I have a 65 on the way with some light handling marks and scratches. Do I have to use sandpaper to smooth it out before the Mothers, or will the Mothers be enough? Can I try the Mothers first, and if it's not enough, lightly sand and then re polish with Mothers?

I have never tried the Mothers on a Gun (Have used it on wheels) On guns I have always used Flitz,In any event I would try the metal polish 1st

Hmm I would not use sandpaper on one of my guns, unless the finish were so bad I felt I couldn't damage it more. Start with the Mother's, if it doesn't do what you want then you can consider something more. Be careful though, light scratches can quickly become damage if you go too aggressive in "polishing" the gun. Nine times out of ten it's better to just leave the beauty marks and enjoy the gun as a shooter.

I bought a police trade-in Model 64 a couple of years back and used Mothers Mag polish and their drill-chuck ball to bring some life into the gal. Here's a before and after pic:

Before


After

Nice. What is this drill chuck ball?

You can find them at most Auto Parts places where they sell the polish; Checker/O'Reilly, Pep Boys, Auto Zone, etc. It's a rod that will chuck into an electric or pneumatic drill motor, of which the end is capped with a ball shaped wad of sponge-like cloth that the polishing compound can be applied to. I chucked up the ball in an electric drill motor, placed the motor into a vise, adjusted the speed, applied Mothers' compound to the ball and the semi-disassembled gun, working it like a polishing wheel until I got the consistency of finish I wanted. Go slow, you can always go back, but don't rush it!

As you can see from BlackCloud's pictures, Mothers will really shine the area it is applied to.

As far as removing scratches, it can actually make them appear worse as you polish the area around them. So it really depends on what finish your revolver has now, and what type of finish you want on it. Flitz will leave more haze and less luster.

Lots of folks tend to use Scotch Brite pads (they come in various colors for different grits) to remove scratches and blend to the original finish.

I'm not trying to tell you what to do, just trying to help you think about what you want in the end. Once you put some Mothers on a spot, you are going to probably want to do then entire revolver. Otherwise you will have one shiny spot that will draw attention like crazy.

Jepp2 makes a good point, I was intent on polishing the whole gun, not just an isolated spot. I was also removing a matte finish that was marred and had seen better days, knowing I was going to now have a shiney appearance, which I was okay with. I have also used Flitz in limited areas, which works well and that was all applied with an old sock and "finger power"!

Scotch pads "gray" seem to be close to factory S&W finish, I used "michiana" wheel polish "truck stop" stuff on a 625 barrel & cylinder to match them for a 629 frame, probably relabelled "mothers mag polish" after the gray pad treatment.

I prefer to avoid motor powered polishing, I usually buy those cheaper with the swirl marks and hand polish the mess out

Here is what the polish looks like done by hand on the gray factory finish cylinder & barrel - the frame has swirl marks I need polish out yet.

There is a sticky posted on this which I got the info from you may want to read it.

I just hit this 629 with scotch bright. It was in pretty rough shape. Some of the deeper dings still show but it cleaned up pretty well. I started with green then moved to grey and then to white.

Simply amazing stuff.
This is a before and after on a 66-2.All done by hand polishing using only Mother's and a felt cloth.It took about four hours in total over a few days while watching TV and finished it off with Eagle One Nanowax.That part only took about 5 minutes
Come to think about it now,I did use some 400 grit automotive wet sand paper on a couple of bad spots at the start, before using the Mothers.I also tried to avoid the stampings and the top of the barrel as much as possible during the whole process and removed the the cylinder release thumb piece instead of trying to work around it.

I should have mentioned that I have used Flitz and Mothers to polish my other stainless guns (686, 66, uger GP100), but those didin't have any scratches. I just like the polished look. What is automotive wet sandpaper? Is there a certain way to use the paper? Lightly, I'm sure. But do you only go in one direction?

Another Mother's user -

On stainless steel:











Cleaning up old cloudy nickel:

if you go to an autobody supply shop you can buy paper up to 1600 I am thinking.

it is used to go over stuff like a lacquer paint job between coats, the paper is kept clean dipping it in a pail of water.

I have tried various paper on "idiot marks" on Colt 1911's it has a fairly flat surface there but prefer the scotchbrite pad to remove those ugly scratches.

Another great post with alot of info & pictures

EDIT keep the paper off any edges & corners as it will eat fast even the ultrafine stuff.

I thought the Scotchbrite was to give it the brushed factory look, not to remove scratches.

I agree,definitely a feather light hand even with the finest wet sand paper.The water also acts as a lubricant to avoid any deep sanding marks.Also wipe off the sanded area often because it will turn "muddy" so you can check on the progress.

wet sanding is a step,and will get out alot of scratches but please be careful.Mother will shine up a gun but won't really hide the scratches.

The best way is using auto sandpaper,then polishing everything.I did this with a 66 and worked great but if you want to go all out then you need to start with something abit more aggressive.




