Mercedes r107 - how to get a mirror shine on rusty pitted chrome
Вставка
- Опубліковано 10 лип 2021
- This is a detailed video showing how to restore rusty and pitted chrome on your classic Mercedes (or any other car for that matter!) I must say I was a bit sceptical when I started, but the end results are amazing. It really is possible to get a near mirror shine on aluminium or alloy using this method.
- Авто та транспорт
I'm sold, I'm glad that you showed step by step. That helps me to know what to expect doing this. I'm restoring my 65 Sunbeam tiger and this was very helpful. Thanks for posting
Glad the video was useful. This method works great if the underlying alloy can be polished. If money was no object, re-chroming would be the way to go. Good luck with the resto. Mike
Second generation Firebird and Camaro have mirrors and bezels made of mazak too, the mirrors in particular polish up beautifully especially once the odd casting mark is filed and flatted.
Looks good and certainly worth the effort. Its not really making the chrome shiney again though, that process has removed the chrome entirely and is polishing the base metal instead, which will need a clear coat finish depending on what the base metal is .
Yes you are right. In this particular case, the base metal can be polished nicely. If money is no object, it is always best to take the parts to a specialist and get them re-chromed. Mike
Brilliant, always. Well worth the effort and cost. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Just picked up a boot seal for $29, delivered. I’ll probably bring home a couple of rear light seals as one of my light units has some moisture inside.
Thanks for your comment and support. Wow that is cheap!. Definitely get a set of rear light seals. You could also consider a set of door seals. Not usually a source of leaks but that comforting Mercedes clunk as you close the door tends to go as the door seals wear out. Mike
The material you are working on is zinc die cast also commonly knows as mazak.
Originally this will have been polished, cyanide copper plated, nickel plated then chrome plated to reach the desired chrome finish.
It’s inherently not a nice material to rechrome as once the corrosion process starts it’s leaves deep powdery pits which can be hard to remove.
There’s not many platers in the UK which will replate masak anymore.
Thanks for your great comments and insight. How do know so much about this? Mike
Beautiful work
Thanks - it came out well and still looks good a year later. Mike
Nice work, we will give our pitted alfa romeo grill pieces a go👍🏻👍🏻
Thanks for your comment. What model Alfa is it and what is the cost of getting it re-chromed? My friend at AutoClassico has just restored an old Alfa. Mike
Wonder if the deep pits you could fill with solder possibly? Just a thought
Hi Mike when I polished up my alloy parts of my sl350 r107 (THE WINDOW SCREEN SURROUNDS ALLOY STRIPS UNDER DOORS AND HARDTOP trim ETC) mercedes normally put a clear coat lacquer on which I removed the old lacquer and polished up and re lacquered so you could try lacquering the alloy parts all the chrome on my was sl 350 rechromed for about £800 ( not including the bumper my was the early chrome whats was made from thick German steel and better chrome plated than the later sl 107 range) great video you are doing sorry hear about the scum who broke in to your garage keep up the great videos thanks mark
Thanks for your detailed comment. At some stage I will be doing a video about how to restore the anodised aluminium parts on the SL (window trim etc) Can you tell me:
1. What product did you used to remove the clear coat on your trims?
2. What product did you use to re-lacquer
3. Which company did you use to rechrome...and what sort of comdition were the parts in eg OK, bad, completely knackered
4. Did you remove the anodised aluminium layer and polish the aluminium....or did you polish the anodised aluminium?
5. What polish did you use and how did you polish - eg by hand...fixed wheel...drill etc
Thanks
Welderless Mike
I hi Mike first of all rechroming is the best way other then you if you can buy a stainless steel alternative ( on my 1960 fiat 500 my bumper and headlight rims I replaced with stainless steel ones) or the other cheaper options are slivehook chrome aerosol or chrome powder coating or there are diy chroming kits companies like frost sell never tried ,right now for the alloy mercedes 107 strips trim first of all if the trim if the lacquer is only scratched just rub down wet and dry then relacquer then polish with compound etc ,I removed the lacquer with different grades of scotbrite wheels on a polishing machine then used different compounds and mops ( it thats a lot time and you have to very careful not to damage or bend the thin strips) or alternatives are paint stripper or sanding down then polishing I used 2k lacquer which dose dull the alloy trim a little , the company I used was Douglas plating South East London near Deptford about 4-5 years ago cash in hand for job lot if you don't mind waiting when they have time maybe couple of month's my took i love you videos shame they wasn't about 5 years ago you have help me out with my mercedes sl350 restoring etc thanks mark ps the chrome work done by Douglas plating top notch have used before no problems
If it helps, I took the door thresholds to a metal polisher. He was doubtful as he thought they were chrome-plated (which he said couldn't be polished on his wheel as it would remove the plating completely), but it turns out they were an alloy and they polished up beautifully on his wheel. Suspect theses boot 'chromes' are made from the same material.
