Polishing buck nickel

S

SuzukiGS750EZ

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Dec 30, 2008
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I was recommended simichrome polish for nickel bolsters on my 110. I did the old phonebook trick when I got the knife the other day. The pin was proud so I sanded it with 2000 grit and finished polish with red dremel compound & mother's cleaning wax. It got it very close to original but just not totally there. It's not dull but not a mirror, inbetween. Before I get my Hope's up totally, should this do what I need in bringing back the mirror shine to the knife? By hand, by dremel? I can see the little dimples in the nickel as it's not plated so not totally smooth anywhere on the knife. Hoping blending with this polish will blend it altogether!
 
Keep the Dremel far away from those bolsters.
I don't want to give advice on polishing but what I do know is that doing it by hand is much more forgiving.
One slip with that "power" tool and you'll never buff out the divots.
 
So, the pivot pin became proud after the squeeze in the vise. Then you sanded it down. Now, it's not the same finish as before. With buffing wheels this would be an easy fix. If your seeing 'little dimples' it's not sanded enough. DM
 
David Martin said:
So, the pivot pin became proud after the squeeze in the vise. Then you sanded it down. Now, it's not the same finish as before. With buffing wheels this would be an easy fix. If your seeing 'little dimples' it's not sanded enough. DM
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Yes. The dimples seem to be in the metal makeup, not able to be sanded out. I've been over it many times. These dimples are probably the size of a hair, only able to be seen at the right angle in light. I'm thinking once I got it polished they'll disappear.
 
By hand, with a micro-fiber cloth.
Brasso or Mother's Mag Polish is what I use on my NS and brass bolsters, regardless of knife brand.

FULL DISCLOSURE:
I am not all that fond of fingerprint and smudge magnets, so I don't polish my bolsters very often.
I've also been known to give the brass bolsters on my work knives a "brushed" finish with 220 grit wet or dry.
 
After I finish sanding my knives at 1K grit I don't see what you are describing. If I did I'd work sanding it, then on to a sisal buff wheel w/ black or gray rogue, then a sewn buff wheel w/ green rogue and then a lose cotton buff wheel w/ pink rogue applied. You don't have these, so, perhaps you can find
the small wheel on a shaft in a hardware store and load the appropriate rogue on them. Chuck it in a drill and work out the bolster surface. The easiest and most economical try is Simichrome or Flitz applied to a cotton cloth and use elbow grease until it has a mirror polish surface. DM
 
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Last time I felt like sanding on a new knife I took a Xanax.
It looked great after that.
 
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Dremel is going to do little more than frustrate you.

If you've got surface imperfections that you want to work out before final polishing and you don't have a proper bench grinder with sisal or buffing wheels; you can go to any auto parts store and get a variety of wet sanding paper. Use a rigid block and not too much pressure. Work it from 800 on up. You'll be able to get it to shine pretty well at 1800-2000 without any polishing compound.

Then use Flitz metal polish!

The polishing compounds you'll get with your Dremel aren't that great in the first place and they're dependent on the metal you're polishing and the speed you're polishing at. Unless you have a bar of "Black Magic" or fine "Cut & Color" and a 1" or wider buffer, it'll be tough to get that consistent mirror glaze and make it last.

The nice thing about Flitz, is that it has a component that slows oxidation/patina from developing on the ferrous metals. Once you get the surface to the right natural shine, Flitz will do the rest.

*I've not fooled with anything in my shop in months so I may have forgotten how to do it properly. I have 4 buffers (2 bench grinders with 2 wheels each) and I use liquid (clay) applied abrasives on several wheels for removing material, and sisal and sewn buffing wheels on the others with different compounds depending on the metal I'm polishing. Then I have a soft cotton polisher I use on my drill press with a secret recipe and the aluminum, brass, and nickel look wet when finished, if that's the look I'm going for.
 
gotcha. wasnt sure.

figured ya'd wait until ya put wear and tear on it and then fixed it/improved it, so be it. your knife.
 
Many a knife and firearm has been wounded by the dremel tool. It has no business being around either one.

If you don't have a bench grinder with a buffing wheel, it can be done by hand. Wet sand down to 3000 grit. I like to wrap the paper around a small block of wood when sanding to help keep the surface flat. Then melt some green buffing compound on a piece of soft cloth and get to polishing.
 
I guarantee you that using 50000 grit diamond polishing paste, your bolsters will shine like right from the factory. I use it just with my thumb and a micro fiber cloth. I then use Dawn dish washing liquid to wash any residue from the knife. I also use an old toothbrush while washing. It is from a jewelry store online. The (Rio) Grande jewelry. $16.95 dollars plus shipping for 10 grams tube. Enough to do quite a few knives. This will only take away scratches and tarnish not dings.
 
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