Is this possible?

Concerned Citizen · September 1, 2017, 12:41 AM

A member at another forum posted his collection of Taurus revolvers. As most of you know, what passes for "Stainless Steel" these days is little more then a crappy matte gray finish that almost looks like someone spray painted it on. According to him, this is a newer model gun that used to have one of those crappy matte "stainless" finishes.

If I understood him correctly, he claimed he was able to achieve this by removing the matte gray finish to reveal the real stainless underneath by hand simply using shop rags with Mother's polish and a lot of time and elbow grease. No buffers, machines, etc.

I find it hard to believe he got this gun looking that good only using hand rags and Mother's. When I politely called him out on it, asking him for more details, I never got a reply.

So my question to you is, it is possible to achieve this kind of finish by hand on a modern, mass produced "Matte Stainless" handgun or rifle? If so, why aren't more people doing it?

Bill DeShivs · September 1, 2017, 01:57 AM

Yes, it is entirely possible.

roashooter · September 1, 2017, 01:59 AM

what Bill said...

JoeSixpack · September 1, 2017, 02:01 AM

Mothers mag is some GOOOD stuff, I've never tried polishing stainless steel, but basicly the different stainless finishes are just skin deep.. they're all bare metal and all it takes is polishing to get it shinny like that.. how easy it is I don't know..

But I can tell you raw aluminum, copper, brass, carbon steel, if it's already in good shape you can get that sucker mirror like very quickly with mothers mag and just hand rubbing with a rag.

Like I said never tried to polish stainless but I would not doubt they did it with mothers mag and a rag.

Concerned Citizen · September 1, 2017, 02:13 AM

Quote:

Mothers mag is some GOOOD stuff, I've never tried polishing stainless steel, but basicly the different stainless finishes are just skin deep.. they're all bare metal and all it takes is polishing to get it shinny like that.. how easy it is I don't know..

But I can tell you raw aluminum, copper, brass, carbon steel, if it's already in good shape you can get that sucker mirror like very quickly with mothers mag and just hand rubbing with a rag.

Like I said never tried to polish stainless but I would not doubt they did it with mothers mag and a rag.

The type of stainless I'm talking about is NOT the good kind of stainless, such as the blade of a Victorinox Swiss Army knife. This "stainless" is some kind of dull, matte, powdered coating. This would have to removed in order to get to the real stainless steel underneath. This seems a bit more complex then simply polishing up an existing finish by hand.

I've never attempted to do this only using Mother's and hand rags, but I would like to try it on my Taurus 905 if it were possible to achieve these results.

mete · September 1, 2017, 02:17 AM

Time and energy is all you need ! Remember that was a 1/3 difference in price between the S&W M27 and M28 .Between matt and polished finish !

CDR_Glock · September 1, 2017, 06:11 AM

I used polish with my dremel.

I wonder if I used my tumbler what would happen. I did it to my Taurus Tracker. I hated the Matte finish.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

arquebus357 · September 1, 2017, 06:27 AM

Be advised that non-stainless steel can be polished up and you will not be able to tell the difference until it rusts. When guns from reputable manufacturers are called Stainless Steel, That piece is Not plated as some here seem to think.

Polished stainless steel finishes are difficult to maintain. The surface scratches very easily compared to hard chrome for instance. The brushed and matte finishes are much preferred by those not inclined to spend time polishing firearms.

cecILL · September 1, 2017, 06:50 AM

Still confused on what kind of stainless you are asking about. The brushed finish is not something added to the stainless.

mete · September 1, 2017, 06:52 AM

Please DON'T polish with a Dremel tool . A large polishing wheel or by hand only !

arquebus357 · September 1, 2017, 07:01 AM

If you feel the need to polish a dull stainless firearm and don't have access to a buffing wheel, start with 2000-2500 grit wet/dry sandpaper. This will get you closer to a mirror finish much quicker than just using polish.

smee78 · September 1, 2017, 08:20 AM

The mat finish can be achieved with a media blaster, under that is still the metal. It's not changed metal, just finished different. If the you have the time and patience to work in all the nooks and crannies then yes a stainless gun can be made to shine like a mirror.

