Nickel Silver Help with final finish

mwschilling

mwschilling

Joined
Aug 29, 2012
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I mainly collect knives but occasionally make them for my own enjoyment and stress management. I don't have issues with the wood part but have been frustrated trying to get a good final finish on nickel silver. My pins are OK and hidden well and I shaped the bolsters on the front and rear of this knife from bar stock NS.

My problem is getting the NS to a decent final finish. I have taken this one down and progressed back through all the grits from 100 to 1500 a few times. I always end up with a crackelled finish after buffing. I know there is a name for this but how do I avoid. Anyone willing to share their process to getting a smoth mirror finish. My back up plan is to put a dull or scotchbrite finish.

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Sounds like your buffing wheel is contaminated. I keep my wheels in plastic baggies. At 1500 grit it should be easy to get a mirror finish.
 
I think Dan hit the nail on the head , I need new buffing wheel as well once they get contamenated they will take off quite a bit of material but in streaks
Anthony
 
Or possibly you are using too much pressure when buffing. I hand sand to only 600 grit, then buff fairly lightly with green cutting compound. This leaves a very nice finish, which can be enhanced by just a light buff with pink.

My solution for buff contamination has been to use a tapered spindle and spin the buffs off right after using, then keep them each in their own plastic drawer or file in a cabinet.
 
Looks like 2 issues, contamination building up between the scale and bolster, and dendritic segregation in the Nickel Silver from overheating at some point (the second picture with the checkerboard/tictactoe pattern looks like dendritic structure)

-Page
 
sunshadow, would the overheating be during buffing or earlier while shaping the NS. I don't have a real buffer so didn't think I was creating too much friction. I use my drill press or hand drill for light buffing. i used a white compound then pink. I will confess that I may have overheated the NS during grinding/shaping. could that have caused what you are describing?
 
Thanks to all for the prompt responses and tips. I will try one more time before going to a dull finish. As a collector, making a few knives gives me a greater appreciation for what goes into a fine knife.
 
Drills are not good buffers.
That said, try squirting WD 40 on the bolster before you buff it.
 
I sugest hand finishing only.
I doubt it will take much longter than on a machine. (inc. changing belts etc)
 
My take is that you went to a higher grit before all the scratches were removed from the previous grit. I've seen a lot of people try to remove scratches from steel and N/S by buffing and the surface is wavy. It's really hard to get a mirror finish when there are scratches not removed before using polishing compounds. I think that making sure all scratches are removed before going to the next higher grit will solve your problem.

As a side note, when you have a contaminated buff, use a buff rake to clean the buff. Then you can use it for any grit LOWER than the grit you first used. ...Teddy
 
Thanks again to all. I will try once more and post pics upon completion whether I get it right or wrong.
 
mwschilling said:
sunshadow, would the overheating be during buffing or earlier while shaping the NS. I don't have a real buffer so didn't think I was creating too much friction. I use my drill press or hand drill for light buffing. i used a white compound then pink. I will confess that I may have overheated the NS during grinding/shaping. could that have caused what you are describing?
Click to expand...

If you soldered the bolsters on with silver solder
 
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