I want to polish my kick plates but first I have to get the anodizing off.
I am using Easy Off oven cleaner, but it's very slow and is costing a fortune.
I really don't want anything abrasive, any one know of a chemical that will remove it quickly?
Thanks T.C.

I too am interested in a response...got a few items to clean up.

Check out the label on the back of easy-off. Look for the main active ingredient and just buy some of that. Probably some kind of an acid. I don't have a can to look at. You can buy most any kind of acid at some chemical supply place or even the hardware store. Just see what kind they use. You'll just have to be more careful with the straight undiluted acid. I'd bet they just "water it down" and add propellant.
PS With any kind of acid I would wear old clothes, long rubber gloves, and eye protection. Plan on throwing the clothes out when you're done or if you wash them add baking soda, that helps a little.

Lye I think

Make sure you're using the strongest EZ Off. It took three applications to remove all anodizing from my headlight bezels.

Make sure you're using the strongest EZ Off. It took three applications to remove all anodizing from my headlight bezels.

Ditto Von ;)

What is "EZ Off" ??? Where can I buy it? Eastwoods? :confused:

EZ off is Oven Cleaner... should be available at your local supermarket.

Oven cleaner Bill. go to a dollar store and get it.

:o
Thanks!

OK now, what's an oven? ;)

OK now, what's an oven? ;)It's that thing you do your powdercoating in. It should be in that room in your house with the big box that keeps your beer cold, and that automatic washing thing that cleans stainless trim nicely with a good streak-free shine. There should be some work-benches in there too. :yes:

Don't leave it on for too long, spray it on, leave it for 5~10 minutes and wash it off. Do that as many times as necessary. You might want to warm the parts in an oven first. Don't leave the Easy Off on the part for 45 minutes, it'll mess it up. BTDT, ruined some headlight bezels. :(
BillL

It's that thing you do your powdercoating in. It should be in that room in your house with the big box that keeps your beer cold, and that automatic washing thing that cleans stainless trim nicely with a good streak-free shine. There should be some work-benches in there too. :yes:

Funny you mentioned this Derek...I just wired/installed an electric stove in my shop yesterday ESPECIALLY for the purpose of powdercoating.
Bought Momma a new Jennaire dual fuel (and matching fridge) just before Xmas...

Hey very funny.Found out the other day at a friends house that Permatex Gasket Remover will take winshield mastic(you know the black sticky sh!*)off very nicely. We tried everything,but that stuff actually melts it.Oven cleaner will make your Alum.intake look new.And,I think that the red racing fuel will remove Anodizing.His,CSR water pump used to be red anodized,but since a fuel leak,it is now very blotchy.A gal.here is 10 bucks.If it doesn't work,pour the rest in the tank.A gal shouldn't hurt a thing.

Funny you mentioned this Derek...I just wired/installed an electric stove in my shop yesterday ESPECIALLY for the purpose of powdercoating.
Bought Momma a new Jennaire dual fuel (and matching fridge) just before Xmas...

Wanna test it out on somebody else's parts first, before you chance it with yours? *hint, hint* lol

OK thanks for all the replies
But don't go to the dollar store and buy the cheep brand, cause it doesn't work.
My wife bought some off brand at Kmart instead of the EasyOff brand and it didn't do squat.
I have also heard that the EasyOff with "lemon" brand doesn't work as well either?
I was just looking for a better less expensive way?
Thanks T.C.

:o


OK now, what's an oven? ;)

You sound just like my wife.:p

I've been using Red Devil Lye to remove anodizing from parts on my car. Here's an old article I wrote about it:

http://hometown.aol.com/krystaldesigns/pageA28.html

Now don't give me any grief about linking to this site but here's some more reading about stripping the anodizing and polishing it up:

http://www.layitlow.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=247446

Jim

I use Crystal Drano.
http://www.chevelles.com/forums/showthread.php?t=76246

So does this mean that after it is all stripped, you have to send them out to be re anodized then? Its not possible to annodize parts at home is it?

