im back, and continuing the saga of the turbo coupe clutch melter...
- Thread starter retroshark
- Start date
mraw112
Well-Known Member
what are you using to polish every thing. brass wire wheel? i tried polishing my compressor housing once and it took like a week, and looked nothing like that. i used a dremel and sandpaper. I would really like to see a polished turbine housing. that would look awesome.
retroshark
Well-Known Member
im workin on the turbine tomorrow 
but yea, its a lonnnnnng process... my first step on the turbo compressor was about 1.5 years ago now...
i started with just 100 grit, worked up to the 200, 300, 400 then 600 range... after that, i used my drill and buffing wheel with some polishing compound, and after a few coats, it got it pretty shiny... but nowhere near where it is now.
this time, i did the whole process all over again (yes, totally by hand as far as the sanding process goes) and this time, i applied the compound using my dremel. however, for the turbo alone, i went through maybe 5-6 buffers so i advise stocking up on a lot of them... and i mean, a lot.
after that, i buffed it with a clean buffing bit, then used my larger drill buffer bits to get it to a nice clean shine.
i used this process on everything you see posted here. the only exception is the manifold, which i used my wire brush attachments on my drill for, since it was so caked with oil, gunk, exhaust residue and other crud, i had to break it down... a lot.
im still not 100% satisfied, even after 4 days of grinding, sanding and re grinding on it. i guess its just the composition of the steel, since it has a lot of tiny surface scratches and inperfections, but, im positive that after a few more hours sanding it in the 80-200 range, ill get to the point where i can work up, and then polish it, to achieve a pretty decent result.
i will warn you, this whole process is EXTREMELY time consuming. every night when im done working on the car for 5-7 hours, i go to my room, and spend another 5-7 sanding and polishing. ive been at these parts for about 5 days now, and its only maybe 50% done, and most the stuff had already been polished this way before hand, minus the use of the dremel.
there are definately easier ways, and better tools than a dremel for the larger stuff, but i like the control i have, and i dont mind tearing through an entire case of bits, since i have a hugeeee collection of them (well, i HAD a huge collection LOL)
either way, its soo worth it. today, i really got into the engine bay, and grinded at the block and the tranny, as well as all the other exposed metal parts, just to break down any rust, or corrosion that was there, and my, does it make a heck of a difference. i wish it was kept clean enough to get it back to the point of stock look, but i guess nothing short of a full sand blast will get it to be THAT clean in the bay!
tonight, i also repainted my valve cover. prett much the same color, maybe a little darker, and a little less metallic, but i used proper engine enamel, rather than regular spray paint, so it should fair a lot better in the intense heat under there.
anyways, ill have more pics tmorrow - i have to go to town to go to my new school and take a little proficiency test as part of the application process (its for audio engineering) which im not sweating, but it will eat up half my day, so ill make sure to bring my camera out as soon as im gettin to work, and snap some pics of the bay. i have a feeling, that tomorrow will be spent mostly on polishing more stuff, as i only have a handful more wires to connect, and most are just as simple as plugging them in, and re-routing the few connectors so they are out of sight. should be real nice when its all done. if i have time before next week, when i plan to FINALLY get the car on the road again, ill be porting my turbo just a lil (im gonna need to get another grinding bit for my dremel for this!) but we will see... ive never ported anything before, and im only porting the inlet, since the flange for the filter is about 1/3 of an inch wider than the turbo port, and although its not just a strait change in the size, the angle which it narrows, is not that ideal imo. idk if ill net any power, but i figure ill grind out as much of the outlet on the turbo, so that its getting a lil more flow into the elbow and into the intercooler... we will see what happens... MWAHAHAHA
anyways, glad yall are still following this... im excited to get the car started up with all the stuff in there, and to actually test the darn clutch, which is what started all this mess LOL.... dont ya love ADD!??
but yea, its a lonnnnnng process... my first step on the turbo compressor was about 1.5 years ago now...
i started with just 100 grit, worked up to the 200, 300, 400 then 600 range... after that, i used my drill and buffing wheel with some polishing compound, and after a few coats, it got it pretty shiny... but nowhere near where it is now.
this time, i did the whole process all over again (yes, totally by hand as far as the sanding process goes) and this time, i applied the compound using my dremel. however, for the turbo alone, i went through maybe 5-6 buffers so i advise stocking up on a lot of them... and i mean, a lot.
after that, i buffed it with a clean buffing bit, then used my larger drill buffer bits to get it to a nice clean shine.
i used this process on everything you see posted here. the only exception is the manifold, which i used my wire brush attachments on my drill for, since it was so caked with oil, gunk, exhaust residue and other crud, i had to break it down... a lot.
