Scale Polishing the GLBM Way

[gerleatherberman]

I was asked by a fellow member and friend to talk about the method I use to polish SAK scales. This works on Cellidor. Does NOT work on Nylon, Wood, or ALOX.
I have NOT tried this on scales with clocks or lights in them. I imagine you need to be extra careful not to damage the butttons/moving parts. Get some experience and the feel of the wheel before attempting a polish on complex/valuable scales

SO THIS IS FOR CELLIDOR ONLY.
PLEASE WEAR SAFETY GOGGLES. BUFFING WHEEL FIBERS WITH COMPOUND ON THEM CAN SMURF UP YOUR EYEBALLS.

In the pictures I show the progress I make during a basic polishing job on cellidor SAK scales. This works on anything from light pocket scratches all the way to heavy scratches. As long as the scales are not broken anywhere or bowed (banana peeling), this method is simple and works.
What you need for this method:
Bench grinder with speed control OR an old low-speed motor with spindle adapter(like I have). Mine runs 1750RPM. Anything over 2000RPM can overheat too quickly and burn the scale if you're not experienced.
6" or 8" medium buffing wheel. You don't  need several different wheels to do this. Just one. It is the finest buffing cloth wheel with the layers bonded by thread(I get mine at Harbor Freight). The loose layered wheels don't work well for this kind of polishing.
Buffing compound. I use Dico #3 high luster sticks(liquid compund makes a mess and doesn't stay on the wheel) on cellidor scales. Be sure to dedicate one medium cloth buffing wheel to this compound, as infecting it with a harsher compound will lead to the wheel overheating the scales.
PATIENCE. This may be the most important thing you need. It can take up to 10 minutes to polish a single scale to a beautiful shine. With experience, you'll be able to knock a set of scales out in a few minutes.

My method:
I like to leave the scales on the SAK. For two reasons. 1. Gives me something to hold onto. 2. Removing and putting scales back on can ruin them irreparably.
The cloth wheel isn't going to hurt the metal stuff at all.
Watch where the wheel is at very closely. Keep the buffing very light on sharp edges(slot for toothpick, tweezers, pen, etx) and recesses(like the corkscrew cutout).
Start the buffing very gently in one spot to get a feel about how much it is going to take to remove the scratches.
I like to start the buffing with the rolled edges first so I don't mess up the large flat area trying to do the rolled edges after.
I start by polishing the scale length-wise until most of the scratches are gone. Be very careful not to let the wheel spin on one area. Keep the scale moving while buffing.
Once the scratches are about gone,  I then polish the scale side-ways until their are super-faint buffing lines and then go back to length-wise polishing. Using less and less pressure until the polishing marks are no longer visible in either direction. Don't over-polish (leave very bad gouges alone if it is making a valley in the cellidor). Also mind the metal VIC embedded logo. If you over-polish the cellidor, the logo will look raised and strange.
Put some compound on the cloth wheel every thirty seconds to keep the cloth wheel saturated with it. A cloth wheel without compound on it will damage the scale.
Use a very soft cloth (micro fiber is best ) to wipe away compound residue from the scale.
Once the scale is gleaming and almost all (if not all) the scratching is no longer visible.
Clean the residue from the SAK with warm soapy water and a soft cloth (micro fiber is best).

And again, do not let the wheel spin in one spot. Keep the scale moving and don't press it into the buffing wheel. Think of it as gently holding the scale "up to" the wheel.
Practice on junky old scales or broken scales to get some experience before taking a valuable SAK/rare scale to the buffer.
There are a hundred ways to polish SAK scales, so I don't claim ownership of this method. It is just what I found works for me by trial and error. I don't have the patience to polish by hand. That can take up to an hour and doesn't work very well(for me anyway) compared to the buffing wheel.

If you have any questions, please ask me. I am not a polishing expert, but I do know what works for me. And someone asked me to describe the way I have successfully polished SAK scales.

Pictures show BEFORE pics(first two pics), equipment shots, action shots and lastly, the AFTER pics (last two pics).

[gerleatherberman]

Pics

[gerleatherberman]

Explorer cleaned after my polishing job. The polishing itself took about 5 minutes in total.

[Don Pablo]

Shiny and quick, I lke it. 

[RF52]

Great job, and very useful info 

[ThePeacent]

maybe this thread could be a sticky, where other could also add their method(s) and comment on them, so that newcomers and modders alike would easily find it on the forum? 

[RF52]

maybe this thread could be a sticky, where other could also add their method(s) and comment on them, so that newcomers and modders alike would easily find it on the forum? 

+1

Sent fra min FRD-L09 via Tapatalk

[Marc_in_NS]

Thank you for your information G-man!

[Mechanickal]

I was asked the same.

I use a pillar drill at 1220 rpm

[Marc_in_NS]

1200 RPM...that is the key right there. Dremel tools, at least mine has a minimum speed of 5000 RPM, far too fast hence the burning and melting. I'll have to try it on my drill press.

[gerleatherberman]

Thank you for the kind words, y'all!

And thank you of offering a way for people w/o a buffer (speed controlled) to do it as well.

Also, a regular drill would work as well, but you'll need to clamp it to the table somehow. Or talk someone into holding it for you.

I would think 1200rpm would be good for people just starting out, but 1500-2000 would be fine for someone with some practice.
I like 1750rpm motor and 8" wheel, because the lower speed and size of the wheel help keep the wheel edge cool.

Folks who haven't tried buffing scales yet;
I emphasized this in my original post, but never ever use a non-speed-controlled bench grinder with a cloth wheel on cellidor. You'll burn the scale in less than a second.
If you have a buffing wheel on a bench ginder without speed control, then invest in a variac(variable transformer) or voltage regulator to slow it down.

On a side note, the buffing stuff for Dremels are shoddy at best and require way more time to get right. And, like others have stated, it doesn't run slow enough. Also, the small buffing wheels for Dremels heat up quickly and hold the heat for a long time. The bigger the buffing wheel, the less heat will build up in the wheel.

Last thing in this post (I promise) is that I did a buff job on a minichamp to see if there was a way to avoid damaging the little pen slide, battery compartment, etc. It is possible with some patience, but get a lot of practice on cheap SAKs first.
Mine turned out great, except the light buttob had red paint in the recesses and I buffed some of it out on accident. I assumed the colors were bonded. I was wrong, so watch out for that when buffing complicated scales.
I practiced ways to hold the small SAK while buffing a translucent classic (turned out o.k. too).

[Greg Jones]

Great how to   

[Douglas]

Thanks G-Mam and Mechy.  Keep posting your new techniqe discoveries both good and bad.  EL C you posted about a very differant style in Mechy's Office, it would be great to have a photo tutorial added to this thread especialy if we can convince the Mods to...

maybe this thread could be a sticky, where other could also add their method(s) and comment on them, so that newcomers and modders alike would easily find it on the forum? 

+1

Sent fra min FRD-L09 via Tapatalk

I +1 this also.
 

[gerleatherberman]

Thanks G-Mam and Mechy.  Keep posting your new techniqe discoveries both good and bad.

You're welcome, Douglas!
I appreciate you contacting me about it. It never occurred to me that so many people were interested in buffing scales.
Glad to possibly help anyone wanting that Victorinox shine back on their original scales.