I just used my bench mounted grinder with a wire wheel to strip all the anodizing off of the AN fittings that came with my Demon carb, then I polished out the flat surfaces.. Looks great..

I did some searching once on anodizing. I found a guy that explained how it was done, and how to do it at home. You have to buy tanks and chemicals and looked quite expensive to me.
I also found out there are very few places that anodize vintage car parts, and those that do, are quite expensive. There is a guy that advertizes in Chevelle world magazine that does it. Polishing works, but unless you clearcoat it with something, it clouds up quite fast. I had some parts for my GTO anodized, and plan on having all my 66 Chevelle aluminum anodized as soon as I can afford it.
Gary

i have some industrial stuff that i bought(had to buy several bottles) made for taking off bluing, its some nasty stuff, smokes and smells, but it takes off the andizing off stainless trim, or anything else, works great
i might still have their website somewhere

Funny you mentioned this Derek...I just wired/installed an electric stove in my shop yesterday ESPECIALLY for the purpose of powdercoating.


And a friend of mine has a dishwasher installed in his garage. Does a great job on greasy engine parts.

Thanks for the reply's
I have a company in the next town that does marine anodizing that say they will put my parts in there strip tank.
I cant find anything local except for Easyoff and it's not working all that great.
I'm just goint to take the parts to have them striped.
T.C.

If I remember right you need to use 0000 steel wool with the HD EZ Off.

Thanks for the reply, I have used #3 steel wool and it seems like I get to a certian point of removal, and it doesnt take anymore off? (no matter what I do?)
I am afraid of removing the detail or rounding the ribbs to much, I would rather just have clean metal so I can poilsh it.
I dont think they will charge much to remove what I have?
T.C.

The new EZ Off and other assorted over cleaners DO NOT WORK.... The old stuff worked beautifully....

I've got a 5 gallon pail of Lye I use, you can get it through Caswell Plating or find it locally....

Within 15 minutes all the anodizing will be off....

whats a "kick plate"?...sill plate?, on the floor along door opening? if youre going to polish it anyway, just use some fine (or not so fine) steel wool.
from the one interior pic, it looks like you have after market or custom made ones, is that the blue anodizing you're trying to remove?

Thanks for the replies
Yes I have repo. "sill plate" if ya want to call them that?
They are actually polished looking alum., probably a clear anodizing.
As with all repo. stuff they are not very good, they look good but they are not made of as thick of metal as the OE parts so they bend easy and dont hole the carpet down as well as OE.
What I am trying to do is remove the anodizing from a OE pair so I can polish them .
I would like to remove the anodizing without loosing all the rib detail or making twice the work to polish them after the anodizing is removed.
The more sand/steel wool scratches the more work to polish to a chrome like finish.
So if I can chemically remove the anodizing that's what I will do, sanding is a last resort.
T.C.

Sorry to kick in late on this post, but I haven't been checking the board all that much lately. I used Blue Lightning anodize remover on my trunk trim. Worked great. After removal, a little simichrome polish and it looked like new. Here is their site:

http://www.bluelightningproducts.com/

Thanks for the web site, looks like a lot of useful stuff there.
T.C.

I just ordered some of the Blue Lightning anodizing removal stuff today...we'll see how well it works. :thumbsup:

I just ordered some of the Blue Lightning anodizing removal stuff today...we'll see how well it works. :thumbsup:

Let us know how it works. I may grab some too then.

Let us know how it works. I may grab some too then.

A little pricey IMO...$10 shipping on a $15 item. But, if it works...:cool:

Very pricey for a gallon....

Like I said, 1 lb of Lye from caswell (http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/aluminum.htm) made 3 gallons of solution and I keep it stored in a 5 gallon plastic container. Scroll down you'll see it, it's 44.95...

