Polishing lathes, or "buffers" are extremely versatile tools.
While they are generally thought of as something you use to make things shiny, they can do much more than that.
Most buffers run at either RPM or RPM. The lower speed is generally more useful, but don't discount the faster machines. They can be effectively "slowed down" by using smaller diameter polishing wheels.
The cheapest bench buffer you can rig up is a simple bench grinder with the wheel guards removed, and polishing wheels mounted. While not the ideal buffer, these can be quite handy. I use several in my shop-each dedicated to a specific purpose.
Dedicated buffing machines usually have extended shafts to give more room to move the work against the spinning wheels.
Buffing machines can also be built using arbors and pillow blocks, belt-driven by an electric motor.
There are machines generally referred to as "dental polishing lathes" that are extremely precise, versatile polishing tools. These generally use tapered spindles for quick threading on/off of polishing wheels. These machines are often dual-speed machines and can be found on Ebay at inexpensive prices. You don't even want to know what they sell for new-trust me, they are expensive!
Note: I'm no polishing expert, and I'm doing this off the top of my head. Stacy and other experienced polishers-feel free to edit, correct, add to, or question any of this!
Check each post for edits and additions as they come to me!
Since we have covered the basic machines, now lets talk about the polishing wheels, and what they do.
Cloth wheels are available in cotton muslim, denim, treated cotton- maybe others.
The cloth wheels can be either:
hard sewn: usually used with aggressive compounds for cutting
Sewn muslin: a looser weave between hard sewn and loose. A good general-purpose buff
Loose cotton: for fine finishes. Loose wheels are more prone to grabbing work than others.
Sisal wheels are used with aggressive compounds to remove scratches from grinding.
There are felt wheels in different hardnesses. These are good for keeping surfaces flat, and for high polishing with the proper grits.
Wood laps are simply wooden wheels that are charged with polishing compounds. Like felt wheels, they keep surfaces flat and can provide a high polish with finer compounds.
Rubber wheels are hard rubber containing abrasive compounds in different grits. The more aggressive grits can actually remove quite a bit of metal.
Scotchbrite and similar wheels are made of a plastic mesh that is embedded with abrasives of varying grits. These wheels are good for smoothing and for satin finishes.
Wire wheels: generally used for removing rust, dirt, or scale
Another wheel that is useful in the knifemaker's shop is the expanding drum sander. These are flexible rubber wheels that use abrasive belts. Centrifugal force expands the drum to hold the belt in place. They can be used much like a contact wheel on a belt grinder. Belt life is much shorter than grinder belts.
A similar wheel is called a "Cone-lock" wheel, or some variation of the spelling.
There are texturing wire wheels that are available that will give a sand-blasted effect.
Polishing compounds:
This one will probably be lengthy and might be edited several times.
There are so many compounds we won't be able to cover all of them here. We all have our favorites, and we haven't all used each other's favorites-so all I can go on is my own experience here.
There are the "standard" compounds: emery, tripoli, and the various rouges. Emery is generally a black bar that is fairly aggressive. Often used on sisal wheels. Tripoli is a semi-agressive compound that is used at low speed on loose buffs to polish plastics and soft metals. The rouges are formulated for various metals for high polish.
Specialized grinding compounds are available in grits from 180-.
These are available in grease-based bars, "greaseless" (plastic-based) compounds, or brush-on compounds that are glue-based. Brush-ons are applied and allowed to dry before using.
Grinding compounds are very useful for pre-polish of steel. The greasless compounds are some of my favorites used on spiral sewn muslin buffs.
NOTE: you must use a separate polishing wheel for each compound! Be careful of cross-contamination between buffs.
Getting confused yet? We are just beginning.
I'm giving you all this info so that you can better make informed choices when buying your supplies.
I'm sure most of you just want to know what buffer, wheels and compounds to get-and how to use them. We'll get to that soon.
Polishers are so useful I have about 10 in my shop. My business is not just making knives, so my requirements will be different from yours.
My most used buffer is on my Grizzly 2x72 grinder. I use an 8" concentric-sewn muslin wheel and green chrome polishing compound. With lots of hand-sanding beforehand, this RPM machine will effectively give a mirror polish on most metals and handle materials.
SAFETY ALERT!: polishing creates abrasive dust that you do not want to breathe! At least use some sort of mask when polishing. A respirator is better.
Note the cardboard dust hoods. Should your hand get pulled into them, they won't cut you.
Hey Bill, how about giving a recommendation on grit progression for someone shooting for a mirror/polished finish on steel?
My tip: If you take a fitting or component of a knife to a polished finish, you can easily step back to any grit satin finish quickly and easily, and get a true finish to that grit. The buffing process will also show you where you may be missing courser grit scratches. Jim Crowell showed me this trick on buffing the bottom of a ricasso and the spine of a blade. I applied it to lots of other things, like bolsters, etc. The only tricky part is keeping everything flat.
Buffing, then stepping back to fine scotchbrite wheel looks killer, and is easy to touch up if it gets handling marks.
I have 3 knives made from that I need to buff to complete a mirror finish on and then sharpen. I have taken them up to grit. I am totally confused regarding what buffing wheels I should be using. I have done a lot of research and they are all dangerous but rarely do I walk away from a post feeling I know what's what.
Goto Jiatong to know more.
I was given a high speed 8 inch buffer but can not seem to find any wheels in the local hardware stores. Base on what I have read I really should be using a RPM buffer and most point to a 6 inch wheel. I have black green pink and white buffing compound from Texas Knife suppliers. I also understand I need a different wheel for each compound. So should I buy a low speed 6 inch buffer? What wheels do I need and for what compound. I could really use you wisdom here.
Scott
I was thinking the same thing Justin mentioned......personally, I think a grit hand finish is MUCH more attractive then a buffed/mirror finish ever could be. I might get boos and hisses, but to be totally honest, I think a mirror finish makes a knife look "cheap". I think my "bad taste" for mirror finishes came from the days when I did it, and was constantly trying to answer the question.... "Who chrom plates your blades?" Makes my blood boil! http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//smile.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />
Ed Caffrey, ABS MS
"The Montana Bladesmith"
www.CaffreyKnives.net
I am assuming that the buffing machine you have is rated at rpm.. If you use an arbor called a 'tapered spindle', you will have the ability to use just about any size buff with a 'pin hole' arbor size. Any jewelry supply company Rio Grande carries about anything you need. You can use different sized buffs to control the 'buff speed' to match your buffing needs.
First I want to thank all that have posted here. I have been away for a few days with the holiday weekend.
If the masses say taking it to is good who am I to argue. The finish is good but I wanted to take it to the next level if there is one.
Contact us to discuss your requirements of felt polishing wheels supplier. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.
I thought that the buffing compound would provide some level of rust protection. Maybe I am wrong on that account. The knives I am making are working knives (skinners and camp knives) and will be used in the field. Do you use anything on the blades to minimize rusting as a final finish?
Thanks,
Scott
|quoted:
I am assuming that the buffing machine you have is rated at rpm.. If you use an arbor called a 'tapered spindle', you will have the ability to use just about any size buff with a 'pin hole' arbor size. Any jewelry supply company Rio Grande carries about anything you need. You can use different sized buffs to control the 'buff speed' to match your buffing needs.
Thanks Teddy. I will look into Rio Grande's products.
Scott
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit felt pad supplier.
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