Sisal Polishing Wheel Angle Grinder Problems

Scott & Heather · April 07, 2016, 03:51:46 AM

Fred Hobe's site at one time mentioned putting a sisal wheel on a big angle grinder (or even stacking a few sisal wheels on a lengthened arbor) to polish the stainless skins on our buses. I tried to do this recently but it vibrated so bad I couldn't hold onto the grinder. What am I doing wrong?

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Scott Crosby · April 07, 2016, 04:23:00 AM

Something wrong with your wheel that makes it out of balance? It works great for me and I just use a cheap harbor freight one and a brown bar but this is on aluminium not stainless.

http://busgreasemonkey.com/uploads/FileUpload/cc/84740a34f0370adc8adb2b41ce856d.mp4

luvrbus · April 07, 2016, 04:53:34 AM

Scott, I been using the 3M "Trizact" hook system on a 4 inch variable speed Milwaukee for years for stainless it is so quick, easy and clean,then use a foam pad with 3 M fast cut compound and you are finished.I don't like the Sisal cotton pads myself to much work for me.
FWIW if the stainless is not in to bad of shape the 3M fast cut and a foam pad will make it a mirror finish only take less than 1 qt to do a bus @ 50 bucks a qt

Jeremy · April 07, 2016, 05:18:34 AM

Sounds like you might have been using far too high a speed - regular angle grinders are single (very high) speed devices for grinding metal and sanding, whereas for polishing you need either a variable speed one or a dedicated polisher.

Just to add as well that some of the cheap variable-speed models are also almost unusable for polishing because at low speeds they have very little torque, insufficient to overcome the friction of anything but the lightest use.

Jeremy

TomC · April 07, 2016, 07:35:57 AM

Angle grinders typically run at 10-25,000rpm. You need a polisher with electronic speed control that runs less than 5,000rpm. Electronic control will give you exact speed control maintaining head speed even under load. I have one on a Toshiba polisher (or maybe another Japanese brand). If you put too much pressure on it and slow it down, it tells you by shutting down briefly. You quickly learn the exact pressure the machine takes and then it can run all day and not get hot. Good Luck, TomC

chessie4905 · April 07, 2016, 07:41:40 AM

Didn't Mi. recently pass a law that you can't polish stainless steel on vehicles anymore because of the unsafe glare to other drivers at night?

bottomacher · April 07, 2016, 01:08:08 PM

Wonder what MI uses to date the polishing job, since it wouldn't be illegal unless they can prove it wasn't done before the law passed.

Scott & Heather · April 07, 2016, 03:51:39 PM

Post a link to said law. I searched and searched and couldn't find it

Scott & Heather · April 07, 2016, 07:41:26 PM

I am actually trying to find the right tool to polish the aluminum baggage door panels on my 102C3 and the Alcoa rims too. I guess that the angle grinder was spinning too fast. Scott Crosby somehow made it work. So I need a polisher. Ok. And then just stack sisal wheels on it?

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Scott Crosby · April 08, 2016, 03:01:31 AM

http://t.harborfreight.com/7-in-10-amp-heavy-duty-digital-variable-speed-polisher-69696.html

This is what I was using, it is a polisher, it just looks like an angle grinder. It's variable speed. It's not made for a sisal wheel specifically but with some creativity you can get one on it. I also buy the wheels at hf. They have to be on super tight or they will spin and tear up near the shaft and ruin the wheel. Buy a few cloth wheels they are cheep. One wheel lasts me about 10-15 hours. I've done my entire bus 3x with this tool. Probably close to 100hrs of use and it still works. It's way out lived the life expectancy I had for it. It's hard to do tight small spaces like rear wheels. well, I suppose if you removed the wheels from the bus it would do a much easier job to polish the rear wheels but I've never wanted to do that much work on my wheels. And I don't recommend it but I had to remove the anodizing from my aluminium. It was 69 years old and in really bad shape plus somone had sanded large areas here and there. It was the only thing I could do to make it look nice. It actually looks fantastic now but it is a lot of work to polish it and it will always have to be done now. Wax is its friend now and helps me get 6 months on a polish. I would not recommend removing anodizing for just anyone, but you can't mirror polish with it. On a sunny day, it's super reflective so that's my excuse for not polishing it perfect. I can see people glowing in their car as they pass me on the sunny side of the bus. The safe part is the rear of the bus at night. For head lights they don't blind the drivers as the entire back of the bus is all curved aluminium so there is no headlight glare or blinding back at the drivers on the rear of the bus. I've been behind a semi with flat polished doors and been blinded by the reflection before but my bus butt is sexy and curved so the light does not bounce back

once anodizing is removed you are committed to a life long maintainence process that most people I know do not want to undertake. My whole process is documented on my site. If you search there for anodizing, sore muscles from buffing, my bus it's trying to kill me, this is a lot of work, what have I got myself into, this is not fun... Any of those keywords should probably find it

your bus may or may not have anodizing but the Gm's do I prefer the dull clean anodized look on Gm's but I had no choice. It was either polish or look like a old worn out splotchy chalk board going down the road.

Scott & Heather · April 08, 2016, 06:38:32 AM

Lol! Awesome thanks for the clarity on that. I will be heading to HF to do just that. My 102 has a flat skin conversion by the previous owner and its alumnium so I'll be polishing it and then adding faux polished ribs

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luvrbus · April 08, 2016, 06:55:54 AM

Use Scottsbrite red pads that is what the wheel polishing dudes use you should see my wheels they will blind you,but for some reason Gary didn't have them clean the back side of the wheels now I have that to do.

I thought you were polishing Stainless sorry about that,buy what ever but me I would spend a little more $$ and buy something better than than the HF sh**

Scott Crosby · April 08, 2016, 07:08:13 AM

I burned up a black and decker one in about one hour. I bought it like a year before and it was 3x the price, It sat for about a year before I used it so I couldn't return it. So I went to HF to buy what I expected to be a disposable one, but it's still going strong after tons of use and abuse.

luvrbus · April 08, 2016, 07:15:55 AM

You are lucky Black and Decker makes some Chinese sh** too I don't buy anything Black and Decker not even a coffee pot, Dewalt,Milwaukee, or Mikita for me,with Black and Decker owning Dewalt now I have reservations about Dewalt

buswarrior · April 08, 2016, 08:38:09 AM

For the other readers, what happened to that paint that matched the appearance of the siding?

It came from mainline paint manufacturer, is it still around?

Some folks can't begin to think about polishing due to the physicality of it, but want their coach freshened up.

There was a mobile preacher at Arcadia a long time ago, 4104, green accents, you had to be right up close to realize it was paint, and not original skins, it looked great!

If I needed to make that choice, it would be hard to resist that paint!

Anyone know?

happy coaching!
buswarrior