**Mike Irwin** · September 1, 2017, 10:02 AM

OK, I'm confused...

What's the point of powder coating a matte finish onto a stainless steel gun?

Siggy-06 · September 1, 2017, 10:06 AM

I have actually polished a Taurus revolver(I forget the model number, but it was older, prelock, and looked like the S&W 638). Mothers mag and a rag, plus a good amount of time is all it really takes. If you have deep scratches some wet/dry fine grit sandpaper before the polishing helps. I dont mind the matte or brushed stainless finish unless they get real beat up.

dahermit · September 1, 2017, 10:15 AM

Quote:

The type of stainless I'm talking about is NOT the good kind of stainless, such as the blade of a Victorinox Swiss Army knife.

There are no "good" or "bad" stainless steels. There just are different types used for different purposes. The stainless steel used in a pocket knife would likely be 440c, a Martinsetic stainless steel. There are three categories of stainless steel, Ferritic, Austenitic, and Martinsetic. Within those three categories of stainless steels, there are more than thirty (as of the 1980's), alloys according to the AISI (American Iron and Steel Insitute). The type of steel used is dictated by what it is going to be used for, via its properties. The finish of a stainless steel, polished or matt, has nothing to do with its composition (or quality) but is purely a matter of aesthetics.

Mr. Hill · September 1, 2017, 11:26 AM

You "called him out on it", and he didn't respond, huh? I wouldn't have responded, either.

cslinger · September 1, 2017, 11:40 AM

https://youtu.be/QtBmVR9FiO4

Video showing some polishing.

T. O'Heir · September 1, 2017, 11:53 AM

"...hated the Matte finish..." Why'd you buy it? Just curious.
"...removing the matte gray finish to reveal the real stainless..." Neither is correct. SS is not shiney until it's polished. There is no such thing as a "real stainless" finish. The metal is SS and isn't a finish.
The unpolished "crappy matte gray finish" is there so sunlight etc. doesn't reflect into your face when shooting outside. It's there for a reason and isn't just decoration or poor QC.
However, any metal can be polished by hand or by using a cloth wheel in a drill press or bench grinder. Best to add some actual metal polish or jeweller's rouge.

reddog81 · September 1, 2017, 12:38 PM

For the most part the polishing is easy and there are probably dozens of ways to do it. The great thing is if you mess up it is easy to correct. The hard part is getting an even finish on areas that transition from one surface to another like where the barrel threads into the frame. Other than those spots a 10 year old can do it. There's no need to "call someone out". A simple google search will yield 100's of posts and plenty of videos detailing the process.

Sgt127 · September 1, 2017, 01:55 PM

Quote:

So my question to you is, it is possible to achieve this kind of finish by hand on a modern, mass produced "Matte Stainless" handgun or rifle? If so, why aren't more people doing it?

Well, I don't do it because I don't like the way it looks. It also removes 100% of the original finish as far as resale is concerned.

Concerned Citizen · September 1, 2017, 02:03 PM

Quote:

You "called him out on it", and he didn't respond, huh? I wouldn't have responded, either.

But you didn't have any problem responding to my post here, did you?

Perhaps I used the wrong choice of words, but when I kindly asked for some more clarification on what exactly he did, he did not reply.

Concerned Citizen · September 1, 2017, 02:07 PM

Quote:

https://youtu.be/QtBmVR9FiO4

Video showing some polishing.

My Taurus does not have a nice "brushed" stainless finish like YankeeMarshall's example in the video. Mine looks almost like a coating, it feels a bit rough and looks cheap. It looks like it would take more then simply rubbing some polish on it by hand to get it to look like the one in my photo. I've seen this so-called stainless finish on other newer guns as well, including more expensive American makes. Stainless guns of the past NEVER looked like this, whether brushed or not.

Cheapshooter · September 1, 2017, 05:03 PM

Quote:

So my question to you 1. is, it is possible to achieve this kind of finish by hand on a modern, mass produced "Matte Stainless" handgun or rifle?

