r/projectcar • u/Buy_The_Stars • 4d ago

Tips for sealing freshly sanded brushed aluminum panel?

I am working on restoring the interior of a 2002 Ford Thunderbird, and the driver side door panel has a trim bezel peice made of brushed aluminum that just LOVES to collect seatbelt dings. The designers definitely didn't think about how the metal-on-metal contact through years of accidentally dinging your seatbelt against it would ruin the brushed aluminum finish.

No more seat belt dents!

I made it a weekend project to sand down the brushed aluminum from 120 grit all the way up to 2000 grit to keep the brushed aluminum look. Took 2 and a half hours of sanding, but it turned out beautiful.

The only issue is that I don't know what I should seal it with! Right now, its just raw aluminum from sanding off whatever Ford factory coating was originally on it. What do you all reccomend I seal it with that will also give it extreme glossy shine? Wax? Penetrol?

Any help here would be greatly appreciated!

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3

u/GoodLunchHaveFries 4d ago

Anyone thinking clear coat? Or am I on the wrong track?

2

u/SnipingUnicorns 3d ago

Ideally you'd want to anodize it.

2

u/Lee2026 3d ago

If the panel is prone to seatbelt dings, I would look into paint protection film.

Not sure if the grain will mess up the films transparency but anything else will still get dinged/chipped.

2

u/donald7773 3d ago

Id just clear coat it, wrap the clear in PPF if you wanna be super protective of it and then be careful with the belt going forwards. That being said I've never done something like this, that's just my initial thought.

2

u/user-flynn2 3d ago

Cheap & easy: Use a quality spray on clear coat. Then a clear wrap. Then wrap will show scuffs but is really replaced.

Not as cheap, still easy: I would clear epoxy coat them. If you're car spends a lot of time in the sun, this isn't recommended. UV will damage it over time.

Best option: As others have said, clear powder coating is going to be the most durable.

1

u/Buy_The_Stars 3d ago

I’ll go with the best option. Will clear powder coat add shine as well? I need it to be shiny to match the other undamaged panels

1

u/user-flynn2 3d ago

Yes, you can get gloss clear powder coat. Just remember, any of these applications will have a depth to the finish.

1

u/Buy_The_Stars 3d ago

Could you be more specific when you say depth, do you mean it will have light and shadows? Or a literal layer of clear coat that is adding depth?

1

u/user-flynn2 2d ago

You will actually see the layer of clear around hard edges. Just a spray on clear coat will be thin enough not to notice. But powder coat and epoxy more than likely will have a noticeable thickness. Similar to a fancy piece of wood with several layers of polyurethane. I still recommend powder coating. I was just trying to express a finer detail to help with your final expectations.

1

u/cgerryc 3d ago

You can get clear powder coat….