My polishing compounds have gone all dry and brittle

[tabeeb762]

I have a bunch of old sticks of compound in various grits and they've all dried up. Rubbing them on leather or cardboard won't do anything and they turn into dust with the slightest bit of pressure . Anything I can do to bring them back to life? Would melting them onto the cardboard work or will it ruin them?

 

[red96ta]

have you tried slicing off the dried up parts? Sometimes these things are like cheese where all you have to do is cut off the dry until you get to something better. If it's a gonner, you'll have to get a new one and store it in a ziplock or something that will retain what little moisture these things have in them.

 

[siguy]

some guys buy the compound in powder form and mix it with oil (i hear mineral oil mentioned most often) or they even do it with the crayon compounds to make them a little smoother and more even.

you could try it with these, it can't make things worse at any rate.

i would say get something like the bottom of a soda can and melt some of the compound in that over a candle, and then slowly add a few drops of oil at a time until its a nice smooth paste.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Squirt them with Wd 40.

 

[Ben Dover]

Pound them into a powder with a hammer (or mortar and pestle if you have one) and mix with mineral oil. :thumbup::thumbup:

 

[flashlife]

Do what Bill said...WD40.
No mess, no fuss, no powders, etc.