Using Flitz on nickel … and blue??

[Model29-26.5]

I’ve used Flitz on nickel. Came up great and after a thorough wiping down and Ballistol all good.
Today I also used a bare smudge of flitz to get rid of stubborn residue on a blued 57.
By bare smudge, I mean a small dab of Flitz on a kitchen towel, smudge it with finger into the towel and then one quick wipe over the whole surface. You barely see the Flitz, but it is just enough to make the finish slightly dull so that you know something is on it.
A quick circular motion wipe off with a fresh piece of kitchen towel, wash off spray with Ballistol and then Renaissance wax.
I have heard this is not the best thing to do, but it really did the trick today for me.
Not the kind of thing that I’m gonna be doing regularly, but if there is stubborn residue of some sort it works. Just real light and barely a hint of Flitz before clip or Ballistol and then wax.
Has anyone else done this kind of thing??
Been overzealous with Flitz or the elbow grease to clean?
Obviously, I did not want to ruin the blue, but upon reading that Flitz is great for nickel guns, now reading that it is not, and then reading that it is OK, and then being told never never to do it…
I did it and it worked out fine, but I won’t be doing it again unless I see a problem that nothing else will handle, I guess..
Worked well today, but I guess I won’t be doing it again.

Any advice would be nice though.
Thanks

 

[CajunBass]

I've used it on blue, nickel, and SS for years with no problems. It's not something I do routinely, but then it's not needed routinely. When I get a "new to me" gun it's one of the first things do almost every time. It removed the microscopic rust, dust, powder stains, etc that every used gun I've bought seems to have. Apply by hand, buff off by hand (soft cloth), then follow up with Ren Wax. After that, I just wax it as needed. I've never seen a problem.

I'm sure you could damage a finish with it, but in my experience it would take a lot more work than I'm willing to do. At least doing it by hand. No power tools. Remember you're trying to polish something. Not sand a tabletop. Work gently.

 

[stansdds]

You have to be careful, especially with blued finishes as Flitz is a mild abrasive. Use it long enough or apply too much pressure and you can remove the blued surface. Same goes for Lead-Away cloth.

 

[MSD2343]

I used Flitz in almost the exact way you did on my Model 27-9 after the frame and sideplate had developed a bit of a haze. The one, light application worked great and the haze has never returned in the several years since doing so.

 

[H Richard]

Flitz is fine on blue, but rub "very lightly".

 

[Model29-26.5]

Yes. That’s what I did. I used barely a hint of it and didn’t use it like you would use a polishing compound. It was the faintest wipe on and just a real easy wipe off. It worked like a charm, but it certainly nothing. I’ll be doing on a regular basis. Only something I would do if nothing else works to remove a stain like residue that won’t come off with CLP.

 

[Model29-26.5]

I used Flitz in almost the exact way you did on my Model 27-9 after the frame and sideplate had developed a bit of a haze. The one, light application worked great and the haze has never returned in the several years since doing so.

That looks great.
I think that’s all it needs is just the barest amount.

 

[Taj]

You have to be careful, especially with blued finishes as Flitz is a mild abrasive. Use it long enough or apply too much pressure and you can remove the blued surface. Same goes for Lead-Away cloth.

Flitz is a abrasive. It's a polish. Bluing is oxidation. If you polish it you are removing the oxide layer . I would never use Flitz on a blued gun. After almost 50 years as a gunsmith I've seen most things folks can do to a gun. My favorite is when they use Naval jelly to take off a rust spot.