Acrylic Stem Smoothing

[Trifecta13]

So, I just picked up a previously enjoyed stubby Randy Wiley pot. So recently that it hasn't yet arrived. The acrylic stem on this fellow is showing just how much its previous owner enjoyed clenching it. It appears that the tooth marks and chatter are relatively minor, so I'm wondering what steps I could/should take to smooth it out. Pardon my ignorance here, but I only have vulcanite stems up til now, and wasn't sure how to proceed. From what I've stumbled across so far, it sounds like wet sanding it with 2000 grit or so should do the trick, but I don't want to damage it, so I'm turning to my brothers for advice. Any and all is welcomed.

 

[The Libriarian]

Yes you will need super fine sand paper to smooth is out and take your time with this you dont want to have micro scratches all over the place cause your hands flopped all over the place while sanding. After you sand em out you use a buffing wheel 1600 rpm to 2400 rpm to polish it up nice back to near like mirror quality because all that sanding will probably leave the stem with a matte finish. However if you dont have a buffing wheel you can do the polishing by hand with anything thats not to abrasive. Ive seen people use this stuff called paragon wax and all you need is a dab of it and it shines it up very nice for not being used with a buffing wheel. Another method ive seen people use if holding a soft flame near the damaged area and the depressions will rise back to the surface and make it look flat or smoother. I dont suggest using the second method because it sounds like it coulld cause irreparable damage to the pipe (do a little research if you want to use it).

 

[Trifecta13]

Good info. I don't have access to a buffing wheel (yet), but I do happen to have some Paragon wax. To double-check... Should the sanding process be wet, or does it matter much?

 

[The Libriarian]

Im gonna have to let you down now, i dont know much about the effects or benefits of using the wet sanding technique or not. However, i did see some info saying wet sanding does reduce surface friction giving you a more lubricated sanding surface which would minimize surface scratches. I would suggest super fine paper designed specifically for wet sanding 2000 grit maybe a little lower. When i was looking this up i came across alot of autobody forums. Might wanna snoop around them so see whats the pros and cons of wet sanding.

p.s. I have never used paragon wax how would say it measures up to a factory quality polish?

 

[Anonymous]

http://www.sculpt.com/catalog_98/abrasives/micromesh.htm

:face:

 

[BigCasino]

you can get a decent shine with the emery boards that women use to polish their nails, the ones that have multiple grits on a rectangular board, also I have never tried this one but I would be the kits they sell for refinishing headlights would work too, but I think those kits cost around $20.00 I don't know what a pipe repairmen would charge to buff up a pipe

 

[Anonymous]

Buffing wheels in the wrong hands create more problems than they solve.

Word.

Repeat transmission :

http://www.sculpt.com/catalog_98/abrasives/micromesh.htm

:face:

 

[BigCasino]

these thingies, pretty much micro mesh on a board already

http://www.beautyencounter.com/buy/cala-4-step-buffing-block-file/616513703682/142629?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=na&utm_campaign=froogle&utm_content=616513703682&gclid=CMaG3NKsvrYCFQr0nAodSFkAsA

 

[Anonymous]

Right.

The nice part of the sheet form stuff is that, provided you can clamp the stem or have somebody hold it for you, you can use a strip of it held at just the right tension to follow a curve exactly.

:face:

 

[Kyle Weiss]

The buffing wheel operated at Tinder Box once flung a pipe stem across the room, almost into my lap.

:shock:

Damn newbies. :lol:

 

[riff raff]

Acrylic shines up much the way vulcanite does but perhaps you can achieve a more "glass like" finish on the acrylic. 1500 or 2000 sandpaper (I use 3M autobody paper) followed by the last two micromesh grades should work nicely. I do a final buff with an auto plastic polish (Blue Magic) to give it a deeper shine. The only downside to acrylic is you can't use heat to lift dents like vulcanite. But, just light chatter should clean up nicely.

 

[Trifecta13]

p.s. I have never used paragon wax how would say it measures up to a factory quality polish?

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. Judging only from what I've seen, as I have never personally had a pipe professionally buffed... I think the paragon is passable, but certainly no equal. I would wager it likely doesn't hold a candle to a proper buffing job, but may be better than nothing (as is my hope).