Possible permanent stains on my King shocks after detail shop

That’s nothing, after you rack up some off road miles get ready for pitted shock shafts , scrapes / rust on the bodies and little leaks spewing out all that denatured shock oil from all the heat cycling in went through (400F down to 30F when beating in winter). Ya … just like you gotta change ur old crummy engine oil , so too do you have to change shock oil .

“Hunnnnnm ? no kings suspension lift system bro “


Ppl who get any “race shock” on their truck then wonder what things like a re-valve or shock service is , remind me of the super old guys that get a brand new turbo Porsche 911 and drive 20 mph under the speed limit.

wait , I thought of a better analogy. It’s like having a super hot girlfriend and not fornicating with her cuz you don’t wanna ruin her hair and makeup.

 

Solutions that we use to restore/clean in people’s home etch aluminum if you are not careful.
I’ve been polishing stainless steel/aluminum at work for 8 years now and never once had 1 swirl mark or made it worse. Always a great result.

Can even try bar keepers friend on those shocks which is a very soft cleanser, it won’t hurt anything.

 

i can confirm, my kings exhibit all of those symptoms. Just had to get a rebuild and replacement shaft for a gnarly gash on one of em I had no idea about until my shop sent me a pic and asked if i wanted to replace it lol.

 

Metal polishing compound will remove the blue anodizing, as it’s only a couple molecules thick.

Get a discount coupon for your next detail and move on. Gravel wash and rusty fittings will take care of those spotless shocks soon enough.

 

Just wait a couple years and see how faded and corroded they are then. There's no keeping them looking new.

Or send them to @TMFF and get them cerakoted.

 

I used to spend a lot of time and effort making the exhaust tips on my Corvette shine like a new penny. But after awhile I just gave up. If your intentions are to make this a show truck for those car show competitions, then I get your concern. But otherwise they are going to get the shit beat out of them if you use them for their intended purpose.

 

On one hand, it's absolutely not a concern in any way unless you don't offroad at all, in which case, why do you have kings? But on the other hand, someone else did that to your stuff and is technically responsible. But it also doesn't affect performance or warranty in any way. I'd give you your money back for whatever service you got and maybe give some vouchers but I don't know what else I'd do for something that is 100% functionally untouched.

 

Agreed with most of the sentiment here. Sucks, but if you are using them, who cares? My ADS look like hell.

 

I'll bet the shocks were warm or hot from the truck sitting outside and sprayed with all purpose cleaner or hard water and it etched them. Nothing you can do once it's etched and if you try to polish it out your likely to damage the blue anodizing or metal finish.

I'd just drive the truck and not worry about it. Maybe see if the detail shop can throw in a free future detail?

 

I'd just leave it and not mess with the shocks....but I'd also try to get a free detail or two and call it a day.

 

If they used a strong APC on your wheel arches, it would eat the finish on the aluminum, happens a lot with strong cleaners. That's why I always dilute my APC's down a bit and do a test spot on exposed aluminum parts.

 

It's hard to tell by the pics, but it kinda of looks like hard water stains. If this is the case, a mixture of vinegar and water may reduce the stains.

I have also used this to remove hard water stains.

$48 DUCKY PRODUCTS Original Water Spot Remover: Spray for Boat, Car, Motorcycle & RV Exterior Detailing, 128 oz

https://www.amazon.com/Ducky-D-1004-Water-Spot-Remover/dp/B000V1SFQE

I would try the vinegar solution in a small spot to see if it helps.

 

Trying rubbing them with some dirt should clear the issue right up.

 

OP this is 100% what happened; whoever detailed it used an APC and failed to dilute it to a proper ratio like 10:1 or something, it's absolutely etched into the anodizing.

 

Detail Shop?

 

. Why buy custom shocks and get all the nice suspension, but worry about some cosmetic nonsense. Fuck, take them off road a few times. The spotting will blend with the gravel pings. Wait a winter and the corrosion will make it less noticeable. Man. Ridiculous. There are cheaper ways to have a shiny brodozer if that’s the goal.

 

Either an undiluted all-purpose cleaner/degreaser wasn’t rinsed off, or they used an acid-based wheel cleaner—my guess is the latter. Acid-based wheel cleaners (e.g. Meguiars Wheel Brightener) should only be used on painted, coated, or chrome surfaces; almost all of them have warnings about using on polished aluminum (spoiler alert: these products will etch aluminum). Assuming I’m correct, this is their negligence. You have every right to be pissed about it, so who cares what any of us think.

If you’re going to take it back in, I wouldn’t try anything else. Let them look at it first. Otherwise, you’re just giving them reasons to dodge liability for any damage.

 

That’s not the point about having “shiny shocks”. If it was my mistake I wouldn’t give a fuck.

The whole point is that this detail shop and whatever chemicals they used fucked up the coating off my shocks.

Yes, these are off-road shocks and are going to get scratched, dinged, oxidized whatever.

If the shop fucked up the paint off my truck I wouldn’t let that go either.

 

I appreciate everyone’s input. Hopefully I’ll be able to resolve this with that shop but definitely won’t be taking my truck there again. Thank you guys.

 

Indeed