How To Mirror Polish A Knife: All You Need To Know

David Huner

Knife polishing is some art and craft skill that most people do have. Even though knife polishing is an ordinary skill, it can be pretty difficult and daunting to perform it.

Many, however, choose not to do it because it is time-consuming. Instead, they buy knives with blades that are already mirror polished or hire someone else to do the polishing for them.

I know how disgusting slicing ingredients with a rusty and dull knife can be. You can avoid this through proper storage and maintenance.

Regardless, knife polishing is an essential practice that you should know. In this article, we have given a simple guide on how to do it perfectly.

How to Mirror Polish A Knife?

Here is a detailed guide on how to mirror polish a knife.

Firstly, you need flat stones and chrome polish on a leather hone to acquire excellent grit dry or wet paper.
For efficiency, you should go for the DC+CC stones.
To flatten the bumps and micro hollows, use the diamond side.
The brown DC stone does provide a more refined finish than the famous white CC stones. It would be best if you were patient while working on the knife.
It’ll take time to get the mirror to finish. After getting it dry and wipe the knife using a polishing cloth or paper towel.

You can use this procedure in all your knives to get the mirror polish. You should always maintain the blade well to achieve the mirror polish quickly some other day.

However, using the 1200P grit size is better before honing it using the chrome polish.

How To Polish A Knife

It doesn’t matter what type of knife you want to polish. It can be your hunting knife, kitchen knife, vintage knife, or a pocket knife.

In this section, we have the essential tips on how to clean and polish your knife. This method will ensure your knife looks very shiny and polished.

Clean

Cleaning is an essential and first step in knife polishing. There are various ways you can clean your knife.

You can wash and then dry it using a polishing cloth or dish towel. Damp clothes can also work, but it’s great if the knife is dry before you start using it again.

If your knife blade has any marks scrub it using toothpaste, an abrasive scrubbing pad, or mild soap and warm water.

Other people prefer using baking soda with a cotton swab. It also does the work perfectly. After using any of the above scrubbing ideas, remember to rinse the knife before using it thoroughly.

Knife cleaning is a good thing that keeps your health in line. Cutting your vegetable or meat with a rusty knife can bring many complications to you.

These are things you can certainly avoid. Cleaning your knife also gives your kitchen a clean look.

If you have been using the special kitchen knife for quite an extended period, you can rinse it in lemon juice and warm water.

Use the cotton swab and coat the knife with penetrating oil. This will undoubtedly stop corrosion.

Remove the Rust

Taking off the rust is another good step and an easy thing to do. There are also several ways you can take rust off your knife. You can use homemade or factory rust remover.

How to use the factory rust remover

The factory rust remover is straightforward to use. Here are the steps on how to use it.

The first thing you have to do is prepare the rust remover.
Apply the right amount of layer on the knife blades.
Put a clean rag or cloth on the knife. The solution will penetrate the rust by itself.
Apply any oil on the knife blades. You can use Vaseline, kerosene, and many more. On oils, you have a variety of options, do not only use the ones that have been mentioned.
Remove the blade using a rag.
To completely remove the rust, you can use new steel wool or abrasive cloth.
In case the dirt or oil is too much, remove it using a clean polishing cloth.

How to Use the Rust Remover

If you do not love shopping or have all the necessary ingredients to make the rust remover, then the homemade rust remover is the best way. The homemade knife remover is convenient and very easy to use.

A thick paste is the best for rust removal. To make this, you need to mix a good amount of water and baking soda.
Apply the solution first in case you want to cover all the places that have rust ideally.
You can begin the scrubbing of the knife blade using your old brush. It would be best if you were gentle when performing the strokes in a circular motion.
After wiping out the rust, clean the knife using soapy water.
Rinse and dry using clean water.
There is a mineral oil that is made explicitly for knife polishing. You can apply the oil to the knife to prevent another rusting.

Polishing A Knife Blade Using Dremel

You will need to have various things to actualize this process. Here are the essential tools that you’ll need.

Dremel
Vise
Goggles
Aluminum Oxide grinding stone
Mandrel: Part Number 401
Polishing Compound: Part Number 421
1/2 Inch Polishing Wheel: Part Number 414

The following are the various steps that you should follow to polish your knife using Dremel successfully.

Polishing A Knife Blade Using Hand

People hand polish knives for different reasons. To some, it’s a hobby, while others love clean utensils.

However, the main reason behind polishing is to remove the imperfections caused by sharpening. Another reason is to clean off any rust and scratches that may have formed on the blade over the years. Plus, polishing creates that edged look.

Before you begin polishing, you need to know how the individual steel grains run. This will guide you on the pattern you need to follow and the pressure to apply using your fingers.

The polishing works take about ten minutes to complete. But if it has too many scratches or rust, it will take more time to work on it.

Use paper towels, soap, and water to wet the knife blades. Then scrub the edges using the steel wool pad. The shininess of the edges will depend on the amount of time you put in the scrubbing.

Keep polishing until you reach the look you want. Or you can do the polishing in steps. Do a light polish and add more layers to it later.

Fix The Knife To The Vise

Tighten the vise to ensure the knife is securely and adequately held for sharpening. Tightening the vice also secures the working bench, and this prevents injuries while sharpening.

Fix the Dremel to the Grinding

It would be best if you were keen on the Dremel. Fasten it tightly since the Dremel does rotate. It can fly off if the attachment is loose.

Use the right angles to sharpen the knife blades. There are two angles that most people do use. That’s the 12.5 and 24-degree angle. However, for the 24 degrees, you only use it on one side of the blade.

In case you want to sharpen both sides of the blade, use 12.5 degrees. Sharpening should start from the base of the knife as you move towards the handle.

Be in a comfortable position to work effectively. It would be best if you moved the Dremel along your knife’s edge as you hold the knife at your preferred angle.

It would be best if you gave the blade time to cool down before grinding it again. If you want efficient results, there are some tools that you’ll need. It includes things such as a polishing compound and a felt pad.

Polishing The Scratches On A Knife’s Blade

The scratches on a knife blade can be pretty annoying. Most people are constantly working on removing them.

The great thing is that removing the scratches is quite an easy thing to do. Before polishing the blemishes of the knife blade, you should ensure the knife is dry.

You can dry it using a piece of cloth, paper towel, or polishing cloth. If the knife is dry, you will see the scratches perfectly, plus working on it will be much easier. After drying the knife remove any rusts from the knife using a sharpening steel.

Rust removing is relatively straightforward. Do it gently and work on the scratches in a circular motion. After removing the rust, you are ready to do the polishing. You can use materials like baking soda or sandpaper.