How to polish a blade?

ncrockclimb

ncrockclimb

Gold Member
Joined
Nov 20, 2014
Messages
2,377
I am not talking about just the cutting edge, but the entire blade. How can I polish it to a mirror, or at least shiny, finish?

Thanks for any suggestions you can provide.
 
Well normally you take a range of abrasives, as close together in grits as possible, and simply go from coarse to fine(60, 80, 120, 240, 400, 600, 800, 1000, etc).

Sandpaper is okay. Micromesh would be best, if a bit expensive(soft cloth backing and lasts longer). A buffing wheel would speed it up a lot, but you have to use extreme caution and a firm grip to keep the knife from being yanked out of your hands and thrown around.
 
Rennd said:
I use a buffing wheel on a drill I clamp in a vice. Works great.
Click to expand...

I do the same but all the stories of knives being ripped out of people's hands scare me. The next time I intend to clamp the knife down and attack it with a buffing wheel in a drill.
 
Pondoro2310 said:
I do the same but all the stories of knives being ripped out of people's hands scare me. The next time I intend to clamp the knife down and attack it with a buffing wheel in a drill.
Click to expand...
I've had a knife fly out of my hands before, shot like 20 feet in to my garage... Didn't cut me or damage anything, but it screwed up the edge pretty badly.
 
Transition slowly from grit to grit. It stinks to spend 1/2 hour with 600 grit and then realize that the last scratch remaining is gonna require 400 grit to remove.

I learned to polish when I accidentally gouged my wife's mirror finish stainless steel kitchen spoon. It was in the blender when I turned the blender on. You can get a mirror finish but it takes patience and an assortment of sandpaper and buffing compound.
 
ncrockclimb said:
I am not talking about just the cutting edge, but the entire blade. How can I polish it to a mirror, or at least shiny, finish?

Thanks for any suggestions you can provide.
Click to expand...

Automotive wet/dry sandpaper can get you pretty shiny...


3b0ccf5658089f7d39ac9084b8c358fb_zpslvqbw3rp.jpg


This was down to around 2500g if I recall. (Just saw on Amazon you can now get 5000g paper... hmmmm).
 
You should never need any grit coarser than 240 on a knife. 320 grit is usually a good starting point.
 
As you go up the grades of abrasives, does the direction of rubbing make any difference? Circular (hand or machine), horizontal, vertical? Does the rubbing pattern need to be consistent through all the steps?
 
Bill DeShivs said:
You should never need any grit coarser than 240 on a knife. 320 grit is usually a good starting point.
Click to expand...
It really depends on the knife, for example if you start with 240 grit on a Becker knife your going to be on that grit hours trying to remove the scratches and pits just to realize you can't...

The way to determine what grit to start with greatly depends on the current finish of the knife. If you have a spyderco then sure you can start on 320 maybe even 400.
 
The Burgh said:
As you go up the grades of abrasives, does the direction of rubbing make any difference? Circular (hand or machine), horizontal, vertical? Does the rubbing pattern need to be consistent through all the steps?
Click to expand...
I usually alternate my scratch patterns from one grit to the next, especially on the coarser grits.
 
Also, it helps to go very very lightly on the coarser grits and gradually increase the pressure as the grits get finer.
 
I have found that when you get to the final grit, it you run parallel with the blade or grain structure it really brings out a much better shine. This is what 1500 will look like with said method

20160106_174216_zpsnacgrp1i.jpg
[/URL][/IMG]
 
Last edited:
Steel doesn't have grain structure.
Your lengthwise strokes look better because they are long, homogeneous strokes.
 
cbwx34 said:
Automotive wet/dry sandpaper can get you pretty shiny...




This was down to around 2500g if I recall. (Just saw on Amazon you can now get 5000g paper... hmmmm).
Click to expand...

Wow. That is the coolest damn Leek I have ever seen. Makes me want one.
 
I mirror polished the one on the left. Took a few hours spread out over a few days.

I used regular sandpaper, wet dry stuff.
500, 800, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, and 5000. Also mothers metal polish.

It's not perfectly mirrored, as I keep using it. I just like it shiny enough.

One more thing, I'd get some vinyl gloves and some painters masks to avoid breathing in the dust.
 
Personally I like to use the left over slurry/abrasive on my stone. After each step, if I am polishing the blade, I put the slurry onto the end of a cork and rub the flats and main grind.
 
nick_30 said:
I have found that when you get to the final grit, it you run parallel with the blade or grain structure it really brings out a much better shine. This is what 1500 will look like with said method

20160106_174216_zpsnacgrp1i.jpg
[/URL][/IMG]
Click to expand...

THAT is sexy!! I'm getting ideas about my BK9!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top