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Greetings everyone,
I’m new to this forum, and am happy that today I took delivery of my 1949 Packard 8 touring sedan, its in rather good condition and appears to be all original. I plan to clean and detail the car from end to end, polish the chrome, and degrease under the hood. i love the chrome on the front and back, and want to bring out the shine! Does anyone have suggestions on the best way to polish old chrome? I have a buffing wheel, a dewalt drill and some stick jewelers polish. Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Phillip
P.S. here are some pics

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Chrome polish and 0000 steel wool.

I also use the polish and for stubborn areas I apply it with the buffer wheel on a hand held Dremel tool.
Bob J.

BK's right. 0000 steel wool also good for cleaning glass, tho' i got some fine bronze wool at Ace which is nice because it doesn't leave metallic residue where it might cause harm.

Be gentle on original woodgrain, then Meguiar's No. 7 glaze. After that, any good paste wax but nothing that has "cleans" or "polishes" in the title. You want to preserve, not remove. This goes for the body paint, too. Slow and steady. You want to g e n t l y clean and save.

Use only 100% cotton terry cloth, old bath towels. Remove the labels because they're always of polyester and will scratch paint.

Never use Windex or any commercial glass cleaner. Doesn't matter whose label on it. It's hard on adjacent rubber, fabric, woodgraining. Use instead a mix of cheap white distilled vinegar and water, then polish glass w/ crumpled newspaper and a few drops of kerosene.

Polish brass and copper with vinegar or lemon juice. I like Simonize in the original yellow tin with red writing for brass, copper, chrome, woodgraining. That, or Meguiar's or Mother's good for paint.

Never use Armorall. A four-generation upholstery shop near me well versed in Packards voids their warranty if anyone uses it. It's like lip gloss for cars. Looks good temporarily but its greenhouse effect intensifies UV rays. Just keep rubber parts clean and out of the sun. Often old rubber, if not dried out, can be saturated with inexpensive glycerin available at any pharmacy. Some old Bentley and Jag blokes taught us to boil in water old removeable rubber items for 15 minutes, dry, then slather them with glycerin. If you must replace a rubber item, check Metro Moulded Parts in Minneapolis before Steele, since the former has a number of items for less, tho' Steele will have everything at a price.

Assuming you already attended to mechanics: Flushed cooling system, avoid antifreeze unless car ever exposed to two consecutive nights of hard freeze; 30 or below (or has air conditioning, which requires 15% even in LA or Phoenix in August).
Flush brake system with alcohol, blow out system with compressed air, use DOT 5 silicone brake fluid.
Lube every fitting with black molybdenum/graphite grease until you only see fresh coming out. Any major brand 10W/30 motor oil. If stick and OD, GL-1 oil at NAPA for transmission and overdrive, GL-5 in differential.

Don't forget to lube the speedometer cable, repack wheel bearings.

See 2015's award-winning "Carol" with the always superlative Cate Blanchett with your wife or squeeze, and she'll warm up to your new baby if she hasn't yet.

I'm going to go against the grain here and recommend no steel wool, unless there is actual rust. I used 0000 wool with copious lubricant, and after careful observation I noticed that it had made some fine scratches in the chrome. My chrome was in rough shape, so maybe that was part of it.

I would use any sort of chrome polish and work it with microfiber pads/clothes. Looking at your picture, I think that the chrome will clean up just fine.

The stainless will really clean up nicely with the stick polish, but I worry about the paint next to it. You could tape it off, but I hesitate to put tape on original paint for fear that it could pull it off/damage.

For the paint, I would consider gently washing (two bucket) the car to remove all dirt and dust. Then clay bar with lots of lubrication. Followed by a really good waxing with something like Meguiar's or Mothers carnuba wax.

White walls do soap and water first, then if you need more consider a Magic Eraser. Bleche White can help if it's really bad.

-Kevin

I like your car. I also own a 49 in the same color that I bought earlier this year from a dealership that detailed the car and the paint has a good shine. My biggest concern is the areas where rust is bleeding through the paint below the trunk lid, rocker panels, and the chrome bumpers. I treated the rust using CARPRO IronX spray and then applied a coat of paste wax. Will probably repeat the process in a few weeks.

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Pic

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Thanks!

Appreciate the ideas, hope to find a parade or two this fall to ride in.

Nice! Have any inside pics?

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