How to brush and polish a mod

brillo or stainless steel wool will brush it. Go in the same direction every time and don't go back and forth. So say you want the grain to go up and down apply even pressure going in the up direction but dont pull it back down, only go up so you get a uniform look. Its very simple and just keep doing it until you get the desired look.

 

I just recently polished out the ZEN on the provari, a little bit of 1500 grit and silvo polish

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Had no idea that creating a brushed finish on stainless steel (my favorite) could be so simple ... I would love to see pics of someone's finished results using this technique if they have them.

 

Hi Nikkita, here are two examples of my first two brushing jobs. Pretty simple actually.

Polished Steam Turbine clone to brushed:



Penelope V2 tank has just been brushed and I'm sporting deep cuts from the threads:



Tip: Wear gloves.

 

I didnt start on any of my nice mods. i started off on my natural and have some ideas of how you can brush it in steps. You will need the following: 1. mod you want to try out on, not suggested on first go on high end. 2. Sandpaper, will need 1500-2000 grit, 800-1200 grit, 320 grit, and maybe 160 grit if you want a deep brushing. make sure the high grits are wet/dry capable. 3. an empty spray bottle filled with some water. 4. a few towels or rags you dont mind getting grimy. 5. location close to sink to rinse occasionally. 6. a pair of gloves latex or what not. 7. a mask to make sure you do not inhale any particles you may be shaving off.

Steps.
1. Always clean off mod first. no battery so there is no chance of firing. just need one tube at a time. if you are looking to cover up markings make sure you do so beforehand with either tape or vinyl.

2. Always start with highest grit sandpaper first to see the look before going lower. Never want to start off with most aggressive, because there is no going back.

3. spray water from bottle onto tube so it is covered liberally, then in one motion i prefer up and down, start to use sandpaper on the tube. do not use pressure as it is not needed. i always keep the tube wet on the area i am sanding even if that means reapplying water from bottle

4. once done with first sand, wash off tube and spray sandpaper with water from bottle to get the particles out of the pores. it should turn from dark to light.

5. repeat step 3. i typically go 3 times per grit.

6. If the brushing is not as deep as you would like then step down one grade of sandpaper. So if you start off with 2000 grit then go down to 1200 grit. Repeat steps 3-5 with the new sandpaper and decide if you like the finish.

7. Once you decide upon the final look of your brushing work your way back up the sandpaper levels to get the smoothest feel you like. ie. go back through steps 3-6 till you reach the highest grade.

then finally dry everything off and clean up the mess you have made and enjoy the look of a new brushed device.

I suggest using a piece of metal or a older mod you dont mind trying on first.

i will attach a pic of the deep brushing i did.

 

also if you are looking for a light brushing you can use one of the green scotch brite pads and some elbow grease for about 5-10 minutes in the same direction and you will get nice results. The good thing is you can always polish it back out.

 

Thanks for the pics ... I have a polished stainless mech coming in the mail, and I am thinking about brush finishing the main tube, and leaving the top and bottom caps polished. I was previously told to use wet/dry sandpaper 600-800 grit, but if I can accomplish the same result with steel wool .. then why not.

 

yes this works. there is also a maroon colored scotchbrite pad that is a little more course and will give a deeper brushing. the green pad will be very fine brushmarks and the maroon pad will look less shiny and more brushed. i wrap the pad around the piece i am working on and simply turn the piece in the pad. it works quite well.

 

If you can find someone with a cabinet sand blaster and they have glass bead media that has been used before so they are not as sharp as new and set the air pressure at 35 pounds you will get a very nice smooth Grey finish.Some people call it vapor honing .Just make sure you strip the unit before it goes into the cabinet then air blow it out.It is a great looking finnish.

 

I have a Rocket somewhere (not the awesome one). I think I'll try brushing it for fun. It's finish is by far the ugliest part about it. If it looks nice, maybe I'll start messing with it again.


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