You are in Chicago? PM me, I know a place in Addison that will polish it for ~25 bucks and it will look like chrome. I use them for motorcycle parts all the time. Great work in 24 hours turnaround.

 

Dont forget polishing this peice will require constant work to keep it from rusting. Waterspots will destroy your work. I have done 2 of these, they suck.

 

progressively finer sand paper and then a polishing wheel. Use mothers mag polish to keep it looking perty. thereafter.

 

why not just do chrome plating if that's the effect you want?

 

Thanks everyone for the input. Seeing all the options I have and all the bad and good that goes with one. I think I will just buy a used one... LOL

 

somebody wrote up a DIY a month or so ago, try searching for that.

 

Have you really? On an Evo? Because I am trying to figure out in what universe aluminum rusts.

I can't comment on water spots because mine only has a dull/matte shine. You are probably correct that a mirror finish would require upkeep.

When I did mine, I was amazed at how quickly it cleaned up. I had all the paint off in 5 minutes and moved to the fine wool to finish it off. As others have mentioned, you can polish it further with metal polish if you want a mirror finish.

 

did you make sure you cleaned it as good as possible

 

I sent mine to Jet Hot about two years ago. It doesn't turn blue like chrome, and it won't burn off like paint. I think it cost about $35 back then. Still looks as good as new. Also, if it ever goes bad, they will re-coat for free.

 

what about engine enamel? has anyone used that to paint their heat shield or know of anyone whos used it for their evo?
ive used it on my wrx, did the turbo heat shield and tmic.

 

anyone? anyone tried it?

 

If you wanna do the steel wool look, that's about as far as i would go with it. As stated above polished steel will just get nasty...fast. Any further bpolishing/buffing will be time poorly spend due to oxidation, almost immediately. As for the painting, coating method, it's senseless. OEM Mitsu hasn't came up with anything to keep the shiled from rusting, so it's gonna be difficult to out do them. My .02 steel wool it, remove it, or buck up and buy an aftermarket piece new/used.

 

I would just buy a used one. I see Cusco/ARC heat shields for sale in the classifieds at least once a week. The aggravation you'd have to go through just to save 100 bucks isn't worth it IMO.

 

I did this last weekend, it's quite some work to get the paint off, then you can buff/polish until you are satisfied. My only concern is rust. I know aluminum won't rust, but the question is: what material is the OEM heatshield made off? aluminum or steel?

 

I have to apologize for my previous post regarding the heat shield being aluminum. I polished mine about two years ago and believed it was aluminum this whole time because of the weight, appearance, and it has still not rusted. However, I just checked mine with a magnet, and it IS ferrous; so probably a steel alloy.

Again, sorry Curt@MrLed.

But as I said, I polished mine about two years ago and have not yet seen any corrosion or rust. This is a pic from today: