first mirror polish attempt

A

AKOperator

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Dec 27, 2012
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I love my little Kershaw 3/4 ton so much I'm giving it a work-over. Started with a 2500 grit mirror edge and now am working to polish the blade. I'm using 1000 grit paper to take out the machining marks and will be polishing with 2500 grit paper and brasso. Any advice/suggestions?
 
are you using any compound? i really dont know what grit size they would be because im starting myself, but i know they can give you a beautiful mirror finish. this was my first ish attempt.

a2uqejeg.jpg


you just have to be careful. when stropping it.

and are you talking about the edge? or the whole blade and/or knife itself? to get a mirrored. edge i. do a ultra. fine then a saphire hone. then strope it with no. 1 black(course) compound. then no. 3 brown(semi course) . then no. 4 white( course but not as course as brown) . then no. 5 green(polish) . then no. 6 red/green(high polish)

i use bosch brand. you can get them at lowes. sears also has them. i have bought. some off the Internet, but i cant tell any difference between the supposed "Internet good brands" and the sears brands which o find the best. thats just a personal. preference though. maybe someone can chime in and tell us what the grit numbers are on compounds 1-6?
 
Coarse, not course.

1000 grit paper may be too fine to start with. I can't say without seeing the blade.
Brasso will do very little good on steel. Get Simichrome or one of the lesser polishes-Maas, Mothers, Flitz.
 
AKOperator said:
I love my little Kershaw 3/4 ton so much I'm giving it a work-over. Started with a 2500 grit mirror edge and now am working to polish the blade. I'm using 1000 grit paper to take out the machining marks and will be polishing with 2500 grit paper and brasso. Any advice/suggestions?
Click to expand...

You're saying you want to remove the 'machining marks' with the 1000. What tools or grit were those machining marks applied with? That'll determine how low you need to go, to start removing them.

As has been pointed out, you may need to go lower in grit to remove heavy scratches, maybe down to ~400 or even lower, then progress back up through a tight sequence of intermediate grits (400 > 600 > 800 > 1000 > 2000 > 2500, and so on). And Brasso won't likely help at all, as it's abrasives aren't really suited for polishing hardened cutlery steel, but instead for softer metals like brass, nickel, silver, etc. As mentioned, something like Simichrome or Flitz, or Mother's Mag paste will likely do better on this steel (assuming 8Cr13MoV, based on mfr. specs for the knife).


David
 
and also those polishing compounds will do magic as well. by taking those compounds i was talking abt and loading them on the leather and some time, removed the rust and deep scratches that were in it, and almost mirrored the blade. i didn't have enough time to polish it with the green compound. it takes some time. i would do the polishing before the edge, otherwise your probably going to cut yourself. it takes some elbow grease and time i know that much. then you can tape the blade so it doesnt get scratched and start doing that mirrored finish on the edge, which isn't as hard work to do, or as long, but takes more finese
 
nasty_nate_84 said:
are you using any compound? i really dont know what grit size they would be because im starting myself, but i know they can give you a beautiful mirror finish. this was my first ish attempt.

a2uqejeg.jpg


you just have to be careful. when stropping it.

and are you talking about the edge? or the whole blade and/or knife itself? to get a mirrored. edge i. do a ultra. fine then a saphire hone. then strope it with no. 1 black(course) compound. then no. 3 brown(semi course) . then no. 4 white( course but not as course as brown) . then no. 5 green(polish) . then no. 6 red/green(high polish)

i use bosch brand. you can get them at lowes. sears also has them. i have bought. some off the Internet, but i cant tell any difference between the supposed "Internet good brands" and the sears brands which o find the best. thats just a personal. preference though. maybe someone can chime in and tell us what the grit numbers are on compounds 1-6?
Click to expand...

If I have to break out the ultra strength Bengay when working to get a mirror edge, I may have to pass.;)
 
Sidequestion offtopic. Is there any advantage in mixing compounds on single strop? I've heard that some people do this, but won't it just create uneven scratch pattern?
 
although i have plenty of leather and compounds i can play around a little get back tp me on tbat remind me pm me ill research. it for ya maybe start a new thread
 
J-P SAN said:
Sidequestion offtopic. Is there any advantage in mixing compounds on single strop? I've heard that some people do this, but won't it just create uneven scratch pattern?
Click to expand...

The larger and/or harder compound will always dominate how it works, probably to the extent the smaller or less aggressive compound might be rendered moot. That's not to say you can't find an interesting 'brew' that does something unique for your edges. I think some branded compounds do this anyway, in 'blending' a couple or three different abrasives to produce something unique.

95% of the time, I'd recommend not mixing compounds unless you're contemplating using something much larger or more aggressive than what's currently on your strop. I've done it with a couple of mine; it just comes down to deciding you're willing to live with the results of doing it.


David
 
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