The best pen polish....

[kirchh]

Polish of any type contains particles to remove a light layer of material. Wax does not have those particles.

Some polishing media do not rely on abrasive action as their primary polishing method.

 

--Daniel

[Bobby Check]

Which polish do you prefer?

 

Bobby

 

Polish of any type contains particles to remove a light layer of material. Wax does not have those particles.

Some polishing media do not rely on abrasive action as their primary polishing method.

 

--Daniel

[OcalaFlGuy]

Sure, admittedly, Simichrome comes with its own caveats and warnings, but Richard Binder not only uses it, he

reccomends it AND sells it on his site. I don't think ANY of those would be the case if it had more detrement than benefit.

 

It's a business for him and the issues are different for a business, e.g., does a shiny pen sell quicker or at a higher price?

 

The issues are also different for users and collectors. If someone puts a shiny, polished pen in a case and leaves it there, fine, probably not much harm done. A user will scratch up the pen anew. How many polishings can the pen take?

 

I totally disagree wih respect to Richard and Simichrome.

 

Not only does he use it on the pens HE does, he also sells it and RECCOMENDS it to those of us He Knows Don't Have

near the skill level he does. I doubt he make any sizeable amount of profit on his Simichrome sales. I strongly

suspect that if he had NEAR the concerns that have been brought up here that it was an unsafe product for The Average Pen User to use on his pens, he either wouldn't sell it for general use or would do so Only With some Clearly Stated Dire Caveats of which he apparently doesn't feel necessary to do.

 

How many polishings can the pen take?

 

You are kidding right?

 

I like my pens SHINY (as some here know) but that also DOESN'T MEAN I'm after them with Simichrome every week

to keep them pristine. I use some polishing methods to get my pens the way *I* like them that would make some

cringe but because I pay special attention to threads and imprints when doing that polish, there is no way you

would be able to ascertain that any discernable amount of material has been removed by me doing so. I have no

problem with my pens picking up a use scratch here and there. It is my preferece though, that they pick THOSE scratches

up AFTER having been returned to a like new finish rather than those new scratches going right on top of 60 year old

other scratches.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

 

[Ray-Vigo]

I've found in terms of frequency one sparing treatment with Simichrome is enough for my tastes. The pens do scratch up a bit, but they look fine to me. You get wear no matter what you do. I just use the Simichrome to clean them up a bit when I get them (assuming they need it).

 

Again, it goes nowhere near my hard rubber stuff.

Edited May 12, 2009 by Ray-Vigo

[AlexLeGrande]

While rushing through the mall today I passed a Dead Sea Products kiosk. A lovely young woman noticed I was carrying a greeting card and asked if I were looking for a gift. I was. She held my hand (lub bub, lub dub) and polished my fingernail with a four-sided nail polishing block. Without any other polishing medium she sure got that nail to SHINE! It got me to wondering what one of those nail magic polishers would do to the plastic of a fountain pen. Any thoughts?

[Bo Bo Olson]

Polish of any type contains particles to remove a light layer of material. Wax does not have those particles.

Some polishing media do not rely on abrasive action as their primary polishing method.

 

--Daniel

Well, explain in detail, don't be vauge.

 

I'm off to Turtle wax my pens...in I have some, and none of the others. If it works, fine, if not, I can go down town and buy something else, as soon as I can find out exactly what.

 

I'll stop by my jewler and see what he has for Germany.

Edited May 12, 2009 by Bo Bo Olson

[RevAaron]

While rushing through the mall today I passed a Dead Sea Products kiosk. A lovely young woman noticed I was carrying a greeting card and asked if I were looking for a gift. I was. She held my hand (lub bub, lub dub) and polished my fingernail with a four-sided nail polishing block. Without any other polishing medium she sure got that nail to SHINE! It got me to wondering what one of those nail magic polishers would do to the plastic of a fountain pen. Any thoughts?

 

I've used similar products for the scratches in a fountain pen, in lieu of sheet sandpaper. I don't know if this is something different from what I've used, but the 3, 4 and 6 surfaced nail blocks I've used are all an abrasive sandpaper/mylar-type thing. I've not used one that could be used without the kind of finishing that people do with Simichrome, special cloths, etc. On plastics, they usually *dull* plastics, not shine- but they can help, and the block form factor is very handy.

 

Simichrome and amateur "nibmeisters" are the reasons I don't buy restored pens, if I can help it. Often, the damage done makes the pen worse off than an unrestored pen from an estate sale hack on eBay. I just got a pen in the mail that smelled strongly of Simichrome or a similar polish- as soon as I opened the box. When I took the pen off the bubble wrap it just got stronger. White gunk *everywhere*. And of course, the restorer must fancy himself a "nibmeister," because there's now a big flat spot; smooth as silk until you rotate a few degrees one way or another, or raise or lower the angle of the pen. I thought the pen was unrestored, to my disappointment.

 

I can't help but think that Ron, Daniel and David are thinking of folks like that, and far far worse I'm sure.

 

I *really* never understood the desire to use Simichrome on nibs, especially nibs that haven't been removed completely from the pen. I will admit to having used dilute toothpaste on the occasional naked nib- the light abrasive and soapy actions do a good job of restoring the shine of gold without damaging the imprint. Probably breaking some rules with that one, but it's worked for me and cleans off well; none of the non-polar solvent/solute stuff that you'd find in a polish like Simichrome. I've seen some pens with most of the nib imprint polished off during the "restoration" of the pen- why would anyone do that?

