There are many ways to polish a knife to a mirror finish. Some of them are aggressive, others are softer and more accurate. Polishing can be done with ordinary sandpaper, natural stones, wet and dry paper. The most careful work is carried out with the help of special pastes of domestic and foreign production.
Hand polishing
Masters from all over the world in the past did not have specialized equipment, but they did their work with high quality. But how to polish a knife without special equipment? After heat treatment, craftsmen used natural abrasive materials (such as stone or metal fixtures).
Polishing by hand helps to achieve a perfectly smooth surface. In this way, you can get the correct shape of the blade. Even using a special polishing and grindingdevice, it is not always possible to achieve a similar effect. It is believed that hand polishing is the final processing of the knife.
How to polish a knife at home correctly using the manual method? Before moving on to manual processing, it is necessary to polish the knife on a tape, the grain size of which should not be less than 320. First of all, scratches are removed with sandpaper. They may appear on the surface of the product after machining.
Features of sanding
How to polish a knife to a shine with sandpaper? The first step is to polish at an angle of 90 degrees. In this case, irregularities may appear on the surface of the knife. This may be due to the accumulation of grit on the abrasive. Sometimes the roughness cannot be removed with slightly abrasive paper. In this case, you need to move on to rougher material again.
In order to carry out the work as efficiently and carefully as possible, it is necessary to provide high-quality lighting, and the whole process must be carried out under a magnifying glass. When all the shortcomings are eliminated, you can go back to standard processing.
In the process of polishing, you can use different types of sandpaper. The main thing is that the transition between graininess should be insignificant. First, they are processed with a material with a grit of 600, then it is increased to 800. You can stop, or you can continue polishing with a material with an indicator of 2000.
Abrasive stones
How to polish a knife blade with a stone? Abrasive materials of this typehave different grain sizes. The most popular indicators are 320, 400 and 600. To properly align the knife, experts recommend using Indian bench stones.
Such a simple device is still used today, although it was first used in the Stone Age, to remove excess material from weapons. At that time, not only stones were used, but also sand and soil.
For polishing, only those stones were used that were harder than a knife in their structure. Some masters prefer a square shape, while others like a round one. The most popular polishing stone is sandstone.
How to use stones correctly?
When polishing, coarse and fine stones are used. Rough material has a grain size of 80, and fine material has a grain size of 15. You can examine the structure of the stone in detail under a microscope. How to polish a knife in this way? A rough stone is used to remove the scratches that most often appear on a knife after a file. Another type of stone is usually applied before heat treatment. So that the surface of the stone does not clog, it must be periodically moistened with water.
To understand how to polish a knife to a mirror finish, you need to pay attention to Arkansas stones. Their grain size can reach 1000. This material is ideal for finishing. If polishing is just beginning, it is better not to use such stones, as they work slowly. You can achieve a mirror shine with Japanese wet stones. In addition, it is possible to sellmeet not only natural, but also high-quality artificial stones.
Quick manual polishing
You can also polish a knife by hand. Movement must be done along the blade. It is this tactic that helps to get the job done as quickly as possible. Often a double-sided grinder is used for this purpose.
To polish the blade of a knife is obtained by rapid friction. This method has many disadvantages. The surface of the knife is imperfect, you can see rough waviness and scratches on it.
Such flaws can be eliminated, but for this all scratches must be in the same direction. After rough processing, it is necessary to prepare a small piece of leather and a special polishing composition, with the help of which the finishing process is carried out.
Using dry and wet paper
Polishing work is carried out with both dry and wet paper. The material should be slightly damp so that it does not deteriorate or become greasy during the polishing process. For certain types of work, only dry paper should be used.
How to polish a knife at home with paper? To do this, it is recommended to purchase a whole set, which usually consists of fifty sheets. This option is considered the most economical. It should be borne in mind that waterproof material is more durable than non-water resistant. Paper treated with crushed silicon carbide is excellent for polishing metal products.
To work with the material wasconvenient, proceed as follows:
- fold the paper in half lengthwise;
- material is clamped to a small steel plate;
- If you fold the paper in half and attach it to the plate, it will not slip during operation.
Pre-experts recommend making small templates and blanks. If the master needs to process the area near the handle, small strips are not folded, but applied across the entire width. To prevent the tape from tearing during the polishing process, the back side of the material is covered with a masking tape.
Mirror processing
Knives of any type look amazing when they have a perfect mirror surface. But how do you polish a knife blade at home so that it has such an excellent surface? Each master uses his own polishing methods. Whichever method is used, the perfect surface of the knife speaks of a high level of craftsmanship.
