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Alloy cleaning chemicals


tootall

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Any recommendations for nasty chemicals to clean ally for the stuff I can't put in the the blasters? Notably an airhead beemer engine I'm doing at the moment. Would like to clean it up without taking engine out etc. 

Also decent ally wheel cleaner required so recommend me something that actually works and removes baked on brake dust etc please 

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Don't use alloy wheel cleaner on bare alloy, learned that the hard way. 

Oven cleaner tends to work pretty well, but depends on how much mg is in the alloy too.

What are you actually trying to clean off it?

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13 minutes ago, Gammaboy said:

Don't use alloy wheel cleaner on bare alloy, learned that the hard way. 

Oven cleaner tends to work pretty well, but depends on how much mg is in the alloy too.

What are you actually trying to clean off it?

General "patina" really. Gonna degrease and pressure wash the worst off but the block and barrels are pretty manky 

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3 hours ago, tootall said:

General "patina" really. Gonna degrease and pressure wash the worst off but the block and barrels are pretty manky 

There are alloy "brighteners" that might do what you want. Haven't used any myself though.

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3 hours ago, Gammaboy said:

Don't use alloy wheel cleaner on bare alloy, learned that the hard way. 

Oven cleaner tends to work pretty well, but depends on how much mg is in the alloy too.

What are you actually trying to clean off it?

Do tell more. What's wrong with alloy cleaners? I was going to give them a go.

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10 minutes ago, John21 said:

Do tell more. What's wrong with alloy cleaners? I was going to give them a go.

They're designed to strip brake pad/disc residue from painted surfaces (lots of iron oxides etc), it stains/etches the surface of bare alloy, so the nice, semi polished, slightly patinated surface of my GTV's wheels looked blotchy and shit and I had to spend 2 hours with Autosol unfucking them.

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The bilt hamber wheel cleaner is good for wheels.

Frost do an alloy cleaner for casings & stuff which is probably what you want. 

I think nitric acid is used to clean aluminium prior to anodising so someone like caswell or gateros plating may be able to help.

 

 

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