Which pads are best to restore a factory type, dull finish to stainless steel S&W's and where do you get them? All I ever see are the orange, green, and charcoal colored pads. Thanks.

I was trying to remove a small scratch on a SS gun with a green Skotch-Brite pad. It will definately dull the surface of shiny SS! They can be bought at any hardware store or market.


WG840

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The best Scotch Brite I have used is the white pads. I have never tried the green. They are available on Amazon. I have also heard that Loews carries them but I can't verify that. Good luck, Bob

You can buy different "grit" Scotchbrite pads at most automotive supply houses.
These are used in car painting as polishing pads.

The green pads you can buy at grocery stores as pot scrubbers and at hardware stores are a little too coarse.
The brown or gray pads at hardware stores are fairly close.

Northern Tool has a generic brand in the same colors/grits as the original. Quite a bit cheaper and I can't tell them apart.

I've bought the white pads attached to a sponge at Lowe's.

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I have always just used a 3M sink scrubber sponge, and never had a problem. I felt they would not be impregnated with as much abrasive. Sometimes I will use with some gun oil as lube.

I recently bought a Model 65-3 that had a little damage to the upper edge of the sideplate from being improperly removed. Luckily the S&W logo is on the left side of the frame. After using 400 and then 600 carbide paper on a flat surface with a little oil to clean up the raised edges, I used the gray Scotchbrite first and then the white, also with a little lube. Light pressure is all it takes and you want to blend the grain in the same direction as the original surface. Wipe the area with a clean rag often to check the progress as the oil will make the surface dirty while you are polishing. It looks like a new gun now and I am very pleased. If there is a grit between the gray and white I would like to have that too as the gray is pretty rough. It was an easy job and I'm glad I tried it.

There isn't.

SCOTCHBRITE GRIT CHART
3M Scotch Brite Nylon Pads:
7445 - White pad, called Light Duty Cleansing - (1000) 1200-1500 grit
7448 - Light Grey, called Ultra Fine Hand - (600-800) 800 grit.
6448 - Green (?), called Light Duty Hand Pad - (600) 600 grit
7447 - Maroon pad, called General Purpose Hand - (320-400) 320 grit
6444 - Brown pad, called Extra Duty Hand - (280-320) 240 grit
7446 - Dark Grey pad, called Blending Pad (180-220) 150 grit
7440 - Tan pad, called Heavy Duty Hand Pad - (120-150) 60(?)
Blue Scotch-Brite is considered to be about 1000 grit.
(The value inside the parentheses is directly from 3M.)
3M Chart
Less Aggressive --------> More Aggressive
7445 7448 6448 7447 6444 7446 7440
Finer Finish --------> Coarser Finish

Thanks for the stock numbers and grit chart. My gray pad is pretty dark, I bought it from MSC Industrial I believe and the sheets came in plastic bags with hand written stock numbers that don't match the 3M numbers.
I might very well have the 7446/150 grit. I'll have to see if I can find the light gray.

I have a box of the 7448 and the pads are pretty dark.

Another source of the pads are welding supply shops. They usually carry 3-4 different size pads.

One other way to remove a slight scratch or blemish on stainless is by using crocus cloth with a few drops of oil on it.

Crocus cloth is the stuff mechanics use to polish crankshafts and the like. It is super fine grit, almost smooth but just abrasive enough to do the job. It is avail. in sheets like sandpaper, and you cut or tear into strips and go from there, or it is avail on a roll where you can tear off the length you need. Use it with oil for polishing.

If I get a scratch on something stainless, it is what I use to make the mark disappear.

just go to any lowes/Hd and head toward the tile section. look around by the grout and you will find the white surface yellow sponge pads...its like 4 for 2-3 bucks. They are around 4x6 so you can cut them down to the size you need....one sponge will last years..