To polish or not to polish.

[warhawk]

I was just wondering in an informal way what the crowd out there would think was a better route to go on a Kirkham, painting the car or polishing it with painted stripes, or polishing with brushed stripes? Any ideas would be appreciated. p.s. I'm not trying to start fights or arguments, just trying to get ideas and see what other people like. Have a nice day!

[RodKnock]

warhawk, I think it's a reflection of your personality and what you want to do with the car. It's a very difficult decision. The one thing about painting the Kirkham, you really can't go back to a bare body unless you want to go through the hassle of stripping it. By leaving it as a bare body, you can get the brushed finish now and then if you get tired of it, polish it later. On the other hand, if you decide to get it fully polished now, and you get tired of it, then you can go back to the brushed finish later. The bare naked aluminum is very flexible.

I went with the fully polished finish with brushed stripes. My thoughts were that if I got tired of the polished finish, then it would be easier to go back to the brushed finish, then it would be to go from a brushed finish to a polished finish. Those were my thoughts.

I will say that if you want the brushed or polished finish, have the Kirkhams do it. They're experts at it and there's a ton of time and effort needed in order to get it looking good. Also, if you do decide to get it fully polished, be prepared for your car to literally stop traffic.

I love painted finishes, but if you buy a Kirkham, you're buying it for the aluminum body and thus show it off.

[lemans24]

i'm painting mine. it looks more original painted in the period correct colors.

[xlr8or]

I started with brushed finish no stripes. Polished the whole car no stripes. Now I'm back to brushed with polished stripes.

[kobrabytes]

It is a personality decision. Although I did start out thinking about brushed and switched to polished. The polished car has a definite "Oh $hit" factor. When people come over and look at the car I love to watch their faces. Since it's such a unique thing to see a polished aluminum car they are typically blown away. In any case, the Kirkhams WILL make you VERY happy!

Anyway... Photos of mine here:

KobraBytes - Home

len

[CSX 4039]

Originally Posted by xlr8or

I started with brushed finish no stripes. Polished the whole car no stripes. Now I'm back to brushed with polished stripes.

Why did you unpolish?