Mirror Polish, How to ?

B

boarinator

Joined
Jul 28, 2010
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Whats a good way to put a mirror polish on a knife ? Any specific polishes you guys use ? I dont want to have to need any special tools just want an easy simple way to put a mirror polish on my blades.
 
I just use my plain leather strop, but that's just me. There are several other ways you can do it. Good luck.
 
On the flats or the edge bevel?

Either way, its a systematic progression through various grits of abrasives. The trick is to ultimately get all the scratches off from the previous step before moving onto the next one. And if there are scratches you cant remove at the higher grits, it means you missed some earlier and need to go back down to the lower grits, and repeat the process. How fine you go is ultimately up to you, but if you are going after a mirror polish, getting into the submicron grits is necessary IME. 0.5u is often enough, but enough is never enough for real knife nuts/OCD type :p

Also, magnification is a HUGE asset in the process. A jewelers loupe at the very least.
 
Not sure there's really a 'simple' way to mirror-polish a blade, short of paying a pro to do it for you. ;)

Tight grit progression, with narrow-as-possible gaps between grits, is what makes the difference. Trying to skip a grit or two will usually result in a shiny finish with impossible-to-ignore deep scratches left. They stick out like a sore thumb, the more the surrounding steel is polished. As mentioned, it's all about making sure the scratches from the previous grit are completely removed by each subsequent grit. An easier way to make sure, is to alternate sanding/grinding direction by 90° with each step, so the change in scratch pattern is more easily seen. And even if it looks like it's completely 'done' with each step, make sure to do a little more. A lot of deeper scratches will still 'hide' among the shallow ones, and examining the finish under very bright, harsh light, from several angles, will also reveal scratches that might not have otherwise been noticed.
 
Flitz is a good final polish. You still need to prep the metal by sanding/polishing through a succession of grits before using it.
 
When you go through your grit progression to get a mirror finish, be careful to avoid cross-contamination of different grit sizes. So carefully clean your knife between grit changes. Otherwise, if some larger grit particles get back onto the blade, they will scratch it up, giving a "cloudy mirror" finish. Also, it is helpful to completely remove the scratches of the previous grit before going to the next finer grit.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
Flitz is a good final polish. You still need to prep the metal by sanding/polishing through a succession of grits before using it.
Click to expand...

I agree completely. Flitz is a great choice for final polish. Even with a new knife I really recommend this product.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
Flitz is a good final polish. You still need to prep the metal by sanding/polishing through a succession of grits before using it.
Click to expand...

I agree completely. Flitz is a great choice for final polish. Even with a new knife I really recommend this product.
 
Use a leather strop and put some Mother's Mags (A metal polish, you can buy it at any auto shop,) on it, always does the job. If you don't have a leather strop 2000 grit sandpaper will also to the job.
 
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