Best way to remove scratches & dings?

[Doc Nonverbal]

Hello all,

I have recently picked up some used S&Ws that have some scratches & dings that I'd like to try to remove. My concern is over changing the geometry of the surface so that it looks uneven. My current thinking is to glue sandpaper to a small wood block to prevent rounding. Before I try this, I figured the best course of action is to ask the experts:

What is the best way to go about removing scratches while preserving the lines of the handgun?

Thanks!


David

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Hello all,

I have recently picked up some used S&Ws that have some scratches & dings that I'd like to try to remove. My concern is over changing the geometry of the surface so that it looks uneven. My current thinking is to glue sandpaper to a small wood block to prevent rounding. Before I try this, I figured the best course of action is to ask the experts:

What is the best way to go about removing scratches while preserving the lines of the handgun?

Thanks!


David

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Has anyone tried using a jeweler's burnishing tool to push the raised metal back into the scratch/ding? I'm wondering if this could reduce the size of the void in the metal and make the refinishing easier.

 

[n4zov]

I assume you are planning to reblue or otherwise refinish the guns, right?

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Most of the scratched/dinged guns are stainless, so I would attempt to refinish the gun to match. On the blued revolver, I'll leave the refinishing up to a professional.

 

[Milton]

You have to practice this method but I have turned some awful looking stainless revolvers into some very nice looking ones.First I use an old,small machinist's hammer and using the ball end carefully strike the damaged surface and move metal around to cover dings,dents and scratches.I then use one of the various abrasive pads to work the area like the rest of the gun.If I had a way to sand blast the top of the guns they would really look nice!

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Thanks, Milton. This is exactly what I was hoping to accomplish with a burnishing tool.

I might try rounding the tip on a small steel pin punch and using that to peen the edges of the scratches and dings. That, with a larger flat pin punch to blend, might just do the trick.

 

[wheelgun1958]

I would burnish it rather than peen it. It should leave a smoother surface.

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Update: I bought a GRS Engraving Burnishing tool. It's a dinky little thing for the money, but it worked really well on the scratches on stainless steel. The best application for a burnishing tool appears to be a scratch in which there is raised metal near a groove. In these situations I ran the burnishing tool across the scratch (perpendicular) back and forth. This worked out really well.

The burnishing tool also worked well on rough edges. I had some burrs on the top of the trigger guard on one handgun, but they were smoothed out in no time with this tool.

It didn't do so hot on dings in which there wasn't any metal to move into the depression. I ended up using Scotch Brite pads and fine steel wool for these areas.

The one drawback of the burnishing tool is that it creates a very bright mirror-like finish. To match the rest of the gun, I had to rub the area with some steel wool or a super-fine Scotch Brite pad.

One caution on the burnishing tool: The darn thing is so small that it's very easy to hold it on a slight angle. When this happens, it adds superficial scratches to the surface. Fortunately, these buff out pretty well. I think the ideal tool would be a bit larger, so I'll probably need to make one.

In sum, I'm pretty happy with the outcomes on the four handguns I tried this with. I'm sorry that I didn't take any before & after photos, but I'll try to next time.

Good luck!


David

 

[Kevin G]

David, I'm no expert by any means but seem to recall using steel wool on stainless can lead to problems down the line. Came accross this while researching polishing stainless on this site.
Kevin

 

[eddieb]

Steel wool will deposit particles of steel in the stainless and lead to rust later.

 

[Milton]

That sounds great ,but like the others said ,do not use steel wool!Use the various abrasive pads.

 

[Doc Nonverbal]

Thank you very much for the replies. I'll pick up some Scotch Brite pads for my stainless steel projects. I'll give each of the guns I worked on a going-over with the Scotch-Brite pads in the hopes that it will remove any residual steel wool.