Any tips on polishing Atari steering wheels??

sohchx

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I have three Atari wheels that have the typical spider web scratches. I have tried three different polishes both by hand, and high speed buffing but cannot seem to bring back the original luster. Does anyone have a method that brings these back close to new? The scratches are driving me crazy!!! The difference is obvious in my pics vs where the center cap goes.
 

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It sounds as if you may want to do a search for Mike Chestnut on rec.games.pinball. A lot of folks use him for chrome plating in the pinball hobby. I had a coin return flap and some other parts replated and it wasn't too bad. Not sure if that wheel has plastic on it and can't be plated, but if it can..
 
It looks like those scratches go pretty deep. When they were originally plated, they most likely had a layer of copper, followed by a layer of nickle, and finally chrome. I'm going to guess the layer of chrome and nickle are pretty gouged?

One "last resort" method I use with really rough chrome is four ought "0000" steel wool wetted with Turtle Wax Chrome Polish. That will usually take care of surface scratches and moderate rust.

For those steering wheels, I'd try it first on the backside and see how the surface is holding up and that you're not rubbing through the plating. If you're able to remove some of the scratches, switch from the 0000 steel wool and just use a towel wetted with the Turtle Wax Chrome Polish.

Another option would be buffing rouge and bonnets from Harbor Freight if the steel wool isn't cutting it.

If all else fails, see if there is an industrial buffing / plating shop in your area and get their opinion on buffing or plating since the plastic could potentially cause trouble.
 
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