[VAC] Re: Polishing and deeper scratches

["Wayne A. Moore" <wam52@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey Tim,
    The answer is both yes and no.
I don't remember exactly how oxidized your trailer was when I came by last
year, but as I recall it wasn't that bad.
    When you start polishing with pre-polish a lot of the surface oxidation
will just build-up in the larger scratches and they will appear as black
lines in the finish. As you continue to use the finer grades of polish many
of the smaller imperfections will disappear but the large ones will remain.
There are two schools of thought on this subject. Some people looking for
that perfect finish, level out the scratch by using the prepolish and wear
down the pure Aluminum Cladding. Or even worse, use a fine grit sand paper
or cloth. This I do not recommend, the cladding is not very thick and if you
continue to polish or abrade in that area you will eventually wear through
to the alloy. The other method is just as time consuming but leaves most of
the finish in tact. After you have polished with the fine grade of polish
you will need to buff with a fine cotton cloth. Some people use wool.
Experiment with both for your application. This procedure will allow you to
work the residue out of the scratches. They will still be there, but not
that noticeable unless they are really deep scratches.
Look at this way, all of our trailers are at least 25 years old. In my
opinion they look better polished with or without dents and scratches. They
have Battle scars, wear em proudly!!

WAM