I went through this but in the end I wasn't able to get a good clear coat on it to keep it from rusting. Aluminum is easy but steel rusts so quickly especially when it gets hot. I tried to coat it with POR-15's "Glisten PC" clear coat that is designed for clearcoating polished steel and other metals. But it was very difficult to apply. I think it needed to be thinned much more than they suggested and then it would need multiple coats. Don't expect to spray a rattle can clear on polished steel because it won't hold up. It has to be an absolutely air/watertight seal otherwise the cancer will get in and it will spread.

Here's mine in the process of polishing: pic #1 I went through several grits of sandpaper by hand up to I think 1000, then 2 different buffing compounds down to a very fine grit, then polished with POR-15's "Artisan" polish (very very good polish by the way - highly recommended!!!)

Here's a pic on the engine: pic #2 You can't see it here but it is already starting to rust under the clearcoat. But now I have a spare valve cover and if I ever get time I'll probably just clean it up and paint it :) In my opinion it's not worth the time and effort because of the difficulty keeping the rust away.

Good luck.
Michael

Na but ill get some like tommrow or sumthing but it looks like chrome really

got any pics chris1200t

Yeh well funenly enough i just polished mine today and mine was a steel one all u need is a bench buffer and time. start by stripping off all the old paint off it and sand it with like a 400grit wet paper first to remove and rust.
cheers

If it is steel (std) paint or chrome plate
If aluminiun(rare) pollish with autosoi
Cheers

how and what would i use to polish my a12 rocker cover