It may well be an alloy but looking at the pitting and blistering of the original chrome, it was chrome indeed plated. So unfortunately not a video showing how to refurb chrome but rather stripping it off and polishing the base metal instead.
Thank you!!! I am so hopeful
Hi = I hope it goes well. Just bear in mind that this worked well for me because I was effectively able to polish the metal below to something close to a mirror shine. What car or item are you planning to do this on? Mike
I have a motorcycle at the Beach in Florida so I am getting a taste of the salt life. the exhaust cover is something Im considering working on. I would need to buy the tools. I don't have any@@MikesMercsandothercars
Fantastic
That was amazing
Thanks - yes I was quite amazed that it worked so well. Mike
Nice result, but usually the chrome is a very thin layer that is put on a piece of metal. When doing all this sanding isn't the chrome layer completely gone and the underneath metal is polished? Maybe that chrome parts of old cars have very thick chrome layers?
Thanks for your comment. Yes you are completely correct. Once the chrome layer has been breached, you either need to strip it chemically, fill it, copper layer it and then re chrome it, or....sand it all off and polish the underneath. This wont give as good a result as re chroming but it is substantially cheaper and something that people can potentially do themselves. Mike
Very intersting! I have a 1956 Mercedes with pitted bumper corners. Do I dare to go forward with your video on that?
If you have the money, the best thing would be to get the bumper sections professionally rechromed.
If you are doing a full restoration and are on a budget, this method might be worth a go.
What model of Mercedes do you have? Mike
How do you keep it from tarnishing again with just the bare exposed metal? Do you use a sealer?
Thanks for your comment. Tarnishing does not seem to be a big problem on this alloy and I didn't use a sealer. Mind you, the car sits in a garage and is not parked outside in the elements - I guess that might make a difference. Mike
What do you coat the raw still you are left with ?
Chrome coating is long gone, after the grinding and polishing you are most likely left with the iron exposed, do you send it to get chrome plated again or just some clear coat ?
Thanks for your comment - The material is some kind of alloy and I have just left it as is with no top coating. The material is some kind of alloy and it still looks a million times better than it did. No signs of rust or corrosion 1 yr later but this car has been garaged since then, Obviously this method is not as good as getting it re-chromed BUT it is of course much cheaper. Mike
Thanks for your comment. I did think of ceramic coating and may do this at a later date. If you have attempted this yourself, let me know what product you used and how it came out. Not 100% sure what you mean by 'flat angle pads, but the only sander I used was the Dewalt orbital sander. Mike @@Jasongibson333
Didnt u just sand the chrome and copper outer layer and polished the steel core? If so it will rust quickly…
Thanks for you comment. That would certainly be true if those pieces of trim were made from steel but I think they are aluminium or some similar alloy. Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars well then the only option would be re coppering and rechroming it... I did what u did with 70 challenger trim and i have to polish it frequently as it becomes dull.
@@pawelsyrek3721 Thanks for your comment Yes - I am interested to see how it holds up.Aluminium will definitely dull BUT we are definitely in a better position than before without the expense of re-chroming...I have several spare pieces of trim and may see whether there are any products out there which would adhere and seal. Maybe the new breed of 2k clear coats. Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars Great video, thank you 👍. I think it might be worthwhile trying a ceramic coating as opposed to spraying them with a clear coat. My reasoning is that as the items are highly polished there is no key for the clear coat to bond to.
@@karl3927 That sounds like a good idea - I might try it next time. Mike
Incredible. I've got 3 cars that are crying out for this but I don't have an angle grinder and was thinking to go down the elbow-grease with a steel wool 0000 grade route. This looks so much more inviting though! Can this method be used on'64 w113, '78 r107, '64 mustang bumper and window trims?
Thanks for your comment.
If it is just spotting then I would use something like Autosol to polish the bumpers.
I probably would NOT try this method on the window trims on my mercs because from memory they use some kind of aluminium vapour deposit technique. The window trims are quite thin and I'd be worried about having an angle grinder in the same room let alone using it on the trims.
Similarly for the bumpers......if you have not already done so, take a moment to have a look at these 2 videos:
ua-cam.com/video/B8zGjOFGHrk/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/hQGic5k2vBw/v-deo.html
If you have rust bubbling through the chrome on the bumpers, it generally is a sign that the bumpers are starting to rust from the inside out and you need to address the situation before it gets any worse.
The boot chrome featured in this video is different because the alloy under the chrome polishes up nicely. If you sand of the chrome on your bumper, you'll be left with steel.
My advice would be to take off the R107 bumper and check out how bad the chrome sections are and source replacements.
