Polishing Compounds for Buffing

Metal polishing compounds are used with airway buffing wheels to increase the effectiveness of the wheel while being used during the cutting, buffing, and polishing process. Some are of a coarser consistency and are usually used to remove scratches while the others are finer, which lends to them being used to shine and finish your work. They should be applied to airway buffing wheels by coating the edges of the airway buffs.

Size:  each bar is approximately 10" long and weighs 2.5 lbs.  

It is strongly recommended and should even be required to wear a respirator when polishing.

No scratch Pink Bar- is generally used for polishing handle materials such as woods and plastics although some knife makers do actually use it on the steel as well! But we recommend it for the handle! 

Black Stainless Bar- is used as a "first cut" on your steel and is used to take out those initial 320 & 400 grit scratch marks left by your sandpaper whether it be from hand sanding or belt sanding. You want to start with this cut bar then go into a second step polish. Be sure to not cross contaminate your bars on the same wheel without raking out the previous color...in this case the black stainless bar. 

Green Rouge Bar- is used for a high luster finish and "coloring" stage we like to call it when polishing your steel. Due to the green chromium oxide, this bar will leave a darker, richer luster in your steel. 

White Bar- We find people generally use the white for a high luster finish. 

What Does the Color Mean- The color of the polishing compound is almost always a byproduct of the natural abrasive ingredients. Tripoli powder, is an abrasive product that along with the other formula ingredients allows the buffing wheel to polish a metal surface. These abrasives are often pigments as well causing the bar color to take on the appearance of the abrasive.

In situations where abrasives may be similar in appearance, but have very different abrasive qualities, many manufactures can add separate pigment or dye to help differentiate the products from one another.