Polishing a stainless gun

[trade_sniper]

I’m getting ready to purchase a brand new handgun that is all stainless. Most of it is a satin finish, some is a kind of rough, media blasted finish/texture for a contrasting effect. I want it all to look like a mirror.

I do have a large air compressor, several die grinders, a corded dremel tool with a flex shaft, an orbital face buffer, a random orbital sander, and would buy a buffer or other tools needed as long as they aren’t really expensive. I’ve got a very weak buffer now, it doesn’t have near enough hp. I believe it is an old 1/3 hp.

I’d like to know exactly what tools, abrasives, buffing wheels, cloths, etc. that I will need to do this job. I’ll buy any extra items needed, within reason, I can’t afford a ton on this project. But I may want to do a few others in the future. Please be very specific.

I need to know what tools, abrasives, etc. and in what order.

I will completely disassemble the pistol. There are some flat areas, but there are a bunch of very tiny areas and many curved sections.

Here’s a picture of what it will look like when I get it:

You will notice the ‘gray’ areas on the bottom edges, this is the media blasted type finish I mentioned above.

Here is what I want it to look like when I’m done:

That gun is nickel plated, but resembles what I want mine to look like when I’m finished.

Here are two pics of a gun done by another guy who polished his own. Its the same gun in both pics, just different grips. The problem is that I think it could have a better quality finish. He had never polished anything before and he did the whole thing by hand, no power tools, no buffer! So I’m seeking advice from the pros.

What about vibratory polishing? Do you have one large enough to do this? The gun is about 9″ long and 7-8 inches tall, less than 2″ wide. Would that provide a mirror-finish if left in long enough?

There is a big shop in a nearby city that has very large vibratory polishers. They will polish things, or lease the equipment.

If this would work, is there some way to mask/block off the inside areas so that they won’t get polished? I’m afraid any material removal at all will negatively effect the tolerances.

I have done some polishing on aluminum and stainless before. Not a lot, but some. Never anything to a mirror-like finish before though.

Please help me to accomplish this task. Thanks for your help.

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