Restoring Polished Ti Finish?

[David Peake]

I have a '98 Litespeed Classic that has a few areas where the polished
finish has dulled. I've tried Pledge, BikeWash, etc., but to no avail. It
looks like the finish has been lightly scratched in several areas (I'm not
sure how I did that).

Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I understand that
its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I just want to make it
look nice again. Is there some heavier duty polish/refinisher that someone
could recommend?

Thank you,

Dave

 

[Ted Bennett]

> I have a '98 Litespeed Classic that has a few areas where the polished
> finish has dulled. I've tried Pledge, BikeWash, etc., but to no avail. It
> looks like the finish has been lightly scratched in several areas (I'm not
> sure how I did that).
>
> Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I understand that
> its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I just want to make it
> look nice again. Is there some heavier duty polish/refinisher that someone
> could recommend?
>
> Thank you,
>
> Dave

Here's a quote from http://www.key-to-metals.com/Article42.htm:

Polishing. Titanium can be mechanically polished by techniques similar
to those used for stainless steel; reductions in wheel or mop speeds are
often beneficial. If a high polish is required, light pressures are
necessary during the final operations. Good results have been obtained
with a canvas wheel coated with 240E1 `Alundum` grit, which can be
blended with stearic acid for a finer finish.


Ted adds: As you may know, polishing metal is a matter of producing
uniformly-sized scratches in progressively smaller size, by applying
finer and finer grades of abrasives. Although titianium itself is
fairly soft, the surface of the metal quickly oxidizes, and the oxide is
very hard so it takes some work to break through it. I suspect you will
need power buffing wheels to make any headway. Doing this by hand would
try the patience of Job.

--
Ted Bennett

 

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per David Peake:
>Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I understand that
>its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I just want to make it
>look nice again.

Call SevenCycles and ask them.

I had a rear triangle break - which Seven fixed.

It was soooo clean, I couldn't believe it was the same rear triangle.

It's gonna take me *weeks* to get that thing foul enough to match the rest of
the bike.
--
PeteCresswell

 

[Phil, Squid-in-Training]

(PeteCresswell) wrote:
> Per David Peake:
>> Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I
>> understand that its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I
>> just want to make it look nice again.
>
> Call SevenCycles and ask them.
>
> I had a rear triangle break - which Seven fixed.
>
> It was soooo clean, I couldn't believe it was the same rear triangle.
>
> It's gonna take me *weeks* to get that thing foul enough to match the
> rest of the bike.

I'm sure there's some mud nearby you can sling onto the rear end
--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

 

[Ron Ruff]

David Peake wrote:
> I have a '98 Litespeed Classic that has a few areas where the polished
> finish has dulled. I've tried Pledge, BikeWash, etc., but to no avail. It
> looks like the finish has been lightly scratched in several areas (I'm not
> sure how I did that).
>
> Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I understand that
> its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I just want to make it
> look nice again. Is there some heavier duty polish/refinisher that someone
> could recommend?
>
If it is truly a mirror polish, then you need to use a metal polish...
and a lot of work. If it is a brushed finish, scotchbrite will do it.

Brushed finishes are the best IMO. It is sort of like a rough polish,
and is easy to take care of... just use scotchbrite or sandpaper to
restore. I did my whole frame with strips of 200 grit sandpaper... took
about 6 hrs.

 

[Mike Krueger]

David Peake wrote:
> I have a '98 Litespeed Classic that has a few areas where the polished
> finish has dulled. I've tried Pledge, BikeWash, etc., but to no avail. It
> looks like the finish has been lightly scratched in several areas (I'm not
> sure how I did that).
>
> Can anyone provide some guidance to restore the finish? I understand that
> its probably impossible to make it look brand new, I just want to make it
> look nice again. Is there some heavier duty polish/refinisher that someone
> could recommend?

Mother's Mag and Aluminum polish works well on titanium