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Updated first post! Going to be spending the next few days grinding down the seams, then I'm going to start smoothing everything beginning with some 80 grit, and working up, up, up! (A couple more up's in there)
As you can see, between the intake runners are smoothing out quite nicely as well.

I may go with the palm style sander as well, but I felt a wider belt would offer me an overall flatter surface to begin with, so I'm not sanding any area down more than the areas around it, you know? I do remember having that issue when I went to the hardware store for rougher grit belts, and for 1/2" belts in general... I need to buy 1" belts and cut them in half, or buy online. I'll probably be doing the online method, but I won't need to many more of them. It really works very quickly, which kind of worries me, beyond using it for casting flash at least.

Yours is coming along nicely, keep up the good work!!

Day four came and went. I get about 1.5 hours/weekday to work on it. Sunday apparently is no exception. Put up pics on 1st post again!

The GF gives you 1.5 hours a day to mess around I need to talk to my wife about how much time my buddies are getting in comparison...
Good work. The tight spots aropund the top end are where it is going to test your patients though. I would give them some love before you get down to all "pain in the a--" areas.

PATDIESEL wrote:The GF gives you 1.5 hours a day to mess around I need to talk to my wife about how much time my buddies are getting in comparison...

My wife is happy to get me out of the house any chance she gets. LOL

Updated first post! I wish I had a solid good day to work on this, instead of a hour here or there. the missus runs off to play with the ponies on a local farm, so I get to run down and play with the HORSES in the garage, mwahaha!

I know I'm a little late. Sorry, I just saw this thread.

Sanding drums are no good on aluminum. A belt sander, as MM92 suggested, is a much better option. For the tight spots, though, I've had great results with these puppies:

http://www.harborfreight.com/50-piece-d ... 36252.html

They're not as fast as a sanding drum, but last virtually forever, and leave a pretty nice finish (and they're cheap, which doesn't hurt either ).

I am going to pick up a set of those, thanks. The large sanding drums I use are attached to a drill, they're not the tiny dremel ones, so they're

super effective!

but these look really handy!

You're welcome.

I had a set of those for a few years (I had to sell them last year, together with the rest of my tools ). They work great with a dremel. Just use a light touch, and I guarantee you'll love them.

Updated first post! Kinda a unproductive day I need my sandpapers to properly continue...

Well it does look,,sanded kinda, like what I would expect from Fred Flintstone. I can appreciate the time involved to do this but I have to ask. Why not sand the seams and then get the whole thing powder coated. I've seen powder coat that looks like chrome. Then you could spend all that extra time you didn't have to spend breathing in aluminum dust on MX3.com. Just a thought.

I used to breathe in aluminum dust... but then I took an arrow to the knee!

now i use a mask to filter it. I think fred flintstone would have done the same job only a whole lot faster than I am.

Arrow, Knee, win!

Any ideas about the dimples in the cast? They seem farther down, and looks like I would have to grind away a lot more aluminum to get to them. Should I keep cutting down or just polish it with the dimples inthere? I posted another pic in the 1st post. Didn't get much done.

these dimples on the runners:

I have no idea but in keeping with our can do attitude I'll give advise anyway. How about mixing up some aluminum epoxy and filling the holes then buff away the extra. Ta Da! You could take the aluminum powder from your sanding and use the aluminum dust to mix in with the epoxy. Ta Da! x2. OR you could simply dab silver paint into and onto the pits and sand/polish off the extra. Ta Da! x3 I accept Visa, Master Card or Interac money transfers.