how to polish plenum
Thread Starter
Registered User
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 80
Likes: 0
From: corpus christi
how to polish plenum
How to- Polish intake manifold to a mirror shine.
first off you will need to go to your local hardware store or your store of choice and buy 180grit,400grit,600grit,1000grit,1200grit sand paper,buffing wheel to use with drill,palm sander,metal polishing compound,drill and wire brush.
Step1: use the wire brush to get off all the dirt and oils off the manifold.
Step2: use the palm sander if you have one(if you dont have one you can use your hand but it will take longer) start out with the 180grit sand paper, start sanding the entire manifold. you should get it pretty smooth with the 180grit. then work your way to the 400grit and when you get to the 600grit start using water while you sand.until you get to the 1200grit.
Step3: take the drill with the buffing wheel and use what ever polishing compound you choose. apply a little polish compound and buff it in with the wheel. make sure you are careful on the edges and not nick the metal with the drill or the end of the buffer wheel. Start out on one end and work your way around the entire manifold. the more you buff the more it will shine so this is up to you on how long you want to do this step for.
When your done it should look something like this hope you enjoy
This also works with valve covers and throttle bodys!
thanks to srtforum.com
first off you will need to go to your local hardware store or your store of choice and buy 180grit,400grit,600grit,1000grit,1200grit sand paper,buffing wheel to use with drill,palm sander,metal polishing compound,drill and wire brush.
Step1: use the wire brush to get off all the dirt and oils off the manifold.
Step2: use the palm sander if you have one(if you dont have one you can use your hand but it will take longer) start out with the 180grit sand paper, start sanding the entire manifold. you should get it pretty smooth with the 180grit. then work your way to the 400grit and when you get to the 600grit start using water while you sand.until you get to the 1200grit.
Step3: take the drill with the buffing wheel and use what ever polishing compound you choose. apply a little polish compound and buff it in with the wheel. make sure you are careful on the edges and not nick the metal with the drill or the end of the buffer wheel. Start out on one end and work your way around the entire manifold. the more you buff the more it will shine so this is up to you on how long you want to do this step for.
When your done it should look something like this hope you enjoy
This also works with valve covers and throttle bodys!
thanks to srtforum.com
Thread Starter
Registered User
iTrader: (1)
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 80
Likes: 0
From: corpus christi
When its on the buffing wheel make sure you don't stay in 1 spot for too long, this will cause the polish to cake up on the material your polishing.
Also don't be afraid to clean off the buffer wheel because the polish residue will build up on it to, just take a flat head screw driver to the wheel while its turning, some cloth with fly off but you'll now have a cleaner buffing wheel as well as a sparkling flat head screw driver
Also don't be afraid to clean off the buffer wheel because the polish residue will build up on it to, just take a flat head screw driver to the wheel while its turning, some cloth with fly off but you'll now have a cleaner buffing wheel as well as a sparkling flat head screw driver
Trending Topics
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 98
Likes: 0
From: Vancouver BC, Canada
I Pretty much did the same thing to my Plenum last month. It took me about 18-20 hours in total, however it was well worth it. It cost me roughly $30.00 in polishes and various wheels/discs for my sander. But once again....it was well worth it and added some "bling" to my engine bay.
Here is a Polishing Guide that I followed.
http://www.poleringsguide.se/english/ (MUST READ) for anybody attempting this.
Warning....BIG PICS AHEAD....sorry for the huge pics....
Here is a Polishing Guide that I followed.
http://www.poleringsguide.se/english/ (MUST READ) for anybody attempting this.
Warning....BIG PICS AHEAD....sorry for the huge pics....
While I can applaud all your efforts - I had mine professionally done and it looked orders of magnitude better than either of those. It cost me $160 but it was well worth it considering the quality of the finished product. When you see the size of the sanders and polishers the pros use, you'll understand why they get a super smooth and shiny finish.
While I can applaud all your efforts - I had mine professionally done and it looked orders of magnitude better than either of those. It cost me $160 but it was well worth it considering the quality of the finished product. When you see the size of the sanders and polishers the pros use, you'll understand why they get a super smooth and shiny finish.
I was told it was $300 around here. It cost me around $50 in materials. I was hoping to do it in 16-20 hours which meant I would have paid myself between $12-15 an hour cash and the pride of doing it myself. Ended up with $9 an hour, but what can ya do. If I had a larger compressor, and did it over say 2 days rather than 4-5 it would have taken me less time, say between 16-20 hours.
If I could have got someone around here to do it for $160 I would have spent the extra $110 and got them to do it. Lol
If I could have got someone around here to do it for $160 I would have spent the extra $110 and got them to do it. Lol
Last edited by XERMAN2001; Mar 24, 2010 at 01:10 PM.
that looks Great xerman... and this is coming from some one who knows how much work it take to make [Al] shine like that.
don't know if anyone mentioned thid but the best thing you can do while grinding metal all day is to wear a dustmask, googles, and full body covers. getting fine metal grindings into the body over a period of 20 hours makes you feel like the worst hang over you have ever had.
don't know if anyone mentioned thid but the best thing you can do while grinding metal all day is to wear a dustmask, googles, and full body covers. getting fine metal grindings into the body over a period of 20 hours makes you feel like the worst hang over you have ever had.
