Polishing Acrylic

[Anonymous]

I need to polish up some acrylic tanks. They are extensively scratched and some of them are rather deep. They are going to be stock tanks in my store so they don't have to be perfect, but I'd like for them to look nice too. I think I know *how* to do it, I'm just not sure what I need and where to get it.

Thanks,
Glenn

 

[Robin Goodfellow]

hi.
If you can wait until I got home, I can post a pic or two about the equipements I used for polishing.

For now, let me make an assumption. I assume that you have large number of tank, so you probably will not use those wimpy hand polishing kit that you see in LFS. This is what I used.

1, Random orbit sander
2, micro-mesh sand paper (various grits), with velco backing
3, sponge disc to attach micro-mesh to the sander
4, polishing compound (in 16 oz bottles)
5, wool polishing disc with velco backing

Do a search on micro-mesh, and you should be able to find out where to buy it. Local plastic shop sometimes carry the polishing supply too.

 

[Anonymous]

It's actually only two tanks, and I don't have an orbit sander. Do I really need it for two tanks, I do have several employees.

 

[Robin Goodfellow]

hi.
Still can find time at home. "Daddy, look! Daddy, look!" is what my son said all evening, and can't ask him to stop showing me what he found in the day time when I am not home....

Anyway....depends on the severity of the scratch, some elbow grease may be all you need to polish the tank. My advice to you is that don't try to rush if you want them to look nice, since many times, you will end up doing most of the work all over again if you did not do a thorough job.

But I guess you don't have to achieve a perfect polish, so just go ahead and get some micro-mesh and ask your employees to work out with the sandpapers instead of paying their gym memberships. They will have a nice, firm tricepts and strong forearms to show off.

 

[mhurley]

I polished up a 375 gallon tank pretty good using the power sander method. I would HIGHLY recommend buying an orbital sander...You don't need an expensive one, I got a Ryobi from Home Depot for less than $40. Consider that you technically have the sand the entire tank, at least 6 times over, 1 for each of the different grades of sandpaper as you move from the heavy stuff up to the lighter. I tried to do it by hand with the Micro Mesh and it was just too hard. You have to work in a very small area forever...

I actually tried a few different methods and what worked best for me was:

Micro Mesh on the orbital sander. I started with 220 or 400 grit (I had some deep scratches too).
Worked my way up to about 4000 or 6000 grit Micro Mesh.
Then I changed to Novus liquids. I used the Heavy Damage liquid first on a cotton cloth, then to the light damage solution and finally I polished the tank with Micro Gloss.

Good luck,
Mike

 

[fergy]

You can also run the micromesh right up to the 12,000 grit (2 micron), then hand buff lightly with Novus 2 applied with a diaper cloth. Before you progress to the next grit, look very closely at the surface with a reflected light on it, and watch for irregular scratches that are not uniform to the grit you are using. Or, from about 8,000 grit, use a canton buff with a plastic polish, and an electric buffer, provided you are careful with heat buildup.

B
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[Anonymous]

How can you tell when you are ready to change grit?

 

[Anonymous]

What is 220 or 400 grit? Tehe Micro mesh I found starts at 1500.

 

[the Wizard]

I recently removed a series of fairly significant scratches using 1500 wet/dry sandpaper, then a course automotive polish, and then a fine swirl mark remover automotive polish (both by 3M). I was surprised at how well it worked and how fast it went. I did use a random orbital polisher.