I started with 400 grit sandpaper,then moved up the scale to 2,000 grit sandpaper then to my dremel tool with several polishing wheels.The whole process took about 6 days,an hour or 2 each day.

I also did the same thing to this 4006,and a 5906.the hardest part was polishing the decocker and break down pin.

Mothers' mag polish does have mild abrasive qualities or else it would not polish metals.I also agree that wet sandpaper has it's place if the flaws on the gun are severe enough to require fine sanding.I sure would not use Mothers on a blued gun as it will damage and remove the bluing eventually if used often enough as a polish. The label does state this for a reason.........

"Not recommended for gold plating, chrome,anodized, painted or coated metals."

As an example, the revolvers in the photo were purchased new,one originally matte and the other a brushed finish.Over a period of time,routinely polishing and waxing the stainless steel revolvers the end result was a high shine finish.No sandpaper or Scotch Brite pad has ever touched either of these two.One is only a few years old and the other around 25 and has spent a great amount of time at the range.

Just got a 629 back yesterday from S&W they went over, will have to post a picture, a rougher scotchpad alone would be comparable to the factory finish which hides many small scratches very well.

Deep ones you can feel with your fingernail you may want to really evaluate before jumping into, test the paper under the grip panels to see how fast it cuts, 400 wet paper cuts FAST and theres no putting the metal back.

I personally would not use wet paper on a S&W revolver when various other means are available, rubbing coumpound, polishing compounds, will remove scratches, they just wont cut as fast as that wet paper - haste makes waste

I use some stuff called "wadding". Several manufacturers make it. A friend that restores old cars reccommended it to take the road crude off the chrome on my Harley. Works great on stainless and electroless nickel finishes.
It is sort sort of chemically impregnated wool looking stuff that does an excellant job of polishing and leaves a protective film on the metal. Used it for several years with no undue negative effects. It will handle light scratches very well but is too light for true gouges. Works wonders on old blue and will make previously polished stainless and/or nickel shine like a new penny.....from there I move to Flitz.....after that I usually make up a story as to how the blemish came to be there...the kids love it and makes the piece a little easier to sell or trade shoould the occasion arise

Rubbing compound is more or less sandpaper in a can with a paste wax base.It also comes in different grades of grit.I have tried it on a couple of occasions but the smell it leaves behind is fairly offensive and lingers in the safe.The brand that I used did anyway.
The wadding I have used as well on the chrome on my boat and bike and does a great job of cleaning and shining and with a coat of wax looks even better. It won't remove scratches,but then again it will not add any either. There are many products out there that will work if used properly and not overdone to the point of no return.

LOL very true with the exception the various grits are not on a piece of paper but applied with a damp cloth taking the tendency to roll / round edges - concur on the smell but that can be washed away with a wiping down with Hoppe #9 - not sure what the "wadding" is but will inquire at the automotive paint supply locally give that a try - Thanks for that tip.

S&W went over this 629 after replacing the barrel, its a very dull factory finish, I think rougher than the gray scotchbrite? just returned a few days ago.




Here is a "dremel" mess I picked up that will need to be hand polished to restore it to a uniform appearance, those small buffing wheels used on a dremel are notorious for making a mess.

The "key word" mentioned above is "steps", one has to get any and all the scrathces out FIRST, then blend in all the surrounding area, then buff and polish for the degree of "shiny" you may desire.....we hate to hear folks say "sandpaper" cause it 'ain't'......emery paper, aluminum oxide.,, or any of the automotive wet/dry types, can be used to remove the "scratches"...big difference from just "polishing the snot' out of a gun, and as noted early on,, "make the scratches shiny...."gotta remove them...then Semichrome, Flitz, or as mentioned "Mothers' will do the final 'polish' and even then, for the very "last" step,use the Mothers with one of those 'Microfiber' cloths........all of the above "steps" should be done by hand if you are doing this for the first time, power buffers, wheels, dremels etc., can make things go down hill very fast, and nothing worse looking than ANYTHING that is "over polished"; washed out....when done right, you can make stainless steel LOOK like 'nickel plating'.......some fine looking guns pictured above...nice jobs guys

__________________
dan
NRA Benefactor,PMA

Try Maguires

__________________
... --- ... ..- ... .-

Has anyone ever tried "Barkeeper's Friend"? You can get it in supermarkets. It is a very mild stainles steel cleaner and polisher. My wife has high end All Clad cookware. This stuff takes out minor scratches.

__________________
Fidelis Ad Mortem

Guns and Dremel tools do not make a very good combination for the occasional user and can be very destructive.I have restored quite a few "beaters", but it is a gradual process and takes some effort,time and a little know how to have good results.Using home power tools is not usually the ideal way to go.The best advice that I can give is to take your time, start off with mild abrasive polishes that are applied by hand,stay with the contours of the gun and avoid rounding off the the sharper edges.Work one area at a time instead of trying to do it all at once.Most of all enjoy your hobby.If you really want to have that perfect finish,whether the choice is polished,brushed,matte, or bead blasted then maybe the best option is to have someone with experience do it properly for you.