Bit Off More Than I Can Chew?

I'm not willing to give up just yet. The client has already said that the difference is enough for her, but I want to see if their are any other directions I could go.

I found this on everbritecoatings.com
•Make up a paste (thin) with a "No-scratch" cleanser like BonAmi and water.
•Use an approved scrubber, like our prep pads.
•Rinse the aluminum with water. Cleaners should be applied to a wet surface.
•Dip the scrubber into the mixed no-scratch cleanser and apply
•Scrub gently to remove oxidation, dirt and any mold etc.
•Rinse well, Do not let the cleanser dry on the surface, it will be more difficult to remove.

I choose to call the company and the individual I spoke with told me that normal dish soap, a moderately aggressive brush, and a lot of elbow grease should do the trick.

I also contacted NuVite Chemicals. I spoke with an individual their who passed my question to a field worker that will contact me within 24 hours.

In the mean time, I guess I'll polish up the diamond plate and fender wells. I'll also do what I can with the fiberglass roof that isn't very responsive either.
 
I get these all the time doing rvs and my own trailer.first get a 5 gl pale 1/2 gl of bleach and 1/2 gl of degressor fill the rest with water.

spray down the trailers with water hose next use a nice mf towel and fold 2 times get wet and wipe the trailer 1 or 2 times then spray with hose .Key is to keep washing off the area you are working fast like 15 to 20 sec.work from the bottom up.Rince mf a lot
 
I applaude your effort. Mike brought up a good point about it not coated but anodized leaving little options. If your next step doesn't work you might consider using your rotary/wool pad and blend the rest of the trailer to match that third panel test spot pictured.

I'm guessing that was the fastest test spot to produce. BTW all the test spots looked pretty close to me. I agree I would have liked them to come out better as well but they were improved.

Good luck. Sounds like your client is pretty easy to get along with.
 
rmagnus said:
I applaude your effort. Mike brought up a good point about it not coated but anodized leaving little options. If your next step doesn't work you might consider using your rotary/wool pad and blend the rest of the trailer to match that third panel test spot pictured.

I'm guessing that was the fastest test spot to produce. BTW all the test spots looked pretty close to me. I agree I would have liked them to come out better as well but they were improved.

Good luck. Sounds like your client is pretty easy to get along with.
Click to expand...

Thanks rmagnus.

After Mike responded, I did go back to the trailer and washed the test spots with dish soap. Its amazing how all the test spots but the far right one hazed over and looked mediocre once again. If no other technique towards improving this trailer is advised, I'll likely just polish the entire thing with the Flex / BF Wool Metal Pad / WGMW Aluminum Compound (test spot four - far right.)

That combo, bare metals polished up to a bright mirror finish, and the fiberglass roof figure out...my client will be more that happy with the improvement. Still doesn't mean I will be.

She is a great client.
 
KJW Detailing said:
After Mike responded, I did go back to the trailer and washed the test spots with dish soap. Its amazing how all the test spots but the far right one hazed over and looked mediocre once again.
Click to expand...

That's what I figured would happen... the improvement is temporary...



KJW Detailing said:
If no other technique towards improving this trailer is advised, I'll likely just polish the entire thing with the Flex / BF Wool Metal Pad / WGMW Aluminum Compound (test spot four - far right.)
Click to expand...


I think what you're doing with the above approach is basically abrading off enough aluminum to get past the portion of aluminum that is anodized. The anodizing isn't a coating "on" the aluminum it's a change that takes place "in" the aluminum, as is the anodizing is a part of the aluminum.

I think you're biting off more than you can chew trying to compound all the anodizing off. I'm not saying don't do it but I don't think I would try. Might be faster to sand the aluminum down and then buff and I wouldn't try that either.

It's a trailer.


I think I have 3 or 4 sections in Renny Doyle's book on starting a detailing business and one of the sections is about the art of turning business down. That is cherry pick, take the good jobs and let someone else have the blessing when it comes to projects like this. But if you're young and have lots of time and energy...

:)
 
I quickly wanted to conclude this thread, as the customer picked up their trailer today.

Throughout the process I kept in contact with her, explaining to her the difficulties that I was facing. When she arrived, we did a walk around and I showed her what we had talked about.

Overall, I could tell she was a bit disappointed, but at the same time she was understanding. She was very happy with the diamond plate, fender wells, and roof. She was also very appreciative of me changing the flat tire (bonus points)!

Anyway, he daughter has a competition in a week and it happens to be close to the place in which she bought the trailer and is going to talk with them. If they offer a solution, that actually works, then she'll bring it back to me and I'll take another shot at it.

Even with all of the trial, tribulations, and lack luster results, my client still paid the entire quote. I love my regulars!

A big thanks goes out to the members of AG that were able to assist me in this detail. If anything in the future comes up with this trailer, I'll make sure to report back!
 
Meguiars 66 works very well on these trailers, I unfortunately live in very affluent horse country and cannot turn these down .so my friend Rod Kraft told me to try it and it works great, even on polished stainless .
 
If in fact it is anodized and you want to bring a polished finish to it, chemically remove the anodizing first then polish. EZ Off oven cleaner is the original choice to do so though the purple degreaser at Home Depot (Purple Power?) has won favor lately since it is not as agressive (and cheaper). Not the ideal way to go, but it can bring the otherwise elusive shine you seek.
 
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