Yep, the polished does look very nice.

One problem is that it does tarnish after a bit, I have to polish the bare aluminum on my bike 2-3 times a year....and it is stored indoors!

If you clear coat it, some of the shine goes away, and you have the problem with corrosion when the surface gets scratched or nicked.  The brushed/polished parts on the Savage are clear coated and we are all familiar with the ugly look when the white/black corrosion starts to appear under the clear coat.

The folks on the Honda NT700 forum claim this stuff works very well to protect the aluminum - I haven't tried it yet.
http://www.skygeek.com/10013.html

Griot's polish has worked better at protecting the aluminum than Flitz, SimiChrome, and all the other polishes I have tried.

They look good, nice job.

I certainly am not an expert, and I am not familiar with the above-mention products, but I have a suggestion.

I used to be a buyer for a company that made aluminum trailers (EAST Mfg. in Randolph, OH) and one of the components I was responsible for was the wheels.  We used both steel and aluminum wheels depending on what customer wanted.  In talking with the aluminum wheel rep., (we purchased from ALCOA aluminum) they sell a kit for truckers to keep their wheels shiny new.  Check the tractor trailer pulling an all-aluminum trailer and look at the aluminum wheels if it is equipped with them.  Shiny AND protected.  Both cleaner, two types of polish and protectant in the kit.

I did a simple internet search, but came up empty.  But I remember that Alcoa sold it.