DIY polishing SS Ruger Redhawk

I use a felt wheels on a high speed bench grinder. Using different rouge compounds. I Starting brown rouge then green.

I seem to remember @bannockburn mentioned he used Mother's Mag Wheel Polish to put a shine on his stainless guns.

Sand paper. Start at 300 or 400 grit, work to 600, 800, 1200 2000, and 3000. Then use a buffing wheel and buffing bobs with a fine finishing compound.

That will result in a mirror finish like this. This was a raw Ruger casting when i started. The straps had been ground to shape. Its a lot of work but worth it.

Oh and mothers works really well on aluminum, not as well on steel. But it will shine up an already polished surface. Use it after the 3000 grit paper.

Palladan44 said:

Purchased a new Ruger Redhawk 4.2" and the Stainless "Matte" finish from the factory is absolutely hideous. I know it is simply a functional workin gun, but ive seen much better stainless steel finishes on Taurus's.

What is an acceptable DIY method for cleaning this up a bit...or better, get it more mirror-like?
Obviously, if I have any possibility of making it worse or damaging the gun, I'll pass.

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Why in the World would you want to mess with the finish on a NEW $1K gun??

Call Ruger send it back to be redone

I just use Flitz & microfiber cloths & kept going over & over it every time I cleaned it until it got the shine where I wanted it.

Nasty Canasta said:

I just use Flitz & microfiber cloths & kept going over & over it every time I cleaned it until it got the shine where I wanted it.
View attachment 1070227

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That is a thing of beauty. Did you do anything to the words to keep from rubbing them off? How did you keep them so clean?

Speedo66

I seem to remember @bannockburn mentioned he used Mother's Mag Wheel Polish to put a shine on his stainless guns.

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And you would be right sir! I found Mother's Mag Polish to be a bit more effective than Flitz when it came to getting a mirror-like finish on a stainless steel gun. It takes quite a few applications to get that high degree of polish but it's worth it!

Palladan44 said:

It's stainless steel. Not like it's blue or Nickel plating.
I don't think Ruger will do anything since this is their standard finish. It would wind up just costing more money; and even then I don't think Ruger would do it anyways. Polishing up stainless guns is a fairly common DIY practice, this is just my first time.

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You claimed:

"the Stainless "Matte" finish from the factory is absolutely hideous"

I find that hard to believe "hideous"??

So why did you buy one then??

If you wanted a shiny gun then buy one of those,

Post some pictures

Palladan44 said:

Purchased a new Ruger Redhawk 4.2" and the Stainless "Matte" finish from the factory is absolutely hideous. I know it is simply a functional workin gun, but ive seen much better stainless steel finishes on Taurus's.

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A lot of patience, elbow grease, and sandpaper.

1200 to 2000 grit dry would get you a satin / brushed chrome look if you don't load the sandpaper. More pressure and / or water gets things shiny.

High - number grit compounds in gel or paste form once you want to go beyond the "fine silverware in the cabinet" stage (be careful, some of them are health hazards).

Rule3 said:

Why in the World would you want to mess with the finish on a NEW $1K gun??

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Unfortunately, it's probably really a $600 gun, but it checks some boxes as far as some other requirements are concerned...

Rule3 said:

You claimed:

"the Stainless "Matte" finish from the factory is absolutely hideous"

I find that hard to believe "hideous"??

So why did you buy one then??

If you wanted a shiny gun then buy one of those,

Post some pictures

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https://www.thehighroad.org/index.php?threads/new-ruger-super-redhawk.904036/

I'm having to go through a misadventure of sorts myself.

Didn't want to have to do all the work myself, mind you - given the money that I shelled out.

BigBlue 94 said:

Then use a buffing wheel and buffing bobs...

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And Bob's your uncle!

I need me some of these...

...bobs.

Don't ever shoot it. You will get carbon rings on the cylinder!

Use 3M finishing pads or wet dry paper first, then polish .Save a lot of work.
Bling!

I think some metal polish is part of the regular cleaning routine as far as these stainless steel revolvers go...

...I don't think you'll ever wear it down like you would a bar of soap

Maybe keep it off the barrel and cylinder face junction, or use only very lightly in these areas (?).

You use toothpaste, right?

Here you go. There are a zillion videos as well. This is some basics
As to carbon rings, if it is gun you shoot don't waste the time (unless of course you have to) They will be there every time,
It is easier to make a gun shine then to try and fix a brushed finish, the brushed finish is to prevent glare,

https://kevinsworkbench.com/polish/index.html

I'd recommend against using power tools, like polishing wheels and the Dremel, unless you really know what you are doing. I'm fairly experienced with polishing wheels and still wouldn't trust myself to polish a revolver with them. It's just too easy to create runs and pulls, round off square edges, etc., and the results can end up looking pretty bad.

I add my voice to those suggesting Mother's and a rag, which is how I do it.

I've also been tempted by Patriot Polishing, who seem to be widely regarded, and apparently can put a blinding finish on just about any stainless gun - for a price, of course.

I did my grip frame on a bench grinder style buffing machine with a medium dense wheel (dont remember exactly) and finished with a soft airway wheel. But a grip frame is certainly easier than say a full underlug vent rib barrel and fluted cylinder.

All sandpaper i used at 400 grit or finer was wet or dry. And i used it wet. The 3000 grit had a thin foam backing.

When using paper, move around with every stroke. Repeated strokes in the same spot can leave finger impressions.

You can take scotchbrite pads and make a finishing wheel. Take several pads, cut them square. Put a hole in the center for a bolt. Bolt washers and nut to make an arbor. Turn the pads so the corners are all sticking out before tightening the nut down. You can run this in a drill clamped down or drill press. Makes for an easy way to do brushed stainless. Green pads match the Ruger factory brushed stainless best.

Bazoo said:

You can take scotchbrite pads and make a finishing wheel. Take several pads, cut them square. Put a hole in the center for a bolt. Bolt washers and nut to make an arbor. Turn the pads so the corners are all sticking out before tightening the nut down. You can run this in a drill clamped down or drill press. Makes for an easy way to do brushed stainless. Green pads match the Ruger factory brushed stainless best.

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A note should be added for any brushing- only go ONE direction. Not back and forth, it'll just look scratched.

When I was making knives, I found Simichrome to be the best polish for very nearly anything....I'd start with that and see what a few applications do. If you still have grain showing, you may need to go back and use more aggressive abrasives; I'd try Micro Mesh-it's grit escalation system is really useful.

Larry