Polishing Stainless

[Barbarosa]

What is the best way to polish a ROA Stainless Satin finish, to a shiney BRIGHT finish?
Any techniques or materials for the quickest results..?
                             TY

[Sixshooter_45]

What is the best way to polish a ROA Stainless Satin finish, to a shiney BRIGHT finish?
Any techniques or materials for the quickest results..?
                             TY

Try here

[Sixshooter_45]

YW! 

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy!

Like 6 shooter_45 posted, different grades of sandpaper up to the finest grade you can find are important.  I always finish with Crocus Cloth which is perhaps finer than 2000, maybe 2500. (I think it is THE finest made.)   I also use a green polishing rouge from when I was a machinist apprentice on an 8" buffing wheel, and it was for polishing steel. It'll get that SS looking like it's chrome plated, if that's your goal.  He suggests a good stool or chair 'cause it IS time consuming.  A good pair of goggles and a breathing mask is helpful as well.  It'll end up all over your hands and the front of your shirt or shop apron!

Look to see the way the "grain" (cut/machining marks) go on the various pieces and stay with it.  For example, I polished my Ruger cylinder the first time from front to back.  It looked a bit odd until I re-polished it around (like it was lathe-cut) and then it looked good..  Barrels are usually cut length-wise, etc.   Look carefully at your parts and you'll see - small parts don't usually matter.  They're cut so many different ways that just about anything goes.


I once polished up a 1903 Colt Pocket Auto for my best friend that several guys bet he'd had it nickel-plated!  He had to wipe it down regularly with an oily rag, but it sure looked good!

[Curley Cole]

Give SemiChrome Polish a try...It can be found in a lot of motorcycle shops...It has jewelers rouge in it. I used to polish the aluminim side cases on my bike and when I sold it to my brother he thought I had them chrome plated. Is really good stuff..
curley

[Professor Marvel]

  I also use a green polishing rouge from when I was a machinist apprentice on an 8" buffing wheel, and it was for polishing steel. It'll get that SS looking like it's chrome plated, if that's your goal. 

Greetings Monsieur Bailey-
I have not seen the Green rouge, have you ever tried the White "stainless steel" rouge sticks? I find that they work on number of different materials, but seems to cut  rather quickly. It works well on knife stock but one must be careful  not to dish out flat surfaces...

your humble servant
Prof Marvel

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I have not seen the Green rouge, have you ever tried the White "stainless steel" rouge sticks? I find that they work on number of different materials, but seems to cut  rather quickly. It works well on knife stock but one must be careful  not to dish out flat surfaces...

I've used the white stainless sticks on my polishing wheel. They work great and give a good polish. I usually push hard enough to heat the metal slightly while working and seem to get the best results that way.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy!

Professor, I haven't used the white but I have several colors - all will do in a pinch.  The green was something I picked up from an industrial supply, so it's probably available that way, rather than with hobby or home supply places.  The green is pretty aggressive compared to others - it was used in our machine shop for steel (I'm the one who tried it on stainless.)

[Professor Marvel]

Felicitations, Gents -
Back when Sears included Roebuck & CO. , one store in the Chicago area was particularly well equipped in the hardware arena, and offered what appeared to be  some "industrial" grade supplies . I was able to acquire what I thought was a lifetime supply of several grades of polish, all were packaged in cardboard tubes with metal end caps. If I recall correctly, the coarsest was the white "stainless cutting" stick, then a black emery, one or to other grades,and the finest was labeled "red  jewelers rouge".  Whilst playing with this stuff I discovered a few things - the white stuff cut almost anything, pretty fast;  the black stuff was fairly "general purpose" but really good on brass; the red stuff works great on antler;  and no real jeweler will ever touch this "jewelers rouge" as it's way too coarse!
Being ignorant of the "professional stuff"  and rather leary of what's being offered these days, I thought I would inquire aboiut the color codes  :-)

Perhaps it's time to go to a real industrial supply house and get some properly graded polishing compounds :-)

your humble servant
Prof Marvel

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy again!

You've probably done this, so excuse me telling you the basics.

Be sure to dedicate a specific wheel to whatever color rouge /buffing compound you're using.  I have different wheels to go with the  colors I have.

Professor, actually, I have used the green for everything at one time or another - including touching up my wedding rings.  I just press lightly and do it quickly.  I only recently acquired the other colors I have - but I've been using the green since 1978 ... and still have probably 2 pounds of it.  It wasn't in a bar with metal caps - it was a bar that looked a bit like a miniature railroad tie!!!