I’ve done a lot to the car recently; I removed the doors and trunk lid, cleared out the engine bay, and started modifying the roll cage for two passengers. I was surprised by how clean the engine bay looked after a degrease and pressure wash, which got me excited for future work. I plan to smooth out some surfaces and cover holes that aren’t needed anymore. I also cleaned some engine mounts, brackets, and an oil pan guard, treated the rust, then primed and painted them.
The door handles on this car were originally painted black and made from solid cast aluminum, giving them a nice weight. I wanted chrome handles but didn’t want to spend a lot on metal ones or buy cheap plastic. So, I decided to polish the original handles. To my surprise, they turned out much better than I expected, and I saved money.
I started by taking the handles apart and cleaning them. I hand-sanded them with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the paint, then used 400 grit dry sandpaper, followed by wet sanding with 400, 600, 1000, and 1500 grit sandpaper in that order. After sanding, I used a Dremel tool with a felt disc to polish the handles with aluminum polish.
While going through some parts I got with the car, I found chrome inserts that could fit into the handles. I carefully cut off some tabs and used epoxy to attach them. They look good, reflecting light differently than the polished aluminum. They aren’t perfect, but I can replace them later if I find a better set.
Robot Rabbit 