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Thread: Polishing properly?

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    Senior Member penmainiac's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Chrissy View Post
    If you've polished Parker 51 pens using some sort of plastic polish, then you could also carefully use that on the Mb resin. However, first you could try starting with something simple like a Sunshine cloth. I believe Ron Zorn once said that was all he used.
    I use a Sunshine cloth first to see how well the plastic comes up, then consider using Novus or other plastic polishes only if there are deeper scratches.

    Sending the pen to Mb would mean it would come back looking like a new pen for a very reasonable price, and it would get a full service and replacement parts included in that fee. You could always say you didn't want the feed changed if you want to keep it as original as possible.

    Edit: I just spotted that the Sunshine cloth has already been discussed on your other thread about the section collar...
    Can I find them at jewellery supply stores?


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    Senior Member FredRydr's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    ...Can I find them at jewellery supply stores?
    Jewelry stores have them.

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    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Chuck Naill View Post
    I've used Mother's Mag and Aluminum polish on all of my Esterbrook restorations. I just had it for another hobby and decided to try it. It has produced a nice luster on all of the plastics including black.
    Um.... I’ve used Mother’s on a number of non-pen projects, but I’d be very leery of vintage or any kind of particular plastic, as that polish has a lot more additives and chemicals in it. Things that can react with plastic, celluloid, and other materials over time. You may introduce elements that don’t necessarily show problems immediately but start to work on the body of the pen and create issues down the road. That is a metal polish and I’d restrict it to that use.
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Chuck Naill View Post
    I've used Mother's Mag and Aluminum polish on all of my Esterbrook restorations. I just had it for another hobby and decided to try it. It has produced a nice luster on all of the plastics including black.
    Um.... I’ve used Mother’s on a number of non-pen projects, but I’d be very leery of vintage or any kind of particular plastic, as that polish has a lot more additives and chemicals in it. Things that can react with plastic, celluloid, and other materials over time. You may introduce elements that don’t necessarily show problems immediately but start to work on the body of the pen and create issues down the road. That is a metal polish and I’d restrict it to that use.
    Should I stick with novus then?


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    Senior Member penmainiac's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Does anyone have an amazon link for the Sunshine polishing cloth? Preferably under $10 if possible


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    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Does anyone have an amazon link for the Sunshine polishing cloth? Preferably under $10 if possible
    Come on, do some of the work, ok? You can google just as well as we can.
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Does anyone have an amazon link for the Sunshine polishing cloth? Preferably under $10 if possible
    Come on, do some of the work, ok? You can google just as well as we can.
    Sorry, I was checking, but it is pretty difficult to find specific sunshine branded ones.


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    Senior Member FredRydr's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Does anyone have an amazon link for the Sunshine polishing cloth? Preferably under $10 if possible
    Come on, do some of the work, ok? You can google just as well as we can.
    + 1

    Anyway, scroll down: http://www.mainstreetpens.com/stuff.htm

  11. #29
    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Sorry, I was checking, but it is pretty difficult to find specific sunshine branded ones.
    Go here. Scroll about halfway down the page. $5.00
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Before I visited Naples FL in December I bought a pack of 3 Sunshine cloths without much effort and had them delivered to the hotel in time for our arrival.
    You can buy them cheaply from Ron Zorn, Amazon, ebay.

    If I was you I would spend some time reading Richard Binder's information pages on his web site. You will find a wealth of important information there.
    Regards, Chrissy | My Review Blog: inkyfountainpens

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Chrissy's advice is good. On some of the wrecks I get from sales and junk shops, I use micromesh, I have to. But on others I just get out a little microfibre cloth and give them a good rub. Sometimes it works like Aladdin and the lamp, and sometimes I sigh and put the pen in the queue for a really good smoothing and polish. See if the Sunshine cloth helps before you take a decision on where to go next.

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    Default Polishing properly?

    Update: I bought some 3 step pen polish from a pretty reputable brand, the pen is beautifully shinning now, except for the deeper scuffs, but besides from that, the pen aesthetically looks and feels like the “Power Pen” it’s supposed to be. I haven’t appeared to screw up hopefully, and I do not regret buying this vintage, and will post some writing samples soon. I have also bought a sunshine cloth which will be arriving next week, and I hope this can do something for those scuffs.
    Last edited by penmainiac; February 12th, 2020 at 06:58 PM.

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    Senior Member KBeezie's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Update: I bought some 3 step pen polish from a pretty reputable brand, the pen is beautifully shinning now, except for the deeper scuffs, but besides from that, the pen aesthetically looks and feels like the “Power Pen” it’s supposed to be. I haven’t appeared to screw up hopefully, and I do not regret buying this vintage, and will post some writing samples soon. I have also bought a sunshine cloth which will be arriving next week, and I hope this can do something for those scuffs.
    If the 3-step didn't do anything for that, the sunshine cloth will not (it's much gentler than a polish set).

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by KBeezie View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Update: I bought some 3 step pen polish from a pretty reputable brand, the pen is beautifully shinning now, except for the deeper scuffs, but besides from that, the pen aesthetically looks and feels like the “Power Pen” it’s supposed to be. I haven’t appeared to screw up hopefully, and I do not regret buying this vintage, and will post some writing samples soon. I have also bought a sunshine cloth which will be arriving next week, and I hope this can do something for those scuffs.
    If the 3-step didn't do anything for that, the sunshine cloth will not (it's much gentler than a polish set).
    Ah okay, I was unaware of that.


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    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Ah okay, I was unaware of that.
    Please be careful with your vintage pen and do your research before trying stuff. This time you were lucky, but working on pens without knowing all there is to know can have bad results.
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Ah okay, I was unaware of that.
    Please be careful with your vintage pen and do your research before trying stuff. This time you were lucky, but working on pens without knowing all there is to know can have bad results.
    I did a butt load of research, but thank you for the warning and concern, I definitely will be very careful with my pen, I only bought the polish as you yourself recommended such, and so did other more experienced collectors such as Mr.Larry on Larry’s Fountain pens. I am aware that I should probably send it to MB for official care, but I do want to keep the parts of the pen original as possible.


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    Senior Member KBeezie's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Ah okay, I was unaware of that.
    Please be careful with your vintage pen and do your research before trying stuff. This time you were lucky, but working on pens without knowing all there is to know can have bad results.
    I did a butt load of research, but thank you for the warning and concern, I definitely will be very careful with my pen, I only bought the polish as you yourself recommended such, and so did other more experienced collectors such as Mr.Larry on Larry’s Fountain pens. I am aware that I should probably send it to MB for official care, but I do want to keep the parts of the pen original as possible.

    Might be best to send to a private restoration expert for tailored care (as they will usually keep all parts original, aside from consumables like the seals, etc).

    I'll leave others to give recommendations as I'm out of the loop in who recently would be a good candidate to work with, especially if their geography/closeness is important.

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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by KBeezie View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    Ah okay, I was unaware of that.
    Please be careful with your vintage pen and do your research before trying stuff. This time you were lucky, but working on pens without knowing all there is to know can have bad results.
    I did a butt load of research, but thank you for the warning and concern, I definitely will be very careful with my pen, I only bought the polish as you yourself recommended such, and so did other more experienced collectors such as Mr.Larry on Larry’s Fountain pens. I am aware that I should probably send it to MB for official care, but I do want to keep the parts of the pen original as possible.

    Might be best to send to a private restoration expert for tailored care (as they will usually keep all parts original, aside from consumables like the seals, etc).

    I'll leave others to give recommendations as I'm out of the loop in who recently would be a good candidate to work with, especially if their geography/closeness is important.
    I take it back, step “0” of the polish actually has removed the scuffs.


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    Senior Member FredRydr's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    ...I take it back, step “0” of the polish actually has removed the scuffs.
    You could have a qualified specialist do it for you:


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  28. #40
    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
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    Default Re: Polishing properly?

    Quote Originally Posted by penmainiac View Post
    I did a butt load of research, but thank you for the warning and concern, I definitely will be very careful with my pen, I only bought the polish as you yourself recommended such, and so did other more experienced collectors such as Mr.Larry on Larry’s Fountain pens. I am aware that I should probably send it to MB for official care, but I do want to keep the parts of the pen original as possible.
    Fair enough! Look, I'm not meaning to jump on you. My research comment related to your comment to the effect that "well, polish didn't remove the scuffs so we'll see about the cloth"... By now you should have figured out that the cloth is easily *less* abrasive than any polish, so hardly likely to affect the scuffs. Perhaps just wishful thinking, but my point was to really understand what each of these things actually *do* before you use them on a pen. And not because I want to hammer you, but to prevent anything bad from happening, that's all.

    I've heard enough stories about MB changing out parts that I concur with your method!
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

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