Polishing paper

[qquake]

Anybody tried this? Any good?

Ultra Fine Polishing Paper: 6 Pack

Get a glass smooth, high gloss shine and eliminate scratches with these Ultra-Fine Polishing Papers. They are a great alternative to micro-mesh pads and work especially well when you sand into tight V cuts and coves. Works great on acrylics and other plastics, metals, alternative materials and even

www.pennstateind.com

 

[TonyL]

I am not, but Amazon has similar products for much less money, The PSI line states that their product is washable - which is a big plus. IMO.

Amazon.com : Ultra Fine Polishing Paper

Remember, I said similar.

 

[duncsuss]

I've been meaning to buy some of this from Amazon for a while - it looks identical to the PSI offering, apart from the pieces are a different shape, and it's literally half the price per square inch. ($0.15 per sq inch versus $0.307 per sq inch).

Zona 37-948 3M Wet/Dry Polishing Paper, 8-1/2-Inch X 11-Inch, Assortment Pack One Each 1, 2, 3, 9, 15, and 30 Micron: Toy Vehicles: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Zona 37-948 3M Wet/Dry Polishing Paper, 8-1/2-Inch X 11-Inch, Assortment Pack One Each 1, 2, 3, 9, 15, and 30 Micron: Toy Vehicles: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

I believe 3M make one grade that is even finer grit, but I've only seen it in the adhesive-backed version.

 

[jttheclockman]

I do not see this being any different than MM. Just another gimmick.

 

[FGarbrecht]

Yeah, agree with John, this is just repackaged 3M lapping film. It's works well for lapping and sharpening (this is what I use for sharpening my chisels and plane blades) but can be found cheaper. The grit is embedded in a fairly flexible but firm plastic backing and is probably fine for final sanding and polishing.

 

[duncsuss]

Just for the hell of it In the interests of scientific inquiry, I ordered some from an eBay vendor who sells it even cheaper than Amazon. If you'd like to try it yourself ...

3M Polishing Paper Tri-M-Ite Imperial Wet or Dry 400-8000 6 Sheet Assortment Set | eBay

🟢 These WetorDry™ sheets are made of micron graded Aluminum Oxide minerals abrasives with soft cloth-like non-woven backing. Sheets provide consistent finish for High Quality Polishing of contours, interior cavities and shapes.

www.ebay.com

 

[jttheclockman]

Just for the hell of it In the interests of scientific inquiry, I ordered some from an eBay vendor who sells it even cheaper than Amazon. If you'd like to try it yourself ...

3M Polishing Paper Tri-M-Ite Imperial Wet or Dry 400-8000 6 Sheet Assortment Set | eBay

🟢 These WetorDry™ sheets are made of micron graded Aluminum Oxide minerals abrasives with soft cloth-like non-woven backing. Sheets provide consistent finish for High Quality Polishing of contours, interior cavities and shapes.

www.ebay.com

sells it even cheaper in half sheets if just experimenting

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3M-Tri-M-I...373650?hash=item2cd33a4a12:g:UVYAAOSwOFZeD9uE

 

[TonyL]

Just for the hell of it In the interests of scientific inquiry, I ordered some from an eBay vendor who sells it even cheaper than Amazon. If you'd like to try it yourself ...

3M Polishing Paper Tri-M-Ite Imperial Wet or Dry 400-8000 6 Sheet Assortment Set | eBay

🟢 These WetorDry™ sheets are made of micron graded Aluminum Oxide minerals abrasives with soft cloth-like non-woven backing. Sheets provide consistent finish for High Quality Polishing of contours, interior cavities and shapes.

www.ebay.com

Hi Duncan. What do you think of it?

 

[duncsuss]

sells it even cheaper in half sheets if just experimenting

Hi Duncan. What do you think of it?

Thanks, John - I saw the half-sheets and decided to go for the lower-per-square-inch price of the full sheets; I would be very surprised if a 3M product disappointed me, and I know that I can use the 1 micron grade for smoothing fountain pen nibs if nothing else.

Tony - I had barely finished the PayPal transfer when I typed that! When the goods arrive and I've used them a little I'll post a follow up.

 

[TonyL]

Thanks, John - I saw the half-sheets and decided to go for the lower-per-square-inch price of the full sheets; I would be very surprised if a 3M product disappointed me, and I know that I can use the 1 micron grade for smoothing fountain pen nibs if nothing else.

Tony - I had barely finished the PayPal transfer when I typed that! When the goods arrive and I've used them a little I'll post a follow up.

Thank you.

 

[qquake]

I ordered a pack of the half sheets to try it. I'll report back once I receive it.

 

[Edward Cypher]

I use the zona polishing paper and it works just fine. it is similar to micro mesh but has been used in the jewelry business for a long time. Goes to a little finer than the top grit of micro mesh.

 

[duncsuss]

My pack of 6 grades arrived yesterday; it has a label stating the grits are 400 / 600 / 1,200 / 4,000 / 6,000 / 8,000 but doesn't say which measuring system they use. (Micromesh finest grit claims to be 12,000 - but could be on a totally different scale.)

