Stainless Steel Cleaning and Polishing.

3

38splfan

New member
Hello all.
I've been looking at a lot of used guns online lately and have noticed that most of the stainless ones are pretty scratched and sometimes dingy/discolored.
What have you guys and gals discovered is the best way to clean/rejuvinate stainless steel to it's original luster?
I know that not all scratches, especially the deepest ones, will come out. I would just like to know how I can polish them up a bit without damaging the existing finish.
Thanks guys.
 
You can use gray Scotch Brite pads. Brush the sides of the slide & frame to remove small scratches and scuffs. Top of slide and other rounded areas you will have to blast with glass beads or aluminum oxide to retain the matte finish.
 
SS Shining

What I use to make them shine like a new dime is. I start out using 400 or 600 grit wet paper depending on how deep the scratches are then work my way up to 1000. If you take your time all the scratches can be removed and the gun does really shine.
 
Thanks guys.

Looking more toward revolvers than autos, so any tips for rounded/hard to reach areas would be great.
Thanks much. Will be trying some of this stuff out when I get home from Iraq. To bad I don't have any guns here, I could just hang them outside in the wind and sandblast the finish:eek:
Thanks again, all.
 
Proper polishing is really the process of making the scratches gradually smaller. Start with red or gray Scotchbrite pads and work down from there. If you go right to Flitz/Mothers/Simichrome you'll just wind up with a lot of bright scratches, rather than a bright smooth surface.
 
Geez.

Clean off the gunk all the way to the metal with Methy Ethyl Ketone or equiv.

This alone will surprise you. After that, polish with Flitz. then wax with non-abrasive wax.
 
For polishing tough shapes, Chris's suggestion of gray Scotchbrite may be the easiest to follow. The color indicates the abrasive grade, and gray is extremely fine. An alternative that is worth trying is the lead wipe cloths. The patent expired, so there is more than one brand out there now. They contain some aluminum oxide abrasive, among other things, and will clean a non-mirror finish quite nicely.

A new product you may want to try before abrasives is Gunzilla. I spoke with the company owner who has a space up on Commercial Row at Camp Perry this year. This stuff is a vegetable-base gun cleaner that chemically destroys the bond between carbon particles (probably something analogous to chelation in metals; stealing the carbon bonds to make the carbon part of an organic vegetable molecule). This stuff also de-bonds and removes light rust (not for use on a browned muzzleloader for that reason). It has no chemicals that soak into human skin, the way most gun cleaners do. It was invented to stop skin cracking for armorers and others who do a lot of gun cleaning. It leaves a dry lubricated surface behind.

The owner said several people who've cleaned stainless revolvers with this stuff claim it is the first time they've seen their cylinder face look the color of steel since firing their first shot through it. Slip 2000 may have some competition here? I bought a bottle to try, but that was just earlier this week and I haven't tried it yet. I am waiting for an e-mail response from their chemist to learn whether the lubricated surfaces is leaves has too low a coefficient of friction to be used in a rifle chamber? Bore guide may be critical with it?

Nick
 
After all your polishing is done you have removed the protective oxide so it may now rust !!! All stainless steel should have a "passivating " treatment which puts a thicker oxide layer on the steel.Stainless guns that rust are the ones where ths factory has not passivated it or the owner has polished off the oxide !! :rolleyes: :rolleyes:
 
I don't know how much oxide forms back up from air exposure? Usual treatment is a chromic acid dip, and that's not something you likely want to try at home because of the toxic waste disposal issues. I have read that citric acid will passivate metals, but know no details.

Nick
 
"#0000 steel wool,easy and trouble free!"

ABSOLUTELY NOT.
Steel wool embeds tiny particles into stainless, and these particles will rust, damaging the stainless steel.

For the same reason, NEVER bead blast stainless or aluminum in a bead blaster that's been used to blast carbon steel.
Particles of the carbon steel will be embedded and will rust later.
I once had a customer who'd blasted an aluminum pistol frame in a garage bead blaster that was used for automotive parts.

He was mystified as to how an aluminum frame could be rusting.

If you want to polish stainless, use abrasive paper, or the synthetic Scotchbrite type pads.
 
Re:Dfariswheel

"#0000 steel wool,easy and trouble free!"

ABSOLUTELY NOT.
Steel wool embeds tiny particles into stainless, and these particles will rust, damaging the stainless steel.

For the same reason, NEVER bead blast stainless or aluminum in a bead blaster that's been used to blast carbon steel.
Particles of the carbon steel will be embedded and will rust later.
I once had a customer who'd blasted an aluminum pistol frame in a garage bead blaster that was used for automotive parts.

He was mystified as to how an aluminum frame could be rusting.

If you want to polish stainless, use abrasive paper, or the synthetic Scotchbrite type pads.
Click to expand...
Yup!
STAINLESS steel wool will work. But, as stated, abrasive paper or synthetic Scotch Brite type pads work the best.
 
That's funny I been steel wooling my 1861 musket barrel and hardware for 11 years and my stainless Encore barrels and parts for 3 years and they ain't rusted yet. I guess that's why they call it stainless?
You have to put some kind of protection on the metal like a light coat of gun oil afterward.
 
Smearing carbon steel all over stainless steel from using regular steel wool can really mess up the stainless.
You have taken a surface that is very corosion resistant and embedded carbon steel that wil rust withthe slightest moisture. While oil wil hold it off, eventually you are liable to see some surface rust when you least expect it.

"I guess that's why they call it stainless?"

Stainless steel is NOT corrosion proof. It is more resistant than carbon steels, but is still very vulnerable to chloride. The salt in your body sweat will do a job on stainless if allowed to remain long enough. It shows as light pits with a whitish residue.

I have an 1866 trapdoor in 'armory bright' (bare steel). Luckily it had a heavy application of oil a long time ago that hardened to a nice varnish. Once removed it looked brand new (one of the other yahoos bidding on the gun thoughtit had surface rust making it straw yellow).
I now keep it greased except when in use.


"To my knowledge, no guns are passivated at the factory."

I would not bet on it. Strainless is often passivated to at least remove the residue of carbon steel cutting tools used in manufacture. Rust spots on stainless from the tools are a great indicator of shoddy work.
Not everyone uses all carbide since many cutters are not available for any price in carbide.
 
There was a long discussion about stainless steel guns in another forum and those who swore by them in the worst environments [Alaska] and those who claimed their guns rusted . It was obvious that some guns had properly been passivated and some had not . It can make a huge difference !!...Unclenick, the acid used in passivating is nitric not chromic. Citric is being used more often now as it is less of a problem for the environment.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top