Often, to achieve the perfect surface, the product is first polished by hand to a grit of 800, and then a special grinding wheel is used. Such processing is necessary in order to remove all irregularities and prepare the knife for the final mirror polishing.
Work with grinding wheels to be careful. Too much speed can damage the product. The grinding wheel in most cases should have a soft surface. For some types of work use solid. It is also dangerous to work with loose polishing wheels. They haveone unpleasant feature - they often capture blades and some other parts of the product.
Safety measures
Many people think about how to polish a knife at home safely. The most important condition is not to install the polishing machine directly on the desktop. The fact is that in the process of work, the polishing wheel often captures the blade, which can bounce and harm the master.
Experienced craftsmen who often polish and grind knives additionally install special protections on the polishing wheels. In this case, the residual material in the form of polishing compound and dust will fly to the floor, and not to the master.
Using GOI paste
This method is well known to craftsmen who make knives. How to polish a knife with GOI paste? To do this, you must select the appropriate type of polishing material, which depends on the type of metal. In addition, there are a few polishing rules to keep in mind.
GOI paste has been used for over a hundred years. With its help, metal, plastic, ceramic and even glass products are polished. Previously, the paste was presented in green and was made from chromium oxide. However, this substance was recognized as poisonous, and at the moment the paste is made from aluminum oxide. Pasta is presented in red and white.
Types of pasta
There used to be only one kind on sale. But now experts have much more choice. Pasta is producedwith different abrasiveness:
- 4 - used specifically for rough work that is carried out at the initial stage of polishing;
- 3 - Helps achieve a matte finish;
- 2 and 1 are used for finishing.
Green paste is sometimes still on sale, but it's hard to find. Previously, such a polish was produced both in liquid form and in the form of bars. In terms of effectiveness, the two types of paste are identical. Green has one advantage - low cost.
Preparation for polishing
Before you understand how to polish a knife, you need to familiarize yourself with the preparation for this process. It must be remembered that the paste has many particles, thanks to which polishing is carried out. Sometimes they can accumulate and spoil the product. To prevent this from happening, you need to take a small amount of the substance and rub it on an old piece of metal. In this way, large pieces of grit can be broken, otherwise the surface of the knife will not be polished, but scratched.
First you need to take a soft cloth and lightly moisten it with gasoline. In this case, the fabric should be as soft as possible. Flannel is perfect for this purpose. Often the paste is applied directly to the buffing pad. It cannot be applied to the product itself. The knife should be lightly lubricated with special oil.
How to use paste?
So how to polish a knife with GOI? When the fabric and paste are ready, you can proceed to the main steps. You just need to rub the product with this composition. Do not press hard on the surface.knife. Otherwise, there will be small scratches on it.
For the same reasons, it is not recommended to make very sudden movements. Work is completed when the surface of the product is perfectly smooth. During work, you need to stop from time to time and apply a little industrial oil to the knife.
If the surface of the knife has many flaws, in this case, you will need to purchase several types of paste. First, the treatment is carried out with paste No. 4, thanks to which deep scratches are removed. After that, go to number 3, and then to paste number 2 and 1. The last type of paste helps to finish sanding and achieve a mirror finish.
At the end of the work, you need to rinse the knife in running water. Experts recommend using not water for this, but kerosene, which can be purchased at a pharmacy. The knife must be thoroughly dried. Some masters additionally cover the surface of the knife with zaponlak. This substance helps prevent oxidation of the material. The last stage is polishing the product with natural leather.
Knife handle processing
If everything is clear with the blade, then how to polish the knife handle? In this case, you need to act with extreme caution. For these purposes, use sandpaper of the finest grit. Be careful not to damage the handle. This is a rather fragile item.
Now about the material. Which is better to choose for this operation? GOI paste will be an excellent polishing agent. But which type to choose for processing the handle of a knife? In this case, you need to usepaste numbered 1 and 2. To make the handle shiny, it needs to be polished with a small piece of leather.
If the handle is made of wood, it is necessary to additionally impregnate. This will help to keep its original appearance for a long time. Usually impregnation is carried out with the help of ordinary or special oil, which is sold in an artist's store. In addition, you can simply cover the handle with a protective varnish.
Conclusion
So we figured out how to properly polish a knife. As you can see, there are many ways to do this. The main thing is to properly prepare for the procedure and follow the recommendations of specialists. This is the only way to achieve the desired result.