2. If so, why aren't more people doing it?

1. Yes.
2. They don't want to!
Not everybody wants, and in the case of a CCW firearm most people don't want a bright, shiny, "blinged out" gun.

old bear · September 2, 2017, 09:11 AM

Quote:

So my question to you is, it is possible to achieve this kind of finish by hand on a modern, mass produced "Matte Stainless" handgun or rifle? If so, why aren't more people doing it?

Anything is possible if you are willing to put enough time and effort into. As for your part two question. Not everyone wants a revolver with a finish like the one shown, and many more are not willing to spend the hours it takes, to achieve it.

jetinteriorguy · September 3, 2017, 05:00 PM

I had one of those Taurus snubs in the matte stainless, it was the most care free finish and easiest to clean of any stainless gun I've ever owned. I would guess polishing it up like this would pretty much end that characteristic. It does look nice though, not as cheap looking as the matte finish.

September 1, 2017, 12:41 AM	#1
Concerned Citizen Member Join Date: August 29, 2017 Posts: 59	Is this possible? A member at another forum posted his collection of Taurus revolvers. As most of you know, what passes for "Stainless Steel" these days is little more then a crappy matte gray finish that almost looks like someone spray painted it on. According to him, this is a newer model gun that used to have one of those crappy matte "stainless" finishes. If I understood him correctly, he claimed he was able to achieve this by removing the matte gray finish to reveal the real stainless underneath by hand simply using shop rags with Mother's polish and a lot of time and elbow grease. No buffers, machines, etc. I find it hard to believe he got this gun looking that good only using hand rags and Mother's. When I politely called him out on it, asking him for more details, I never got a reply. So my question to you is, it is possible to achieve this kind of finish by hand on a modern, mass produced "Matte Stainless" handgun or rifle? If so, why aren't more people doing it? Last edited by Concerned Citizen; September 1, 2017 at 02:08 AM.

September 1, 2017, 01:57 AM	#2
Bill DeShivs Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2006 Posts: 10,985	Yes, it is entirely possible. __________________ Bill DeShivs, Master Cutler www.billdeshivs.com

September 1, 2017, 02:17 AM	#6
mete Senior Member Join Date: June 14, 2004 Location: NY State Posts: 6,575	Time and energy is all you need ! Remember that was a 1/3 difference in price between the S&W M27 and M28 .Between matt and polished finish ! __________________ And Watson , bring your revolver !

September 1, 2017, 06:27 AM	#8
arquebus357 Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2016 Location: Atlanta, Georgia area Posts: 455	Be advised that non-stainless steel can be polished up and you will not be able to tell the difference until it rusts. When guns from reputable manufacturers are called Stainless Steel, That piece is Not plated as some here seem to think. Polished stainless steel finishes are difficult to maintain. The surface scratches very easily compared to hard chrome for instance. The brushed and matte finishes are much preferred by those not inclined to spend time polishing firearms. Last edited by arquebus357; September 1, 2017 at 06:54 AM.

September 1, 2017, 06:52 AM	#10
mete Senior Member Join Date: June 14, 2004 Location: NY State Posts: 6,575	Please DON'T polish with a Dremel tool . A large polishing wheel or by hand only ! __________________ And Watson , bring your revolver !

September 1, 2017, 01:59 AM	#3
roashooter Junior member Join Date: December 24, 2010 Posts: 508	what Bill said...

September 1, 2017, 02:01 AM	#4
JoeSixpack Senior Member Join Date: April 12, 2017 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,048	Mothers mag is some GOOOD stuff, I've never tried polishing stainless steel, but basicly the different stainless finishes are just skin deep.. they're all bare metal and all it takes is polishing to get it shinny like that.. how easy it is I don't know.. But I can tell you raw aluminum, copper, brass, carbon steel, if it's already in good shape you can get that sucker mirror like very quickly with mothers mag and just hand rubbing with a rag. Like I said never tried to polish stainless but I would not doubt they did it with mothers mag and a rag.

