Real Airframes, Real Hangars
Work done in Lubbock, on customer aircraft. Nothing here is stock photography.
Bare aluminum never stops oxidizing. Here is what polishing actually achieves and how long it realistically lasts in West Texas.
Brightwork — polished spinners, leading edges, cowlings, and on some airframes the entire fuselage — is bare aluminum. Unlike paint, there is no protective layer over it. It begins oxidizing the moment it is finished and it never stops.
Polishing it is a progressive process: cutting compounds to remove oxidation and surface defects, then finer stages to build reflectivity, then hand finishing. Each stage removes a small amount of material, which is why an honest shop tells you the interval before you start rather than after.
West Texas is unusually hard on brightwork. High UV, alkaline dust that abrades with every wind event, and mineral-heavy water that spots and etches all shorten the interval considerably compared to milder climates.
There is no shortcut here. Brightwork is time, and anyone quoting it cheaply is planning to skip stages.
Evaluate current oxidation, existing scratches, prior polish quality, and whether any areas have been previously damaged or thinned.
Multiple compound stages from cutting through finishing, each removing the scratch pattern left by the previous one. Skipping stages leaves haze that shows in direct sun.
Rivet lines, edges, and compound curves are finished by hand. Machine work cannot safely reach them and forcing it rounds edges and burns through.
A sealant appropriate for bare aluminum reduces oxidation rate and makes routine cleaning less aggressive.
In West Texas, less time than in milder climates. High UV, alkaline caliche dust, and mineral-heavy water all accelerate oxidation. Maintenance passes on a regular interval hold the finish; full polishes are needed considerably less often.
Yes, a small amount at each stage. That is why the number of full polishes over an airframe's life matters, and why maintenance passes are preferable to repeated aggressive correction.
Usually substantially improved. Deeply pitted aluminum, or aluminum that has been over-polished previously, may not return to a mirror finish. We assess and tell you what is realistic before starting.
It is almost entirely labor. Multiple progressive compound stages plus hand finishing around rivets, edges, and compound curves. Anyone quoting it cheaply is planning to skip stages, which shows in sunlight.
We will assess it honestly and tell you what is achievable before you commit.
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