Technical Valve cover polishing help

So I ordered a set of polished valve covers from a place that I thought was top notch. Couldn't wait to receive them. So today I had a package waiting for me but when I opened I was very disappointed. The top of the valve looked good, but the more I looked I started seeing what looks like a sloppy job to me. I'm no expert and never tried to polish anything so this is new to me. After thinking about it, I'm starting to think I'm over reacting and that this is a hard to reach spot and this is normal. I would love some advice? Ive already been in contact with the owner and he said send them back, but he was kind of shocked and couldn't really believe there is an issue with them. Would hate to spend any more money on these to fix this. But you cant find these covers anywhere else.

 

I wouldn't sweat that. If it really bothered me, I'd hit it with some polish and elbow grease.

 

Just not enough time spent on prep before polishing..... although those are all hard-to-get-to areas. I invested in a buffer set-up, so I don't worry about what others do anymore

 

Find out from the bikers in your area who they use because bike parts are more intricate and attention to detail is critical to them.

 

Get some White Diamond polish and some 00 00 steel wool, and let the RUBBING begin

 

Electric or air powered die grinder with a speed dial rigged up... And some polishing tips should do the trick....

 

You're looking for a show polish and what you received is a good production polish. In all honesty, I'd be surprised to hear from you as well. The spots you are concerned about will take considerable time to make like the "easy" surfaces and won't be noticed once installed. If you want more, as mentioned grab the 1500 grit some polish and go at it. When you're done you'll know why they didn't do it.

 

The imperfections need to be sanded out then polished


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Not parroting Mr T body, but he's right.
Hypothetically speaking here.
So, if they had two levels of polish with accompanying photos and your current ones cost xxx and the premium ones were 30% more, knowing what you know now which ones would you pick?
Of course, most people nowadays want the premium ones at a Walmart price, it's the times we live in.
I'd spend the 30% on some polishing equipment and with some practice end up with a finished set of valve covers that exceed your expectations, and you'll have everything to polish whatever comes next.

 

Ditto with DDDeny. You do not have to pay someone else (if you have your own equipment) and you end up with self satisfaction and no one to be mad at but yourself if it is not up to par .

 

I'd paint them, I'm not really into shiny surfaces.

 

I sent a set of orginal T Bird valve covers to my polish shop and said you'll leave the wording and the bird on those right, they came back looking like brand new no rounded edges no problems, I forgot what he charged for them but it was resonable, I didn't want to put my fingers on them.

 

Got pictures????

 

I just sprayed mountain dew out my nose all over my desk on that comment!

 

Those are really crappy looking and they'll need considerably more work than polishing compound to get them right. You'll be starting with #200 or so to get those pocks smoothed out. The flat areas look to be buffer grooved up a bit too. Like Crazy Steve said, they didn't invest enough time in the sanding process before buffing. IMHO, they should have invested the time prepping the "tough to work" spots and passed along the labor in the price. Maybe the vendor's price is commensurate with the end product, but why turn out a product that's 95% completed? The same applies to chrome and paint prep. Like finish paint laid over sanding scratches. Do it right or don't even start. Denny has it right, they're production level polished. Even at that, I'm surprised the owner was surprised you called them on it. You can't be the first customer to balk at the work, or has everyone dropped their standards for 'good enough' quality workmanship?

Having said all this, you can send them back but you mentioned it's the only source for the valve covers. What engine are they for?

 

57 fargo said it, you sand then polish. whet sand 400-600-1000 then buff

 

That's not as bad as all the "Bullshit" between the toes.

 

Speaking from having polished a few thousand wheels over the years and hundreds of highway truck fuel tanks. I’ve had pieces I’ve started out at 80 grit and worked my way up!


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I agree with doing it myself. I have no knowledge of metal polishing. I will be learning after this. The polish on the top seems to be night and day from the rest. As I'm sure like a couple of you said. Once I do it myself I will see why it looks like it does. I wonder if anyone else has bought a set and can chime in on there finish product.

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Rick's Polishing in Monessen PA does a very nice job.

 

I probably will have someone fix these..i would hate to make them worst than what they are. I will practice on some other stuff I have that didn't cost me anything.

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I have polished miles of aluminum in my time, and have way more experience that any man should ever have. I agree with all the guys who say that you got a production quality job, not a show quality job. But the difference between the two will take twice the time for the polisher.

Those nooks and crannies will require sanding, starting with 80 grit and working your way up to 600 or higher before significant time on the wheels. But I can actually say that 99.9% of the people looking at your engine will never see those spots. Clean the polishing compound out of those spots with some lacquer thinner and see if you like them a little better.

On the taillights I make I will not sell a part with a pit larger than a pin point. But I sell taillights, not valve covers.

 

Who are you and what have you done with Bandit Billy?

 

I have polished a lot of valve covers and flathead heads. Each time I do it I tell myself I should have paid the up front higher price and bought them polished. As others have said the areas you pictured are very difficult to polish,require special tools and or lots of hand work to get it just right.

 

Get yourself a kit from Eastwood and do it yourself!

Once you get into it, it's kind of zen-like therapy.
Here's a valve cover polishing tech thread I did several years ago:
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/polishing-polishing-finned-al-valve-covers.97179/

Here's as set of Hot Heads' Hemi M/T covers I did more recently. Like yours, the bolt hole reliefs were pretty porous- they needed some serious sanding before even thinking about making 'em shiny.

Hope this helps.

 

No one has mentioned it but sometimes the basic casting is poor or shifted. The polisher has to decide how far he can go before he loses the correct profile or even worse, breaks through the casting while trying to remove the cast surface imperfections. It's kind of an art and I've seen some very poor polishing jobs where the shape is ruined by over-polishing.
Years ago an inexperienced polisher ruined the shape of the windows in my nice set of early '60s Halibrands by getting too focused on "shiny" and not paying attention to what he was doing to the contours.

 

^^^what bchctybob said^^^ a porous casting is sometimes best left not quite smooth! Joe

 

I usually start highly motivated with the attitude that I’m going to get every nook and cranny and it’s going to be perfect. Then as I’m into the 3rd hour of polishing, I look at a spot and think” You know, thats in between the back of the valve cover and the firewall, nobody’s going to see it...Frig It!”


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I very rarely use sandpaper to prep aluminum for polishing anymore; usually only on flat surfaces, and even then I won't go under 400 grit. Takes far too long to get the scratches out if you use coarser paper. I've found that 'surface conditioning discs' (AKA Scotchbrite) on a die grinder works much better and is much, much faster. Find some 1" discs, start with a 'maroon' disc to remove the pits, then follow up with blue then grey. You can then final polish, starting with a sewn cotton buff with rouge compound, followed up with a loose cotton buff with white compound for a mirror finish. You'll probably need a felt cone to get into a few of the areas.

You can do this with sandpaper, but expect a very long process.... literally days for a show polish.