish and buff.

Further, electropolishing is generally used to get the highest possible specularity from very pure aluminum such as for telescope mirrors; it's value for the alloys used in motorcycle parts is probably limited.

letters 800, 1831, and 10917 go into substantial detail about aluminum polishing.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

(No "dead threads" here! If this page isn't currently on the Hotline your Q, A, or Comment will restore it)

Q, A, or Comment on THIS thread -or- Start a NEW Thread

Disclaimer: It's not possible to fully diagnose a finishing problem or the hazards of an operation via these pages. All information presented is for general reference and does not represent a professional opinion nor the policy of an author's employer. The internet is largely anonymous & unvetted; some names may be fictitious and some recommendations might be harmful.

If you are seeking a product or service related to metal finishing, please check these Directories: