Rob Brown Knives :: Tutorial :: Mirror Finishing

Rob Brown Custom Knives


	Tapering Tangs Rob discusses his technique.

	Fitting Guards Rob reveals the secret to a clean fit.

	Fitting Bolsters Rob discusses the method used for his curved bolster design.

	Mirror Finishing Rob has become known for his mirror polish - here's how it is done.

Mirror Finishing by Rob Brown

Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Image 11
Mount your contact wheel onto whatever shaft driven apparatus you have and using "Cellotape" 48mm wide double sided tape (narrower tapes are available) line up with the wheel edges and stick a layer around the wheel, trim so the two ends almost touch.

Image 12
Switch on the machine and run the handle of your pair of scissors across the protective paper to ensure it is firmly stuck to the wheel and no air is trapped underneath. Remove the protective paper, roll up and store in a safe dust free place.

Image 13
Measure the width of your contact wheel with your vernier and using this dimension transfer it along both top and bottom edges of your first sheet of 400 grit paper, use your steel rule and a sharp blade to cut it into strips to match the width of the wheel.

The D.S. tape is very sticky and if you stick the paper to it you would have to replace the tape with each paper change, so, lightly dust the back of each strip of paper with talcum powder (I use "Tinkerbell" borrowed from my teenage daughter a few years back - which has me smelling like a fairy during the

entire performance), rub the powder in with your fingertips and wipe off the excess with a clean cloth.

Prepared this way your paper will peel off easily after use, you should powder the next 3 paper changes as you did the first and thereafter you should be able to change the paper ±20 times without replacing the D.S. tape.

Image 14
We now stick our strips of paper on to the wheel, carefully lined up with the edges and butt joined up against each other. Press the joints down firmly with your thumbs and press down the paper with the heel of your hands.

Image 15
Run the wheel and touch the edges of the paper with a piece of hardened steel/tungsten to ensure they are nicely smoothed down, a blast of air will clean it all up for you to start sanding.

Page: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

	Copyright © 2001 - Rob Brown This article may not be copied or distributed in any format without written permission. Protected under international copyright laws.