putting on dat shine

[ThirdTooth]

Hey gang. Got a pet project in mind. I want to make all brass scales for my spydergo chokwe, I have never worked with brass and I am not sure how to go about polishing up all nice. Also, I want to put a mirror finish on the blade so it'll match and don't know how to go about that either. But my BIGGEST question is; is it even possible to give titanium ANY kind of polish or will it always turn out chalky? Thanks!

 

[Daddyo16]

Brass is really nice when it is shined up all nice and pretty. However, I have a Gerber Sportsman I with the brass and wood scales, and while it's a beautiful knife, I don't carry it because the brass dulls much too quickly from handling.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Brass is quite easy to polish. If it isn't scratched, dented or otherwise 'dinged up', usually all it needs is some metal polish applied with a soft cloth & buffed off (Brasso, Simichrome, Flitz, etc). If there are dents or heavy scratches, some wet/dry sandpaper (SiC) in grits from 400 thru 2000+ will fix it up. Don't skip any grits, or there will likely be leftover deep scratches from coarser grits; a good sequence would be something like 400/600/800/1200/1500/2000 and higher, if desired. Then follow that with the metal polish.

As mentioned, brass will tarnish very quickly; especially if the knife is handled frequently (fingerprints are the worst on polished brass). I just allow the brass on mine to 'patina' naturally, and don't worry about it anymore.

I haven't attempted to put a high shine on titanium. I'd assume it would also need sanding to high grit first, before there's any chance it'll take a polish. Metal polish alone won't do any good if the existing finish isn't refined enough (as with any metal).

 

[ThirdTooth]

thanks David. thats good specific info. still curious about titanium's polishability though. maybe I'll just have to take a leap of faith on that

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

thanks David. thats good specific info. still curious about titanium's polishability though. maybe I'll just have to take a leap of faith on that

Bottom line, the 'shine' on any metal is going to be determined by the fineness of the scratch pattern on the metal. This is why sanding to a high grit finish is going to make the most difference. On most metals, once you get above 1000 grit or so, you should start to see at least a 'hazy mirror' finish. And at 2000+ grit, that's where a 'true' mirror will really start to develop. This is assuming all scratches from previous coarser grits are completely removed, as one progresses through the grit sequence (as mentioned in my earlier post). A good way to ensure that, is to alternate sanding direction by 90° with each step in the sequence. That way, it's much easier to see when the previous scratches are removed, when all that's left are scratches perpendicular to the scratch pattern of the previous grit.