Mike
Now thats advice learned from many years experience. Cant beat knowledg gained from actually doing something, its far superior to book knowledge.
hi.great video thanks for sharing. I have a chrome head light .it's in pretty good condition. it has a few rust pits the size of a pin head .what would you recommend doing. thanks
Hi - do you mean a chrome headlight bowl or a chrome rim? I what car is it on? Mike
@MikesMercsandothercars thanks for your reply it's a chrome headlight bowl on a motorcycle .
For a headlight bowl, the best thing is to have them professionally re-chromed. Don't use this sanding method as this removes the remaining chrome. This is fine if you have an alloy below that you can polish. There is a video I did a while back where I refurbished a headlight bowl using Chrome spray paint - it worked OK ...but obviously not as good as re-chroming. see 8.44 in the video below:
ua-cam.com/video/x3DwYi1EnvQ/v-deo.html@@bc-mr1si
Mike
@MikesMercsandothercars thanks pal.tbh it's not that bad as I said the holes or rust spots are the size of a pin head .I'd maybe make it worse so maybe better left alone .
yep...if it aint broke ,dont fix it. Mike@@bc-mr1si
Another good video. Does the shine last? I'm guessing the chrome has been removed .
Thanks for your comment. It'll never be quite as good as chrome but so far so good. The Autosol polish tends to protect and it and keep the shine. It is certainly a whole lot better than before and saves having to replace this expensive part. Mike
This may be a silly question but does it matter if the part is just chrome plated? Also, how would I tell?
Hi- there are no silly questions.
This method would remove whats left of the chrome plating. IF the material below the chrome was 'polishable' (if that is a word) then this method might work. The 'chrome' boot trim pieces featured in this video came up really well because the alloy under the chrome was 'polishable'. Obviously, the best results will always be achieved by taking the parts to a chrome plater and doing the job properly. Mike
Hello Mike , what material is the strips?
These trim pieces were originally made from some kind of alloy and then chrome plated. I was amazed at how well it turned out. Are you are planning doing this on your car, and if so what car is it? Mike
What did you do with your main relay?
Which main relay? Mike
Im really surprised by the results! Do you have any idea how to shine milky aluminium trim? From my experience it’s some kind of anodised surface that’s really hard.
Yes, would be interesting to see how to deal with the anodized aluminum trim on the R107, the hardtop and and windshield trim have these.
As far I understand, it can either be chemically removed or mechanically (by sanding).
The issue is that it is very hard to remove the trim from the hardtop.
Thanks for your comment. There are many pieces of anodised aluminium on the 107 SL (see list below) and cleaning them requires a special anodised aluminium polish such as the Autosol Anodised Aluminium polish. Often the anodised aluminium will be nigh impossible to re-shine and you will have to de-anodise it and polish the aluminium below.If people are interested, I may get hold of a selection of different products and do a little comparison video when I get the parts on the car that need attention. I'm interested to see if products like Nevrdull actually work. Meanwhile here is a list of anodised aluminium parts on the SL:
Front grill star and circular surround on later cars
Eyebrows above the headlights
Window trims
Strip inside the rubber door mouldings
Top trim on the door, and the A pillar trim
The often missing door armrest trims
Lower sill (rocker) strip
Hardtop trim
Horseshoe deck trim (but not the escutcheon)
Mike
@@cav4290 I have never tried removing the hardtop trim but I have several knackered roofs on which to practice. I am assuming the boot chrome piece that I have been sanding are made from aluminium but have yet to get confirmation of this - do you know this? Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars Boot chrome is chromed/nickel metal, aluminum as far as I know is never chromed. You will notice that the difference is notable, as the aluminum trim do not have corrosion but rather the anodized surface takes on a milky and dull appearance. I think hydrochloric acid, which is also found is bathroom and kitchen cleaners, can remove the anodized surface.
@@MikesMercsandothercars Yes, please do! This would be extremely interesting and useful, especially as so many 107 are suffering from this.
Great Job Mike! I thought about buying a set of the same chrome trim but hesitated because it costs quite a bit. Do you have a video how to remove this trim? I removed all 8mil nuts, yhe trunk lid catch and two 8 mil inside screws/bolts for the push button lock but can't seem to get the chrome pieces off. Any advice?
There is nothing else holding those trim pieces on BUT the outer bits slide into the inner bit and from memory you might have to take off inner bit first. There is a video in the Red Dragon playlist showing how to fit these. I am at a festival this weekend with limited Internet access but I’m sure you look in the playlist you will find it. Mike
Have a look at this video:
ua-cam.com/video/mpKqe1eHlnk/v-deo.html
Mike
What about the anodised aluminium?
The ideal solution is of course to get things re-plated. This is a good solution for those who can't afford (or are not able) to go down that route. I did these over a year ago when I started this restoration and they still great...not perfect but a million times better than before. Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars So you could do the same in your video on chrome and anodised? Thanks for the reply as well.