I might get to take some for a test drive this weekend.

 

[qquake]

Mine should be here today or tomorrow. I'll definitely try it this weekend.

 

[qquake]

I got mine today, but the colors don't seem to match up. I can't tell which is which, at least not the finer grades.

 

[qquake]

I did a quick test with the Tri-M-Ite. I sanded the body with 150 grit dry, then used all six grades of the polishing paper wet. It actually worked better than I expected. I realize I didn't get some of the bad scratches out, I was in a hurry. I just wanted to see if it has promise. I'll try again with Micro-Mesh later to compare.

 

[TonyL]

Much better. Watch the ends (near the bushings). I find that I have to pay particular attention to the ends because of their curve away from the sand paper. Many times the body of the pen appears scratch-free, but when focus my loupe on the ends, I can kick myself for not doing a better sanding job.

 

[qquake]

Looks like I need new Micro Mesh. This is after all 9 grades.

 

[qquake]

So I decided to try all 6 grades of the polishing paper. Worked pretty good. I just realized there are only five photos. I obviously missed one.

 

[TonyL]

Look pretty darn good to me. Nice job!

 

[qquake]

I was more careful with the ends this time. This is after ScratchX.

 

[qquake]

I tried again with some new Micro Mesh. The polishing paper obviously did a better job at removing the heavy scratches.

 

[qquake]

And just out of curiosity, I tried the ScratchX. It made it a little better, but didn't take out the heavy scratches. I didn't think it would, but it was worth a shot.

 

[GraiDawg]

THIS IS super interesting, i'm trying to find the most practical system.

 

[qquake]

Me too. I had replaced Micro Mesh with Dr. Kirk's a while back, which gave me similar results. But a lot of times I would get micro scratches, and the OCD side of me is trying to eliminate them. My process was wet sand through 500; Dr. Kirk's; and PlastX. Then I added swirl remover, and then ScratchX. That's a lot of steps, but that may be what it takes.

 

[qquake]

How would you guys clean this? Warm water and a brush?

 

[TonyL]

If washable, I would use warm water an a drop of dishwater with a soft toothbrush (that is what i do with MM)

 

[duncsuss]

How would you guys clean this? Warm water and a brush?

I'm planning to cut the sheet into strips about 1" x 2.75" (about 32 pieces from an 8.5 x 11 sheet) and throw them away after using.

My friend and teacher says "don't use sandpaper like somebody else is buying it -- use it like toilet paper, just once then get rid of it."

 

[qquake]

I don't know what happened. This is a blank from Classic Nib. Everything was looking good, until I got to the pink. These aren't scratches, it's something on the surface. I used water, but maybe not enough? Anybody ever seen this before?

 

[duncsuss]

My best guess is it overheated and the fine powder that the paper was taking off the blank melted and fused back onto it. Slower and wetter would be my recommendation.

I got a similar thing once when I was buffing a Cebloplast pen barrel, fortunately there was enough wall thickness that I could get rid of the streaks by going all the way back to 120 grit and doing the whole process over.

 

[TonyL]

I have done the same. When i experience this, i kick it back a few grits (the bck to the finer grits), slow the rpms to 600 to 800 (my usual settings) and make sure i am letting the sp do the work. excellent progress.

 

[qquake]

I ran through all six grades again, this time making sure it was plenty wet. What a difference! I really do think this is better than Micro Mesh.

 

[qquake]

I polished it with Meguiar's 105, Swirl Remover, ScratchX, PlastX, and 205. I don't think I can see a difference. I think I agree with TonyL, 105 and 205 would have been enough.

 

[qquake]

I tried the paper on a different blank. Very happy with the results.

 

[duncsuss]

Hi Duncan. What do you think of it?

I used this for the first time today on a piece of vintage celluloid; I like it a lot.

First I sanded with 320 grit using my regular method -- Vince's WoodNwonders blue sanding disks on a hard backing mandrel, with lots of water from a misting squirt bottle. I find it the easiest way to get rid of any bumps in the barrel.

Then I used each of the 6 "papers" - I cut a strip off each and quartered it, so I had a piece about 7/8" x 2" to work with. In between each one I stopped the lathe and sanded up and down the length of the barrel, being very careful to get rid of any circular scratches before moving on to the next grade. I didn't use a backing block with these, just finger pressure and again plenty of water.

Normally I'd go through Micromesh then use Plast-X (or buff), I'm not sure I have to do either to this pen.

 

[TonyL]

Very well done. Thanks for sharing the process.

 

[qquake]

I'm getting really good results with the Tri-M-Ite followed by Meguiar's 105 and 205.

 

[TonyL]

I'm getting really good results with the Tri-M-Ite followed by Meguiar's 105 and 205.

So far, this has been among the best that I have seen - especially with a dark/unforgiving blank.

I did see fine radial scratches on one of your earlier posts. If you are not using a loupe, you may gain much from getting one (10x is plenty).

 

[qquake]

I do have a loupe, but don't use it much. Most of the time when fine scratches show up in the photos, I can't see them with my naked eyes, so it's all good.