High-polished Sebenza?

This is my EDC large classic polished, Carried in a CRK belt pouch, Pocket clip removed & clip insert installed, Also has top of thumb stud filed off for better comfort, Can't beat the smooth feeling in your hand from the scales.
This is the best EDC sebenza I have ever owned in 15 years of collecting CRK
I would turn down $500.00 for this knife because its so fantastic.................


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Wow, yours is very nice, indeed! Thanks for sharing you pix! Did you polish it yourself. If so, what method did you use?

Yours looks smoother and more uniform than mine is -- I wanted to leave just a hint of darker finish in the low spots and near the edges
in an attempt to really contrast the high-polished edges, and to keep a little bit of an "antiqued" feel.

RICKSTER said:
This is my EDC large classic polished, Carried in a CRK belt pouch, Pocket clip removed & clip insert installed, Also has top of thumb stud filed off for better comfort, Can't beat the smooth feeling in your hand from the scales.
This is the best EDC sebenza I have ever owned in 15 years of collecting CRK
I would turn down $500.00 for this knife because its so fantastic.................


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DSCN2206.jpg

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DSCN2203.jpg

DSCN2205.jpg
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I'm about to do this and have a couple questions.

-For the scrubbing motion, should I go from top to bottom, side to side, or in circular motion?
-Did you guys polish the inside of the slabs too? What about the insides of the machining hole? (e.g. lanyard hole and machine hole)
-Do you also scrub the edges/sides of the handle separately, or all in one smooth motion with the body of the handle?
-What cloths are you using to do the finish polish? Or do I even have to use a cloth the buff it out (i.e. can I just do the scotchbrite method, wipe it off with a towel and finish?) Do I need any polishing compound?

Sorry for the mass of questions, but I need to know all the steps before I risk putting my Sebenza under such treatment.
 
charlOOsi said:
I'm about to do this and have a couple questions.

-For the scrubbing motion, should I go from top to bottom, side to side, or in circular motion?
-Did you guys polish the inside of the slabs too? What about the insides of the machining hole? (e.g. lanyard hole and machine hole)
-Do you also scrub the edges/sides of the handle separately, or all in one smooth motion with the body of the handle?
-What cloths are you using to do the finish polish? Or do I even have to use a cloth the buff it out (i.e. can I just do the scotchbrite method, wipe it off with a towel and finish?) Do I need any polishing compound?

Sorry for the mass of questions, but I need to know all the steps before I risk putting my Sebenza under such treatment.
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(1) I used long, straight, back and forth strokes length-wise and with medium pressure with every grit.
(2) I only did the outside of the slabs (I didn't see a need to do the inner sides).
(3) I did the tops and bevels at tnhe same time (but I didn't do the edges, as in the spine, at all). You'll learn the the edges are the first parts so show results.
(4) Some guys use the ScotchBrite pads (I'm not sure which grits, because they do come in a few variations), but I used 400-grit, then 800-grit, then 1000 and 2000-grit WetorDry sandpaper. The only final polishing I did was with the diamond-impregnated polish cloths that I use on my steel watches (5, 3, 2, and, finally, 1 micron sheets).

Hope that helps.
 
Oh boy that was fun! From start to finish, I could feel my mind screaming "DON'T DO IT!" but holy crap, it looks so much better than ever (not 100% perfect, but looks just about new now). I didn't want to get that high polish finish so I did it very lightly, and with the highest grit. It might be slightly lighter than original, but all the scratches and mars are gone. The front slab looks almost like new, but the back slab, I got kinda lazy. If I look carefully, I could still see one or two slight scratches. Slight discolorations here and there, but nothing too noticeable (only in the light).

Basically, I did what you said and when from a fine steel wool, to 400 grit, to 800, then 1000. Finished it off with 0000 fine wool and then a microfiber cloth.

It is a little smoother than before, but since it's not a high polish finish, I still don't have to worry about finger prints.

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Looks great -- nice work, my friend!
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And see, that didn't hurt at all, did it? As a bonus, now you know that when your handles get all scratched up again,
you can easily clean her back up!
 
Thanks, I really like the look. Even better, I think the titanium reoxidized or something so all the discoloration is gone and it looks like a new solid slab of titanium.

Btw, I suggest people who decide to do this use various brush stroke techniques. I noticed when I went longitudinally, I was getting noticeable brush marks (even with lower grits). I followed up with horizontal strokes, then circular strokes, and counter clockwise strokes. That way, the handle showed no bias to a specific brush stroke direction.

I suppose if you're good enough, you can go in one direction, but I didn't have the time to check it 100%. I figure when I have enough time, I'll give it all my time and get it perfect.

Thanks for the help l2d and BF friends.
 
Hey guys, good stuff, love the finishes. Here's the question ... have you ever tried to do this ONLY on the bevel for one of the inlaid versions, i.e. without touching the belt polished front? I have a nasty dent on an otherwise perfect 21 with river of fire damascus / syringa inlaid and just applied the lightest touch with a 2000 grit wet / dry sheet, but it does get noticeably lighter than the sandblast .. so I am not sure I should go all the way ... and for that matter that I can only do the bevel without touching the front ...

Great pictures by the way!
 
Welome to BF, masterserg!

To your question, I have thought of attempting that very thing to clean up the beveled edges on one of my large inlaids models. I think it would be difficult by hand, so I'm witing to get a Dremel tool with the appropriate bits -- that should provide the kind of precision I'll need to polish just the beveled edges. I'll be sure to post pix wheh I finally get around to it.

masterserg said:
Hey guys, good stuff, love the finishes. Here's the question ... have you ever tried to do this ONLY on the bevel for one of the inlaid versions, i.e. without touching the belt polished front? I have a nasty dent on an otherwise perfect 21 with river of fire damascus / syringa inlaid and just applied the lightest touch with a 2000 grit wet / dry sheet, but it does get noticeably lighter than the sandblast .. so I am not sure I should go all the way ... and for that matter that I can only do the bevel without touching the front ...

Great pictures by the way!
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link2derek said:
Welome to BF, masterserg!

To your question, I have thought of attempting that very thing to clean up the beveled edges on one of my large inlaids models. I think it would be difficult by hand, so I'm witing to get a Dremel tool with the appropriate bits -- that should provide the kind of precision I'll need to polish just the beveled edges. I'll be sure to post pix wheh I finally get around to it.
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Thanks for the reply (and welcome!)... mechanical tools ... I don't think I am brave enough (or have a firm enough hand) to attempt that ...
 
I just purchased a Sebenza 25 and am thinking of polishing the scales. One of my other hobbies is restoring cars. I often have to clean up chrome or stainless steel and work to get them to a mirror finish. I am not sure I want to go that far with the Titanium scales but you can monitor how far you want to go with the finish.

My question is; On the automotive parts I typically use some sort of metal polishing compound and a buffer? Can you use that method as well or will the Titanium not react the same way?

Thanks,

Brent
 
Cool knives - I like the look! I have two wood inlay factory polished Sebenzas. Do you think it would be possible to polish the unpolished lock bar and clip with it blending in with the already polished part? I have a clip insert that I polished which does look decent, but it is hard to tell since it is a small piece with a gap separating it form the scale surface. I will post a picture of the polished insert later.

My biggest concern is that the two Sebs I want to do it to are my non-user "safe queens".....
 
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