@@dallasfett Hi - I'm not sure this method would work on the anodised aluminium trim pieces on a Mercedes SL - it would be too aggressive. Do you have a specific piece of trim on a specific car in mind? Mike
Great video. BUT, my spots of pitting are not flat. I have beautiful spiked chrome rims on my car. One dog insists on peeing on them and hence the pitting. (4 fenced acres and he has to pee on my shiny rims) ANY thoughts on how to get into the tight places. Guess this will just be all by hand and no help with electric devices. Any suggestion is appreciated. Thank you for your time. 😀😀🤠🤠
Those pesky dogs! The pitting on the pieces in this video was really deep. The deeper the pitting the more you have to sand off to get a completely flat and shiny surface. I'm not 100% sure I know what you mean by "spiked chrome rims" - can you give e a link to a picture online or let me know what vehicle this is? Mike
@@BlondeExplorer1 Thanks for the link - nice wheels! I think to get rid of pitting in that style of wheel, you would need to take them to a specialist wheel refurbishment company. I did this with the wheels on my now stolen 280SL - see video below:
ua-cam.com/video/P7RHPJ1n5gA/v-deo.html&t
At some stage, I'll get this done on my SL55 AMG which has similar wheels to yours.
I'm not sure what country you are based in (USA?) but here in sunny Bristol UK I use a company called Phoenix Alloys. They charged me about £400 to diamond cut and re-weld my wheels. Sounds like a lot but it made a huge difference to the look of that car.
Good luck with those expensive dogs!
Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars Hi Mike, Yes indeed I am over the pond in the USA. I currently live in Texas and in a rural area. I will try to see where I can take these almost $8000.00 rims. Houston is a 2-hour drive, but I need to get these fixed. I cleared the golf cart and other things out of the garage so the car can safely be in there. Thank you for your time! Stay healthy. Blondie
@@BlondeExplorer1 $8000 for rims. I can't see rims being that much money. No way
@@gm-lb9oe Yes they were 8k. You must not own rims. High quality ones are expensive. Sure, you can buy knock offs for 1k or 2k but really nice ones cost more. That is what I paid and that is what they cost no matter where you shopped for rims. You can shop at Walmart or you can shop at Neiman Marcus. I go to Neiman Marcus. Walmart sells rims and they are junk but many people buy them. After a few years I am certain they are rusted.
the part I'm trying to fix looks like your finished part 🤣
Guess I'll have to buy new trims
If trims are still available or they can be re-chromed , that is definitely the best option. What car do you have? Mike
Chrome plate or was it stainless steel you cannot do that with normal chrome plate
Thanks for your comment. Those parts are not stainless steel. I think they are a zinc alloy which is then plated. With this method you end up removing the chrome layer and polishing the metal beneath. It will never be as good as re-chroming but is substantially cheaper and something that people can try at home. Mike
Didn't you just grind off all the chrome and are just polishing pot metal?
Yes. The alternative is to buy a new part or get the existing part re-chromed. Obviously these two options are preferable BUT if you don't have the money to buy a new part or get the existing part re-chromed here is a solution which gives a perfectly acceptable result. Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars I understand, thx for the video.
@@MikesMercsandothercars Is it possible to clear-coat the polished zinc alloy to slow oxidation, or will it just corrode beneath the coating?
@@Uroparts Thats a good question and I will talk to a paint shop to find the answer. Corrosion generally needs oxygen and if you clear coat, that would presumably cut off the supply of oxygen. The problem with clear coating is that it can dull the shine of the polished metal. In order for the clear coat to adhere to the surface of the metal...you would presumably need to remove any remnants of polish.
Last but not least...I did this a year ago and this piece still look great..and a million times better that it did...so may the answer is simply to polish the metal again when it looks dull.
Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars That's awesome Mike. Perhaps finishing the polished surface with paint "wax" or sealant would enhance gloss while also slowing oxidation at a microscopic level.
kid approved
You just did remove the chrome...
Yes - this method removes the existing chrome and polishes the surface beneath. It will never be as good as the original chrome BUT on this particular piece only the eagle eyed would notice. Stripping, filling and rechroming is the best method if you have the funds. Mike
🇺🇸. give this a 👍🏾
Thanks for your comment. Mike
Not chrome....
Do you mean these boot pieces are not chrome plated? Mike
Alor bricoleur du dimanche après-midi ensoleillée ton bricolage zéro zéro total utilise du ouator pas besoin de ponceuse juste avec cette ouate on frotte et fini 😂😂
Merci pour votre commentaire... même si je ne suis pas sûr à 100% de le comprendre. Mike
@@MikesMercsandothercars utilise le produit sont nom le ouator
If chrome is pitted it can't be repaired
Thanks for your comment. You are quite right, to do this job properly, you would have to strip back to bare metal, fill any pits and re-chrome. This method works for those people on a budget who can live with a finish less shiny than chrome.Mike