Polished Handles?

2brothers

2brothers

Joined
Apr 22, 2007
Messages
6,151
I was contemplating on polishing one of my Leeks scales.
Not as polished as the SS versions, just something other than satin.
The reason I mention this?? Well, I was working outside the other
day and used my Leek to cut some rope/string I was using to tie some
things up in the garage.
Well, I was messing with some chemicals at the same time, ie. brake fluid,
brake cleaner etc...
I know I had some on my hands when I was using the knife and didn't bother
to clean it off. So, yesterday I go out to the garage and what do I find, surface
rust on the scales. :(
After cleaning it off with some mild polish past, it actually shined that area up quite a bit compared to the rest.
Got me to thinking of polishing the whole thing, but there has to be an easier way to do this.

So, have any of you ever polished scales before?
I have some tools, bench grinder, dremel.
What do I need to do this job? Polishing/Buffing wheels? Some type of rouge or paste?

Any help would be appreciated.

mike
 
Try Maas Metal polish or Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish. Put in on with your fingers, then buff it off by hand with a soft cloth. Repeat, several times. Then something a lot thinner, like Maguires...probably number 6 or higher...the Fine Cut stuff. I wouldn't use a Dremel, and the high speed could cause a burn. A buffer on a variable speed drill, or better yet by hand, I think would give you the best results.

Post some pics when you're done!
 
SPXTrader said:
Try Maas Metal polish or Mother's Mag and Aluminum Polish. Put in on with your fingers, then buff it off by hand with a soft cloth. Repeat, several times. Then something a lot thinner, like Maguires...probably number 6 or higher...the Fine Cut stuff. I wouldn't use a Dremel, and the high speed could cause a burn. A buffer on a variable speed drill, or better yet by hand, I think would give you the best results.

Post some pics when you're done!
Click to expand...

Well, we sell those items like Mothers and Meguiars so that won't be a problem.
I was also looking into a variable speed bench grinder later down the road
if this looks like I want it to look.

Thanks Brad

mike
 
Going back to one of my previous jobs, a good Handler Red Wing 26A dental lathe (about $250), some sewn felt wheels and jewelers rouge (Texas Knifemaker's Supply) would definitely do the trick. The folks in the Knifemakers area of the forum might have some suggestions, too.
 
A dremel with a cloth wheel and some jewelers rouge works just fine. It will not get too hot, I have used one to polish numerous knives and guns. A 8" cardboard or very tight cloth wheel on a bench grinder with rouge also works very well. It will get hotter but it should not get hot enough to cause any problems on steel scales. It takes a little practice to get it just right but works much quicker. I use one on my knives, blade and scales, when I get in the mood to buff stuff up. I am sure you have enough knives around to find a practice piece:D.
 
Thanks for the info guys!
I'm gonna head over to lowes and home depot to see if I can find some wheels.
This hand polishing is for the birds. :D

mike
 
I would try the cloth wheels first as the paper ones will remove metal. I usually use the paper wheels to sharpen, refinish scratched mirror finishes or remove satin finishes. The cloth wheel is used to just polish any number of materials depending on the tightness of the cloth and the rouge/polish used.
 
There is a Ryobi polishing kit at Home Depot for something like 10 bucks. It has 3 cloth wheels, an arbor to chuck into a drill, and 3 types of compound. I used it in a benchtop drill press to good effect.

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Have fun.
 
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