September 1, 2017, 06:11 AM	#7
CDR_Glock Senior Member Join Date: September 30, 2010 Posts: 704	I used polish with my dremel. I wonder if I used my tumbler what would happen. I did it to my Taurus Tracker. I hated the Matte finish. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro

September 1, 2017, 06:50 AM	#9
cecILL Senior Member Join Date: August 13, 2001 Location: central IL Posts: 769	Still confused on what kind of stainless you are asking about. The brushed finish is not something added to the stainless.

September 1, 2017, 07:01 AM	#11
arquebus357 Senior Member Join Date: December 19, 2016 Location: Atlanta, Georgia area Posts: 455	If you feel the need to polish a dull stainless firearm and don't have access to a buffing wheel, start with 2000-2500 grit wet/dry sandpaper. This will get you closer to a mirror finish much quicker than just using polish.

September 1, 2017, 08:20 AM	#12
smee78 Senior Member Join Date: July 14, 2008 Location: South Carolina Posts: 2,918	The mat finish can be achieved with a media blaster, under that is still the metal. It's not changed metal, just finished different. If the you have the time and patience to work in all the nooks and crannies then yes a stainless gun can be made to shine like a mirror. __________________ We know exactly where one cow with Mad-cow-disease is located, among the millions and millions of cows in America, but we haven't got a clue where thousands of illegal immigrants and terrorists are

September 1, 2017, 10:02 AM	#13
Mike Irwin Staff Join Date: April 13, 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 41,390	OK, I'm confused... What's the point of powder coating a matte finish onto a stainless steel gun? __________________ "The gift which I am sending you is called a dog, and is in fact the most precious and valuable possession of mankind" -Theodorus Gaza Baby Jesus cries when the fat redneck doesn't have military-grade firepower.

September 1, 2017, 10:06 AM	#14
Siggy-06 Senior Member Join Date: September 2, 2014 Location: Florida Posts: 1,148	I have actually polished a Taurus revolver(I forget the model number, but it was older, prelock, and looked like the S&W 638). Mothers mag and a rag, plus a good amount of time is all it really takes. If you have deep scratches some wet/dry fine grit sandpaper before the polishing helps. I dont mind the matte or brushed stainless finish unless they get real beat up. __________________ Flicks just like a lighter, just a different kind of fire.

September 1, 2017, 11:26 AM	#16
Mr. Hill Senior Member Join Date: November 21, 2015 Posts: 384	You "called him out on it", and he didn't respond, huh? I wouldn't have responded, either.

September 1, 2017, 11:40 AM	#17
cslinger Senior Member Join Date: July 14, 2002 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 2,045	https://youtu.be/QtBmVR9FiO4 Video showing some polishing. __________________ "Is there anyway I can write my local gun store off on my taxes as dependents?"

September 1, 2017, 11:53 AM	#18
T. O'Heir Senior Member Join Date: February 13, 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 12,453	"...hated the Matte finish..." Why'd you buy it? Just curious. "...removing the matte gray finish to reveal the real stainless..." Neither is correct. SS is not shiney until it's polished. There is no such thing as a "real stainless" finish. The metal is SS and isn't a finish. The unpolished "crappy matte gray finish" is there so sunlight etc. doesn't reflect into your face when shooting outside. It's there for a reason and isn't just decoration or poor QC. However, any metal can be polished by hand or by using a cloth wheel in a drill press or bench grinder. Best to add some actual metal polish or jeweller's rouge. __________________ Spelling and grammar count!

September 1, 2017, 12:38 PM	#19
reddog81 Senior Member Join Date: October 16, 2014 Location: Iowa Posts: 1,634	For the most part the polishing is easy and there are probably dozens of ways to do it. The great thing is if you mess up it is easy to correct. The hard part is getting an even finish on areas that transition from one surface to another like where the barrel threads into the frame. Other than those spots a 10 year old can do it. There's no need to "call someone out". A simple google search will yield 100's of posts and plenty of videos detailing the process.

September 3, 2017, 05:00 PM	#25
jetinteriorguy Senior Member Join Date: April 28, 2013 Posts: 3,176	I had one of those Taurus snubs in the matte stainless, it was the most care free finish and easiest to clean of any stainless gun I've ever owned. I would guess polishing it up like this would pretty much end that characteristic. It does look nice though, not as cheap looking as the matte finish.