To use a metal polishing compound, you apply a small amount of the paste to a soft cloth or polishing wheel and then gently rub it onto the metal surface in a circular motion. The abrasive particles in the compound work to remove scratches, oxidation, and other blemishes from the metal, while the lubricating properties of the binding agent or wax help to prevent further damage to the surface.

Once your bike is washed in this way, you'll spend less time keeping it clean. With the Zymol cleaner wax, the surface is sealed and protected. After a ride, you will be able to rinse down the bike to wash off surface grit and retain the shine. You can use the Autoglym Showshine to give an instant gloss. When water stops beading up on the bodywork, it's a sign that you could do with a fresh wash and re-application of wax.Before you can begin polishing alloy wheels, they must be thoroughly washed to remove any road dirt and debris. Follow our step by step guide on how to wash alloy wheels here. For best results, we recommend using a specific alloy wheel cleaner, car shampoo will only remove the surface dirt from the wheel.

Metal polishing compounds typically consist of abrasive particles suspended in a binding agent or wax. The abrasive particles can be made of various materials, such as aluminum oxide, diamond dust, or silica, depending on the specific application and desired level of polishing. The binding agent or wax helps to hold the abrasive particles together and provides lubrication during the polishing process. You could make this process take longer by working in a dedicated polish and then applying a wax/sealant, but after trying this myself, I could not notice much difference. The Zymol cleaner wax is seriously good stuff, giving the bike an incredibly deep, three-dimensional shine. While some alloys need polishing, others will require wax. This will be dependant on the wheel’s finish, if the wheel has a chrome finish, a chrome polish is required. If the alloys are polished, they will need an aluminium polish. If the alloys are painted or coated, it’s best to choose a quality wax to protect the finish. Thoroughly Wash the Alloys If there’s a fair amount of polishing to do it makes sense to do it outside and have sufficient mops and buffing soap on hand. Always allow more time than you think the job will take if you’re new to this and aim to finish a certain number parts with the final calico mop rather than do all the roughing out in one hit. Firstly you can then do something else next time rather than get terminally bored with a bike’s worth of polishing. Secondly you get to see some genuine results for one days work rather than moving from dull grey to slightly brighter grey.

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Within reason a larger power source will give better results, you’ll need to expend less time/effort/energy and there’s less likelihood of damaging the shiny bits. Bench or post mounted grinder/polishers generally have the guts to do the job but you need to match the mop size to the motor’s capabilities. Select below from our great range of Pro-Max Metal Polishing Compounds ideal for use on aluminium, alloy, brass, copper, steel, stainless steel and chrome. Take your Meguiars Hot Rims wheel cleaner, set the nozzle to spread the spray and give your pre-rinsed wheels a good coating with the wheel cleaner. It really is fantastic stuff and is safe for bare metal, alloys, lacquer, powder-coated and painted wheels. The bottom line here is that if the mop slows down substantially you don’t have enough power to hand. Also consider the size of the work piece. Large objects may be heavy and it’s probably easier to polish something like a bike wheel on a bench with a 4” mop on a drill than it is to hold the wheel up to a bench mounted 6” mop.

If you discover damage to your alloys when polishing your alloy wheels. ChipsAway specialists can repair the damage in a matter of hours so your wheels look as good as new again.Avoid using abrasive cleaning products, as they will harm the quality and longevity of the alloys. Find our favourite alloy wheel cleaners here.