My 170 is painted, but I polish my Swift. Its finish is somewhat compromised because of the rathole it lived in before I bought it, but I'm slowly restoring it to its former glory.
Glass Wax (no longer available) is the best thing I've found for removing old water spots and the whitish stains left by bird droppings on bare aluminum. I'm lucky enough to have a supply, but it's limited. The Nuvite products seem to protect polished surfaces well enough that I may soon no longer need it, but I'd still like to find a substitute.
Somewhere on the web I found someone saying that Gel-Gloss (http://www.gel-gloss.com/) is identical to Glass Wax. Is anybody out there using this on bare aluminum? Does it work? Is there a retail chain that carries it?
Thanks for the help!
John Renwick
Minneapolis, MN
Former owner, '55 C-170B, N4401B
'42 J-3 Cub, N62088
'50 Swift GC-1B, N2431B, Oshkosh 2009 Outstanding Swift Award, 2016 Best Continuously Maintained Swift
You must have been very good in your past life...... If I could have 3 planes those would be them. I have had the opportunity to fly all 3 types and IMHO that is the perfect combination...... Oh yea, about Glasswax. Have you tried Nu-Image? Another Nuvite product. Similar to Glasswax but I think it cleans better and protects the shine longer. Like most Nuvite products it costs more upfront but a little goes a long way. http://www.nuvitechemical.com/Products.asp?ProductID=2
John
N2865C
"The only stupid question is one that wasn't asked"
Thanks for the compliment! There are lots of great airplanes, but for availability and affordability, I'm happy with mine! I'm a bit of a copycat, actually. Member Dennis Hoffman, whose beautiful polished '53 170B is on the July 2007 calendar page, has a similar collection. I've just been trying to keep up with him!
Yes, I use NuImage after polishing. But Glass Wax, as I said, is the best thing I've found to remove water spots and bird dropping stains before polishing. NuImage doesn't touch them. Once I've gotten rid of all these blemishes, I don't think I'll need the Glass Wax any more because I'm in a clean, dry hangar now, and the Nuvite products protect the surface very well. But you never know, and Glass Wax is so uniquely effective that I'd like to have an alternative that would do the same thing.
If I can find some Gel-Gloss I'll buy some and let you know how it works!
John Renwick
Minneapolis, MN
Former owner, '55 C-170B, N4401B
'42 J-3 Cub, N62088
'50 Swift GC-1B, N2431B, Oshkosh 2009 Outstanding Swift Award, 2016 Best Continuously Maintained Swift
jrenwick wrote:Thanks for the compliment! There are lots of great airplanes, but for availability and affordability, I'm happy with mine! I'm a bit of a copycat, actually. Member Dennis Hoffman, whose beautiful polished '53 170B is on the July 2007 calendar page, has a similar collection. I've just been trying to keep up with him!
I'm 2 thirds of the way there and a Swift has been very high on my list for some time. Now I realize I'd be a copy cat.
CAUTION - My forum posts may be worth what you paid for them!
Bruce Fenstermacher, Past President, TIC170A
Email: brucefenster at gmail.com
Iceman07 wrote:I am 99% sure that I saw Gel-Gloss at our local Home Depot yesterday...
Thanks for that! I bought a can at Home Depot today and tried it on a test panel. I don't recommend using this on polished aluminum. It removed the stains just fine, but left scratches that took some work to remove (compounding with Nuvite F7). So there must be some fairly harsh abrasive in it. Glass Wax seems to have no abrasive. I'll stick with that for as long as I need it and my supply lasts.
John Renwick
Minneapolis, MN
Former owner, '55 C-170B, N4401B
'42 J-3 Cub, N62088
'50 Swift GC-1B, N2431B, Oshkosh 2009 Outstanding Swift Award, 2016 Best Continuously Maintained Swift
This is Dennis Hoffman's Swift. Its friends call it "Kermit."
John Renwick
Minneapolis, MN
Former owner, '55 C-170B, N4401B
'42 J-3 Cub, N62088
'50 Swift GC-1B, N2431B, Oshkosh 2009 Outstanding Swift Award, 2016 Best Continuously Maintained Swift
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I'm a bit of a copycat, actually. Member Dennis Hoffman, whose beautiful polished '53 170B is on the July 2007 calendar page, has a similar collection. I've just been trying to keep up with him! 