 

I personally do use Simichrome. But you won't find any pens of mine with the insidious white goo stuck in threads and every other nook in cranny. I don't use a toothbrush or dental pick to clean it out- I just don't get it there in the first place. I think the stuff can be used wisely and sparingly, and I think it does have its place. It can be used without leading to that super-gloss overpolished look that many Old Schoolers despise and many newbies seem to enjoy. I prefer to use normal cotton cloths and water as much as I can, though- I can't help but wonder if many fans of Simichrome skip that part before applying the polish.

 

Then again... I'm not an expert. Nor do I claim to be. Sorry about the long post!

 

Aaron

[gyasko]

How many polishings can the pen take?

 

You are kidding right?

 

No, for the simple reason mentioned several times above that abrasives take a thin layer off the surface. The shine comes at a price.

[RevAaron]

How many polishings can the pen take?

 

You are kidding right?

 

No, for the simple reason mentioned several times above that abrasives take a thin layer off the surface. The shine comes at a price.

 

Especially for imprints and faceted pens. I've seen a handful of faceted pens restored by a non-pro on which the facets have become a lot less defined, with the edges having been rounded off a fair bit by polishing.

[TMLee]

I have read thru all the posts in this thread.

 

Here is my contribution.

 

I cannot find Simichrome where I live.

We do have Autosol here though. Some have said that Simichrome and Autosol are similar.

Anyone can vouch for this ?

 

I find Autosol way too abrasive after testing a little teeny bit. I don't recommend it.

 

Here is my experience .

Its TAMIYA Polishing Compound - made for plastic model kits.

For those who do scale modelling, the plastics are soft. These polishing compounds are designed for such finishing details.

 

I tried it on my recently acquired but well used MB149. It had scuffs from usual use and then some ! - some of the scratches are too deep that called for more patient restoration. It was my disappointment with the unexpected condition that made me want to do something about it, short of replacing the body.

The results are very satisfying.

 

They are sold separately.

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u236/TMLee/Tamiya%20Polishing%20Compound/DSCF7743.jpg

 

They are used for occasions when you want to have a glass-like showroom gleam on your model cars.

Since models are scaled replicas, they will have to stand up to viewing at close up conditions. In modelling , the challenge is to replicate real life-sized things. This means that this polish is designed to yield results at really close-up scrutiny.

 

 

The COARSE one is grittier , yet a lot less grittier than AUTOSOL (for comparison purposes)

You can feel the grit between fingertips.

I used this to take out the deeper scuffs.

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u236/TMLee/Tamiya%20Polishing%20Compound/DSCF7744.jpg

Becos the grit is finer than Autosol, it takes quite a good polishing just to see the first effects.

It doesnt work as fast as Autosol (and Simichrome I presume) since Autosol is grittier and pretty abrasive as more than a few have opined here.

 

 

The FINE tube , means what it says and does the work of bringing up the gleam to a NEAR glasslike but NOT glass reflective sheen yet. After finishing with this , picture this .... you can imagine a newish pen , yet to receive noticeable scuffs to the naked eye. Yes there are reflections but the reflections aren't 'mirror like'. The reflections are slightly blurry at their edges.

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u236/TMLee/Tamiya%20Polishing%20Compound/DSCF7745.jpg

 

 

This one takes the cake.

This tube is no longer called a polishing compound but FINISHING Compound.

It is a very watery paste with great consistency, ie not like some liquid pastes that have a suspension of oil or fluid.

When felt between fingertips you can't feel any grit at all.

I would say more wet than toothpaste.

http://i169.photobucket.com/albums/u236/TMLee/Tamiya%20Polishing%20Compound/DSCF7746.jpg

The results from this is amazing !

You get a very glass-like finish.

I work with a 20X loupe and at that magnification , I am pretty impressed.

The pen body looks almost new out of the box.

 

As for the metal parts, I heeded the oft repeated advice here to leave the metal parts untouched.

But I DID try the FINISHING compound on the metal clip. It took out the very fine scuffs. I didn't dare try more as the edges of the clip were already showing worn away plating.

 

So for those hunting for a good polishing kit, and don't have access to Simichrome, I think its safe for me to recommend you try this out.

You shld be able to purchase this from a good hobby store that sells plastic model kits.

Last of all, I am biased towards TAMIYA - they are really top quality plastic kits - world leaders for a long time. So I am assured of their quality of products. :embarrassed_smile:

 

Disclaimer - YMMV !!!! (albeit I am a careful person ... )

[Ray-Vigo]

I'm wary of "watery" compounds because of their tendency to get into tough spots and then get trapped there. I wouldn't want it running into the lever slot on a pen and then getting on the mechanism and sac inside, for example.

 

One of my chief concerns with an untested polish would be whether it would degrade the pen materials due to some kind of chemical reaction. I use Simichrome mainly because it's the conventional wisdom for many folks and also because it hasn't killed off any of my pens yet. That said, the long term safety of Simichrome on these materials is largely untested from what I can tell, since fountain pen restoration using the stuff is a relatively recent thing. I would beware with these other polishes of what is in them, especially when working with a vintage pen that may be fragile. You may want to run a test on some "practice" pens or parts pens before going headlong at your better stuff. My first Simichrome job was a $10 user grade Balance pencil from the late 1930s. Only after I tried it out and gave it awhile did I approach my better pens with the Simichrome. I usually suggest the same for other new compounds. It would be a major pulldown if the stuff caused a gradual or slow crazing of celluloid, for example, but only to be found out after a few days or weeks and treatment on some good pens.

Edited January 5, 2010 by Ray-Vigo