We have all been there and done that! The Anodized Aluminum Trim around the windshield gets nicks and scratches....

Easy, right? Just polish them out and the Trim will look beautiful again...

Well, NO, its not easy, but yes, if done properly the trim looks great!

My current method is as follows: Sheet of 220 Wet & Dry, Sheet of 600 Wet & Dry, Sheet of 1000 Wet & Dry, Bottle of Blue Magic Metal Polish, Pad of extra fine (000) Bronze Wool (NOT Steel Wool!!!)

Tape all around the Trim to be polished (you will slip; no, you aren't that good!) Double up on the blue masking tape; it's cheap!

Quarter sheet of 220 grit, folded to 1/4 size. Spray with a mist of 1 quart water and a few drops of dish soap, well mixed. Paper should be damp, but not dripping. Gently sand with the length of the trim, in long, even strokes...medium pressure. Cover the entire piece. Wipe off the black residue with a clean damp paper towel. Repeat. You may need to do this part up to three times!

Do the same thing with the 600 grit, then the 1000 grit, using less pressure with each paper switch. Wipe clean between each grit with the damp paper towel.

Finally, apply a small spot of Blue magic to a small tight ball of Bronze Wool (boaters with teak know what this stuff is!!!) and again polish the surface in long gentle strokes, with light to medium pressure. When the surface and wool turns black, apply a spot of Blue magic to a clean cotten cloth (rag) and wipe off any trace of residue. Buff with another clean cotten rag. Lean over to see your reflection in the trim... If you can see yourself clearly, you have done it right! If the trim appears to have dull streaks and some polished spots, start over! You haven't gotten thru all of the anodizing yet!

NOW, somebody tell me there is an easier method, PLEASE!!! I spent two hours doing just one quarter of my windshield trim, and it was in reasonably good shape to start with. It did come out very nice, but I now have no finger tips left!

Does windsheild trim not come off the car?

If so, have it professionally polished, or polish it yourself on a buffing wheel equipped bench grinder and then clear-coat it.

Otherwise, as a guy with some really nice cars once told me; You can only do the best that you can with what you have to work with.

All new trim is roughly $200...why not just replace it. You are sanding through the clear anodizing to expose the raw aluminum (thats when it turns black)...

Need a source for new Windshield trim... haven't seen any lately, but yes, that is the best idea. $200.00 beats 8 hours of polishing any day! (and repolishing later!)

The problem with pulling off the old trim and polishing is that it usually comes off in less than ideal condition, so might as well plan on reinstalling new trim if available! Darn stuff is pretty delicate!

The plastic clips that hold the trim in place are one use only. You have to pull the windsheild to replace the trim clips and re-install the trim. Less than ideal for most of us.
For new trim stuff, call Dave at GPR. 1800 321-5432.

The stuffis more than delicate - it's like peeling peanut butter from a Reeses Cup! You even attempt to remove/re-use it, you're pi__ing in the wind.

Buy the new stuff before it's $500!

Any anodizing can be removed effectively from any aluminum by coating it with Easy-off oven cleaner, use the aerosol can not the squirt bottle, so you get even coverage. Let the oven cleaner soak for about half an hour, you will see the anodizing bubble up, this can be removed with a brillo or SOS pad (steel wool) . Then use a suitable metal polish like Mother's or Solvol autosol to brighten the Aluminum. You now have polished aluminum that needs special attention when detailing your car, a good coat of carnauba wax will help keep it bright for a while. I used this process to polish my Fuchs. Good Luck.

I just don't understand (unless your cheap or no money) why you don't take it to the professionals. All the time, effort & poor results don't add up. Professionals have the shop, equipment & talent with reasonable prices to do the job right.

Here's how.
Gather up all trim pieces & spend the time to pick dents out then lightly sand smooth. After you prep (note: prep saves money) all pieces take it to your local professional. I did this with a number of pieces then picked out the best ones for my car. Sold the others and made money for other parts. Pieces looked better than factory. This week I took a few pieces for a friend to our local Michigan source, McNichols Polishing & Andizing Inc. Redford, MI. They have a minimum charge of $80.00 bucks. They will do a lot of stuff for this minimum fee. If you don't like the work, you complain & get it done over or free. Sure beats the hassle. That's what Restoration Shop do. They sub-contract chrome, polishing, anodizing, etc to the professionals. My moto, do what you do best & let the professionals do there's.

Tom

Thanks Tom! Sounds like a plan. I will see if I can pick up some decent used windshield trim and follow your advice. I'm down here near Sturgis on the Indiana border, so a day trip would get me to your Anodizing shop. Then, If I tear up the old trim taking it off (most likely), I will have fresh new trim to put back on. Are the plastic clips still available? Pelican Parts? Or?

Hey, 73Phoenix20

I just finished making plans to visit the Ross Lab/Abbott Lab in Sturgis MI in the next 2-3 weeks. Small world, know anyone that works there????

Tom
I suggest you buy new window trim, because it's almost impossible to take it off without damage/bending, etc. It's real thin and very easy to dent. What I am thinking is sail panel trim & other more sturdy stuff.

Okay, I will try to find some new window trim and go from there!

No, can't say I know anyone at Abbot Labs... The wife is from Burr Oak and we know more folks out that way.

Have a safe trip!

Phoenix2.0

I just bought all new trim for the red car. It came from Porsche in worse condition that what came off of the car. This stuff is REALLY fragile, be very picky if you order new, and go to the dealer personally to inspect before paying.

Hmmmm...THAT doesn't sound good! I thought the windshield trim was NLA from Porsche. Good to know there is still a source, even if somewhat "iffy"!

Thanks for the info. I only have one more piece to polish, so I think I will stick to the "intensive labor " method, and save the bucks and aggravation!

Ditto!!!!!!
Had to go 2 1/2 rounds on mine from Perf Prods. a few years ago..
Took a bit of work on both our parts..But it did get resolved and I got
all decent pieces finally!! BTW..Got mine when they had a 20% off sale..
JAT !!

I just took off my windshield trim and removed the windshield. The clips appear to be intact. What makes them one use only?

Bump on this thread...
I got my BRAND NEW Windshield in the LE and went about cleaning and installing my trim but its just not up to the same quality as the rest of the car Its straight but 30+ yrs have left it less than bright & shiney, so I was contemplating buying some new trim?

Have it reanodized?

I would imagine you would strip the anodizing right off with the sand paper and steel wool.


I haven't tried anything with anodizing but I got a 2 inch polisher with all the heads and polishes for various metals and also glass.

So...you strip(abrasively) the anodizing from the trim - assuming it lives after rough treatment, what do wou do to make it look correct & keep it so? Clear coat it? Visible a mile away. Hand polish it? Looks purty but doesn't match the rest of trim.

Face it folks, these are unique cars. You want original appearance (you have posted on THIS forum after all), get original parts. If not, you'll just depreciate your 914's value. Leave it alone if you can. Pits and boogers are acceptable from 914's with provinence. I'd rather have an original 914 with soft trim boogers, than one that has been boogered up by someone with a polisher. Sorry, no harm intended, but this just isn't a viable option.

New parts please!

Went to the "stealer" and apparently the bottom part is NLA. The L & R sides &
connectors are still avalaible new.

The temptation would be to say "get what you can - now". But these pieces CAN be re-anodized. If you can get them off without detroying , they can be refinished, with new anodizing.

Please, don't butcher these rare parts by sanding & "clear" coating. It's not even close to original and will stand out as such.