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Hmm.. I put this off for a long time already, but this is the second set of manifold that I was asked to polish, and here goes the writeup. I did this maybe like last month.. or was it two months ago, but didn't upload it to my comp, but rather it stayed in my camera phone.
All images are clickable for full view.. photobucket is crap nowdays.. guess too many people are using them.
Things you will need..
a wire brush,
a powered wire brush, either with an air dremel, or a rotary grinder with the appropriate wire brush.
Sand papers, from 340 grit or so for the stubborn stains. 500 for the more minor ones, and 800 and 1000 grit for the final mirror finishing.
Autosol is to get the minor stains out, and give it that really nice finish like you saw on mine. Remember to wash off the autosol, it may give you different tones when the exhaust is heated, sometimes not to the desired effect.
You start off like this, usually.. A nightmarish load of work stands before you. Hahaha. :P
![](http://imajr.com/th/before_61607.JPG)
Start off with the nooks and crannies.. I begin with the welds, but the exact order of the process really depends on you.
![](http://imajr.com/th/difficultplaces1st_61609.JPG)
Use the wire brush the on the area, and viola! clean welds!
![](http://imajr.com/th/cleanwelds_61610.JPG)
Then proceed to the tubes.. be careful not to apply too much pressure if you're using a grinder or an air dremel, as you can remove to much material from one area.. it may be tempting, but go slow.. you're not going to be removing much of the dirty stuff if you go too fast, but rather remove good metal out, so don't worry about leaving some spots.. those will be handled by the sandpapers later, if they're not too thick.
![](http://imajr.com/th/wirebrushed_61611.JPG)
As you can see, I went over the stubborn spots with the roughest sandpaper, and you can see the scratches that I made while doing so.. doesn't matter, as I will go with a finer grit for the finishing later.
![](http://imajr.com/th/finergrit_needed_61636.JPG)
Flat surfaces are the easiest, and I usually leave them for last, but in this case, I just went over it with a wire brush, sandpaper and a little autosol... probably finished it pretty quickly.
![](http://imajr.com/th/flatsurfacesgolast_61635.JPG)
This is the near final result.. some spots left to clean, but no wire brushes at this point.. only good old sandpaper.. notice that I have done one to two tubes to the near final mirror finish at this point.
![](http://imajr.com/th/nearfinal_61612.JPG)
When finished, you have an extractor that is the envy of your peers.. hahahhaa.. :P
And leave the guy looking at the thing wondering.. "you're serious this is second hand?"
![](http://imajr.com/th/final1_61637.JPG)
![](http://imajr.com/th/final2_61638.JPG)
P.S. My new toy.. :P
![](http://imajr.com/th/DSC00850_61652.JPG)
So many features and sensor inputs.. it'll take weeks/months to fully play with it.. :P
All images are clickable for full view.. photobucket is crap nowdays.. guess too many people are using them.
Things you will need..
a wire brush,
a powered wire brush, either with an air dremel, or a rotary grinder with the appropriate wire brush.
Sand papers, from 340 grit or so for the stubborn stains. 500 for the more minor ones, and 800 and 1000 grit for the final mirror finishing.
Autosol is to get the minor stains out, and give it that really nice finish like you saw on mine. Remember to wash off the autosol, it may give you different tones when the exhaust is heated, sometimes not to the desired effect.
Caution:
Wear protection.. goggles, thick pants (I actually got one of the wire brush strands embedded in my leg, since I forgot to change into jeans and did the work with shorts. Lesson learnt.. :P) wire brushes are sharp, and wire strands flings off when you work with them esp on a rotary grinder or an air dremel. Be very careful.. losing an eye is not a laughing matter.
You start off like this, usually.. A nightmarish load of work stands before you. Hahaha. :P
Start off with the nooks and crannies.. I begin with the welds, but the exact order of the process really depends on you.
Use the wire brush the on the area, and viola! clean welds!
Then proceed to the tubes.. be careful not to apply too much pressure if you're using a grinder or an air dremel, as you can remove to much material from one area.. it may be tempting, but go slow.. you're not going to be removing much of the dirty stuff if you go too fast, but rather remove good metal out, so don't worry about leaving some spots.. those will be handled by the sandpapers later, if they're not too thick.
As you can see, I went over the stubborn spots with the roughest sandpaper, and you can see the scratches that I made while doing so.. doesn't matter, as I will go with a finer grit for the finishing later.
Flat surfaces are the easiest, and I usually leave them for last, but in this case, I just went over it with a wire brush, sandpaper and a little autosol... probably finished it pretty quickly.
This is the near final result.. some spots left to clean, but no wire brushes at this point.. only good old sandpaper.. notice that I have done one to two tubes to the near final mirror finish at this point.
When finished, you have an extractor that is the envy of your peers.. hahahhaa.. :P
And leave the guy looking at the thing wondering.. "you're serious this is second hand?"
P.S. My new toy.. :P
So many features and sensor inputs.. it'll take weeks/months to fully play with it.. :P
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