I don't know what would be so special about caswell lye. I went to the local hardware or grocery store, and bought Red Devil Lye. I mix it with a couple gallons of water to strip cast iron frying pans. I have never tried stripping AL, but it is some nasty stuff. Only costs a few bucks for 8oz can.

thats what polishing is...sanding with finer and finer grit, and you can actually make stainless trim pieces look polished by hand with steel wool alone, why not just by repops and be done w/it if you dont like the ones you have in any configuration?

jayt,
The parts you were looking at on my car were repop's
As I stated in one if my post the repop's are not as thick of metal as the OE parts and bend very easy and don't hold the carpet as well as the OE parts.
On another note, I really would like to see the stainless you say is "polished" with steel wool?
I polished all the stainless on my car and believe me steel wool would not even come close to the chrome mirror finish I got, and want for these parts.
Is there a super fine 0000000000 steel wool I don't know about ?
I have seen 4/0 but that wont even polish stainless so I know it wont work on alum.
The thing with polishing is not to make more work for yourself by putting a lot of sand/steel wool scratches in the metal that will just have to be polished out with 1000/2500 grit sandpaper and then compound.
T.C.

i stand corrected, i thought they were some sort of cal custom/jc whitney type units...but it begs the question even more now: why put all this time, effort and now, more money (to strip them, plus the aforementioned "fortune" in oven cleaner) when theyre not, and never will be, the heavy, rigid, carpet wrasslin' OEM parts you have your heart set on?, for 65 bucks you could get the same, though apparently, inferior pieces that would at least look brand new and original for awhile, with no stripping, sanding, polishing, plating or typing involved, and yes, when i had the chance i ordered a quantity of super fine 0000000000 steel wool, so if youre in need, feel free to pm me and ill hook you up, but then, it sounds like the ez off thing is working out well for you.
i did all the stainless on my car too and i made good use of plenty of steel wool (admittedly, just before firing up the buffer, but i figured you might've assumed that, sorry, my mistake) the point i was hoping to make was, it may be easier to use a minute amount of abrasive now when it has to be done by hand and then use a machine to get back to square one. and, btw, aluminum (i think, and i maybe wrong about this) is a tad easier to polish than stainless, at least it is, or was, in this part of the country.
shame you have a coupe because the original sill panels (and since thats what eveyone else calls them, i will too) on all the chevelles and el caminos ive had, seemed rather thin, bendy (plus, usually cupped and bowed) and not very good at holding carpet down (good thing they're on the floor) i would happily trade you a fine set of pre-owned, seasoned originals for some shiny, spankin' new repo's, much like these...
http://www.chevelle.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1521

...anyway, good luck

jayt thanks for your concern as to how I spend my time.
If you had spent some time and read my post you would know I am trying to polish a "OE" set and that I have tried steel wool and it did not work either. (to remove the anodizing)
I actually have two sets of repo. "kick panels" as we call them around here, one set is on the car and is bent , the other is still in original packaging and were "bent" in shipping.
I appreciate your offer on the steel wool, but I cant see why I would want to buy that when I can buy a chemical that will do the job quicker and better?
Also if you are using your steel wool in a back and forth moton you are making a lot more work for yourself when you do go to your buffer.
I would suggest using a random orbital sander and 600,1000 or 2500 wet or dry sand paper, you will find the little swirls are easier to buff out that the long streaks the the back and forth moton leaves .
I also appreciate you offer on the OE parts but I allready have a very good set, they just need to be polished.
T.C.

The active ingredient in easy-off, or at least the old easy-off, is sodium hydroxide also known as caustic soda or lye. Acid is on the low end of the pH scale, caustic is on the high end of the pH scale. WEAR RUBBER GLOVES AND GOGGLES.

Red Devil Lye, available in the cleaning section of a supermarket or hardware store, will work just fine. Put it in a plastic tub of lye and warm water, light rubbing with a scotch brite pad, the anodizing will come right off.

