Chromed Pipes

[John Manion]

What is the best product for cleaning chromed pipes?

 

[tfeverfred]

If you mean something to keep them from turning blue..... nothing. Trust me, I've got EVERY polish that promised good results and they ALL failed. I polish mine once a week with Turtle Wax chrome polish. But, I have a collection of polishes and sometimes switch out. In between polishing, like minor smudges and such, I just spray a little Windex and wipe them off. Works just like it does on bathroom chrome fixtures.

 

[Johnny]

That's why I like black pipes.

 

[old round fart]

If you get something burned on, Easy-Off oven cleaner works.

 

[Dino]

Rubbing alcohol and new towel if they are new. Keep your hands off the pipes do to oily skin.

 

[grazza]

Lemon juice applied neat and rubbed off will sometimes work - so I'm told.

 

[Bennett]

What is the best product for cleaning chromed pipes?

John,
I use a product called "Blue Away" (Made by Competition Chemicals Inc.). It removes the brown and blue discoloration that builds up on the chrome closest to the heads. I would like to use it every time I take the car out but I find it keeps up well even if you only have time to use it every other time or so. The product can be purchased from Speedway Motors or Eastwood Company. I use a damp shop rag to apply product and to remove discoloration and then a clean soft cloth to remove residue. I'm sure you will like how it cleans things up.

 

[2old2fast]

Talk to your motorcycle buddies or go to a cycle shop , "blue out" IIRC is one product I've used , but in all honesty , if you drive your car alot , the chrome nowadays is so crappy that it won't hold up very long.
dave

 

[John Manion]

Thanks everyone for responding, it's great to have a place to go for help. At any rate Blue-out sounds like the product for me, and thanks again.

 

[iajjpop]

My headers is 10 years old,they are a coated or o h c headers.I use Purple metal polish 12 oz bottle. They still are looking good. I like the coated headers, when you go to a car show they cool off a lot quicker then plain headers . I put on with a paper towel and keep rubbing & when starts to dry use a different towel to get a good shine. Works for me.

 

[tfeverfred]

I went on the internet and did a few hours research and what I found made sense. The chrome coating on todays headers are basicly like paint. Only a LOT thinner. That's also why the scratch so easy. When the header turns blue, it's because that coating is burned. That's why a polish won't take it off. The blueing isn't something that gets ON the header, it's the coating itself being burned. That's also why all thse "backyard" remedys won't get scratches out of chrome. In essence, the only way to remove the blue would be to remove the burned chrome. then you'll have bare metal. It's a no win situation. Try to un-burn a slice of toast. Same thing.

Probably, the best thing for you to do is order all the polishes that say they'll work. Try them and see what happens. I can guarantee you'll end up with a nice collection of chrome polish like I have.

I've got Turtle Wax, Flitz, Blue-away, Purple polish, Blue-out, Wenol, Simichrome and even a bottle of Jewelers Rouge. NONE took off the blue. They ALL give a great shine and taught me an expensive lesson.

On a good note, I actually like the bluing, once I got used to it. If your engines tuned well, it's a nice, smooth graduation of color coming from the head.

 

[gfigms]

I coated the inside of mine with ceramic paint ... they look great!

 

[tfeverfred]

I coated the inside of mine with ceramic paint ... they look great!

I thought about doing that when I got my new set some months back. I was in a rush and didn't follow through.