im still not 100% satisfied, even after 4 days of grinding, sanding and re grinding on it. i guess its just the composition of the steel, since it has a lot of tiny surface scratches and inperfections, but, im positive that after a few more hours sanding it in the 80-200 range, ill get to the point where i can work up, and then polish it, to achieve a pretty decent result.
i will warn you, this whole process is EXTREMELY time consuming. every night when im done working on the car for 5-7 hours, i go to my room, and spend another 5-7 sanding and polishing. ive been at these parts for about 5 days now, and its only maybe 50% done, and most the stuff had already been polished this way before hand, minus the use of the dremel.
there are definately easier ways, and better tools than a dremel for the larger stuff, but i like the control i have, and i dont mind tearing through an entire case of bits, since i have a hugeeee collection of them (well, i HAD a huge collection LOL)
either way, its soo worth it. today, i really got into the engine bay, and grinded at the block and the tranny, as well as all the other exposed metal parts, just to break down any rust, or corrosion that was there, and my, does it make a heck of a difference. i wish it was kept clean enough to get it back to the point of stock look, but i guess nothing short of a full sand blast will get it to be THAT clean in the bay!
tonight, i also repainted my valve cover. prett much the same color, maybe a little darker, and a little less metallic, but i used proper engine enamel, rather than regular spray paint, so it should fair a lot better in the intense heat under there.
anyways, ill have more pics tmorrow - i have to go to town to go to my new school and take a little proficiency test as part of the application process (its for audio engineering) which im not sweating, but it will eat up half my day, so ill make sure to bring my camera out as soon as im gettin to work, and snap some pics of the bay. i have a feeling, that tomorrow will be spent mostly on polishing more stuff, as i only have a handful more wires to connect, and most are just as simple as plugging them in, and re-routing the few connectors so they are out of sight. should be real nice when its all done. if i have time before next week, when i plan to FINALLY get the car on the road again, ill be porting my turbo just a lil (im gonna need to get another grinding bit for my dremel for this!) but we will see... ive never ported anything before, and im only porting the inlet, since the flange for the filter is about 1/3 of an inch wider than the turbo port, and although its not just a strait change in the size, the angle which it narrows, is not that ideal imo. idk if ill net any power, but i figure ill grind out as much of the outlet on the turbo, so that its getting a lil more flow into the elbow and into the intercooler... we will see what happens... MWAHAHAHA
anyways, glad yall are still following this... im excited to get the car started up with all the stuff in there, and to actually test the darn clutch, which is what started all this mess LOL.... dont ya love ADD!??
mraw112
Well-Known Member
I think im going to try polishing a spare turbine housing if i get the time. I think it will look bad *** after its heated. I have a bench grinder and a drill press (2500+ rpm wire wheel ftw) in my basement, so ill give it a try. are you using brass or steel brushes? brass is not going to do crap on the turbine. The turbine shouldnt take that long to do. it will probably be easier than the compressor, because there are no indention, or cove areas like a compressor housing. once you get all the sand marks off, it should be a straight shot. good luck
retroshark
Well-Known Member
im using steel, and its workin pretty good. im most likely gonna just clean the hot side, rather than polish it, as i feel i wont have time with all the other stuff i got left to do.
but, well see how the cleaning goes, and if i feel up to it, maybe i will do it after all
but, well see how the cleaning goes, and if i feel up to it, maybe i will do it after all
Russianred
Snail Spools You!
Whoa that's a lot of time put into it Marc! It will pay off later
retroshark
Well-Known Member
im not gona talk a lot, cause i dont think i need to. but basically, wiring is DONE.
i am 100% done with the rewiring, and there are a few odds and ends that need to be tied off or moved, but nothing that needs to be extended or stuff lik that. i also have the valve cover back in, and pretty much everything is just waiting to be polished, before the reinstall.
ill let the pictures do allllll the talkin here!
i am 100% done with the rewiring, and there are a few odds and ends that need to be tied off or moved, but nothing that needs to be extended or stuff lik that. i also have the valve cover back in, and pretty much everything is just waiting to be polished, before the reinstall.
ill let the pictures do allllll the talkin here!
1NonlyAccord
Well-Known Member
dang that looks real freakin clean..I need to do that to mine.
retroshark
Well-Known Member
thanks!
its hard work, dont get me wrong... i spent about... a week doing it all in all, but its 100% worth it, just to see both tire wells totally clear of stuff. im glad i did this finally. i hopefully will have the turbo and manifold back in tomorrow, if all goes to plan...
its hard work, dont get me wrong... i spent about... a week doing it all in all, but its 100% worth it, just to see both tire wells totally clear of stuff. im glad i did this finally. i hopefully will have the turbo and manifold back in tomorrow, if all goes to plan...