From my experience the household Oven Cleaners and Drain openers are getting very weak these days....

No matter what way you take the anodizing off you're going to have to wet sand the metal.... The more time you take sanding the less time you spend on the wheel.... Wet sanding doesn't create heat, buffing does....

Little by little I've been striping all the old moldings off my car and repolishing them.... I've been into metal polishing since I was a kid.....

I've used SOS pads but be careful keep it wet and dont put alot of pressure on it.

I used some Draino crystals today, wow what a chemical reaction when ya mix it with water.
It took the anodizing rite off, the only problem is now I have pitts and high/low spots where I used the oven cleaner and only took part of the anodizing off?
I think if I had started with the Draino crystals it may have come off evenly?
Anybody know about this?
T.C.

For me, it usually comes off fairly evenly. I forgot to mention, if there is any paint, or overspray, the crystal drano will not dissolve the paint, or the anodizing under the paint. You should use a paint stripper and remove any paint/overspray before using thr crystal drano.

i finally remembered to see what i used on my trim-it was called HTR 30, by Dynaflux, Inc, Cartersville, GA.
i had to buy like 6 bottles, thats how they sold it-it is for bluing removal
the stuff has acid in it, you have to wear gloves, or your fingers turn yellow
when you put it on, it starts bubbling & smokin, but didnt hurt the trim

So once the stripper removes all the anodizing. You can just buff it out like stainless steel, or does it need to be re-anodized again?

I just used a buffer to polish the trim. I have used a clear from a spray can on some things, on others I just left it natural. If you leave it natural, you may have to go back and polish it from time to time.

I just ordered some of the Blue Lightning anodizing removal stuff today...we'll see how well it works. :thumbsup:
So Bill, how did it work???? I've used EZ Off HD oven cleaner with medium success before but on some grille trim the other day it took about 12 applications and a lot of scrubbing.

Find the Heavy Duty EZ-OFF and it will take it off with a few applications - then buff it up. Wax it with a good carnuba paste wax for the long term.

Find the Heavy Duty EZ-OFF and it will take it off with a few applications - then buff it up. Wax it with a good carnuba paste wax for the long term.
The HD EZ Off worked with 3 applications on one piece of trim but on two others it took at least 12 applications and a lot of scrubbing with steel wool to get it off. Didn't work well at all on those. Took almost all day to get anodizing off two pieces. After it was off I was able to buff the trim nicely.

So Bill, how did it work???? I've used EZ Off HD oven cleaner with medium success before but on some grille trim the other day it took about 12 applications and a lot of scrubbing.

Wow...forgot about this post.
Von,
That stuff worked "OK". Removal wasn't quite as easy as I had hoped at least in my application.
Kinda pricey too and would probably have gotten the same results w/same effort with either the warm watered Lye or the HD Oven cleaner.

what i have found that works well is carb cleaner. the old school 5 gallon bucket kind that eats your hands off. get a piece of rain gutter bend up the ends pour a sufficiant amount to submege part and let it sit until it is all removed. it may take over night, just keep an eye on it. also muratic acid will work on stuborn parts but it also eats up anything it contacts so this is a last resort dip and wipe.

I know for all of our brass and such for the military, we took a hole bunch of brasso soaked that in it. Then left it on over night and it usually ate through the anodized coating.

How can you tell that the anodizing is completely removed? At what point do you stop??

And a friend of mine has a dishwasher installed in his garage. Does a great job on greasy engine parts.

I just use the one in the house. :D My wife and daughter laid into me a few months ago when they found a BB timing cover in the dishwasher!

I'm telling you, you guys are making more of this then need be.... The wire wheel takes it RIGHT off, then just a little quick polishing and you're in business.. This isn't the best pic but you can sort of see what I did, both feed lines for the carb were red and blue before I stripped them down..
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/7796/carbfeed004rg6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)


http://img79.imageshack.us/img79/4525/carbfeed003uj8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)