I've been meaning to get around to this. I just love the way that the piping snakes around the IRS on our cars. I didn't want a mirror shine so I didn't go crazy with the sanding. Just wanted it to look clean and like new. I also wasn't worried about polishing the entire catback, so I just polished what you could see while it was on the car; mostly to save my fingers.
04sleeper's write up was extremely helpful. (http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/how-230/568983-how-polish-your-exhaust.html).
I started with the 150 grit flapper wheel to get off the really hard spots. Then I hit it with 180 grit then 220 grit. You can see in this picture just how dirty the exhaust was on the passenger side.
From there I moved onto 400 grit then 800 grit. You can see in this picture the shine starting to come through. By this time I had a few too many brewskis and called it a night.
Fingers a little sore the next morning, I moved onto the 1000 grit, then 1500 grit, and finally the 2000 grit. Once I was done sanding the driver side, I hit it with a nice coat of Mother's chrome polish. It's like night and day compared to the untouched passenger side.
I repeated the process on the other side and this is how it came out. I was relatively pleased with everything except the actual rolled tips. There was some build up on those that just wouldn't come off. As I worked at them harder and harder, I just began to discolor the steel. Maybe I'll get some new ones welded on in the future, but overall I think the exhaust looks 1000% better. (Please disregard my sweet impromptu work light. The halogen bulb in my shop light took a crap on me as I started)
04sleeper's write up was extremely helpful. (http://www.svtperformance.com/forums/how-230/568983-how-polish-your-exhaust.html).
I started with the 150 grit flapper wheel to get off the really hard spots. Then I hit it with 180 grit then 220 grit. You can see in this picture just how dirty the exhaust was on the passenger side.
From there I moved onto 400 grit then 800 grit. You can see in this picture the shine starting to come through. By this time I had a few too many brewskis and called it a night.
Fingers a little sore the next morning, I moved onto the 1000 grit, then 1500 grit, and finally the 2000 grit. Once I was done sanding the driver side, I hit it with a nice coat of Mother's chrome polish. It's like night and day compared to the untouched passenger side.
I repeated the process on the other side and this is how it came out. I was relatively pleased with everything except the actual rolled tips. There was some build up on those that just wouldn't come off. As I worked at them harder and harder, I just began to discolor the steel. Maybe I'll get some new ones welded on in the future, but overall I think the exhaust looks 1000% better. (Please disregard my sweet impromptu work light. The halogen bulb in my shop light took a crap on me as I started)
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