I broke with the best of intentions, so now how do I fix it!!!

[nurse]

Been doing some polishing, all going well.....until. I noticed the cover on the alternator was starting to corrode from a clutch leak inherited from the PO.

So I removed it and started to strip it but the further I got the further I noticed the corrosion went.

On the inside of the cover is a round plate tacked onto the inside of the main cover I suppose you could compare the shape of it to the CND symbol (sort off - I will post up a pic a bit later) now this had corrosion on both sides not bad but enough to be snaking under the black paint.  The only way to stop this I thought was to strip and clean this area up too.

So I drilled out the three points where it is tacked, it came out cleanly and started i to clean it up.  Im sure this cover is mild steel and because the stripper I use needs to be neutralised with water it instantly started to rust and discoloured before my eyes!!!!  So I got out the jenolite (chemical rust remover) and it came up perfect.

Now I haven't polished it yet as some work stuff has come up but I have a conundrum I need help with. 

I intend to polish the whole housing rather than just the already (sort of polished) plate, I will then need to lacquer it before it is replaced. 

BUT how do I re fix the inner plate?  If I tack it first I won't be able to get the lacquer on it, if I lacquer it first then tacking it will surely burn off the lacquer leaving it exposed! 

Maybe some sort of heat proof glue?

How do they get the black inside there originally at the factory?  They will have had the same problem!!

[ribbert]

Why can't you mask it after you re-assemble it?

[nurse]

Why can't you mask it after you re-assemble it?

The outside isnt a problem but the internal surface will no longer be accesible