"polishing your keg" is more than a clever euphemism

Yakima 728
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okay so i am in the middle of giving this a shot and have just run the fine pad on the keg and my keg is definitely shiny but has black stuff all through it. It is almost where the pad comes in contact with the keg it leaves it. It is not too hot and i just tried to clean it off with a fresh pad with no luck.

I tried paint thinner on it to try to clean it off that way but that didnt work either.

Is this normal? Will it be removed in the next step (cleaning polish)?

Thanks
 
i just did that and the pad flew off the angle ginder and hit the wall LOL.

it literally ripped that pad right from the center to the edge. :(

it also did not seem to be cleaning it up any...

someone mentioned to look at what side of that pad you are using. i am using the harder side. the side i am not using seems relatively soft. I AM using the right side right?
 
I just need to give a quick Prost to Bobby M and this thread. I polished a few of my ball-lock kegs and they look amazing.

I figure that if I am going to have some stay out in my brewing supply corner of the house and use these kegs as conditioning kegs they might as well look nice for people to look at.
 
well hell.

Do i need to sort this out or do you think it will polish / clean up with those pads?
 
i went to town on it with the paint thinner and the rag came off dirty (the keg was never cleaned) but it did not remove the black stuff. maybe i should post a pic for you to see... maybe i am blowing this out of proportion
 
NNatic said:
i went to town on it with the paint thinner and the rag came off dirty (the keg was never cleaned) but it did not remove the black stuff. maybe i should post a pic for you to see... maybe i am blowing this out of proportion
Click to expand...

pics are always good. My kegs are mirrors, so I'm certain that ANY black is not good.

I should mention that the black stuff comes from using the white buffing pads with the polishing compounds.
 
jvino said:
Keep after it. Change discs maybe. It is stainless for sure and will polish up.
Click to expand...

+1 It also looks like you may be applying to much of the compound at one time. You only need a small amount on the pad, but replenish it frequently. When you put too much compound on the pad it tends to gum up and smear. The black stuff is really just some of the SS that comes off as you buff. The metal can mix with the compound and turn black and smeary like that. You've got a ways to go yet. Keep the rpms up and don't go too heavy on the pressure. You'll get there and yes, it is SS and not aluminum I am sure.
 
okay maybe i am missing this whole procedure, but i am not using a compound yet correct?

I have been using just the disk on the keg with no compound at all. I will need to get back after it. I am not applying any pressure at all as i had read about that earlier in the thread. At least until we get to the mirror finish part that is.
 
There are more than a few ways to go about it. I prefer to use a medium Gator pad initially with no compound to take off any labels, tape and general crud using light pressure. I then use the same medium pad with the coarse compound followed by the fine pad with the finer compound. You kind of have to develop your own technique and it depends on which pad you use with which compound and how much pressure you apply. Do some trial testing on one small area until you get the hang of it. It would be very difficult to do any harm that you could not correct with more buffing.
 
This was one of my cruddier corny kegs that I spent about 1/2 hour on with a fine Gator pad and some fine compound:

4775771467_37e5d7779e_b.jpg


4775771371_0dc1911621_b.jpg


Obvously corny kegs are usually much easier to buff out than the Sankey kegs simply because they typically have not been subjected to as much heavy abuse.

Not too bad, eh?
 
dude that looks great.

Which compound did you go with.. just the fine pad and the high gloss compound (like the number 2)
 
NNatic said:
dude that looks great.

Which compound did you go with.. just the fine pad and the high gloss compound (like the number 2)
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, I'm not sure. I have several sticks of compound laying around from past projects and the one I used on that keg no longer had a label on it. I wish it did as I would buy some more. I've had it around so long that I don't even remember where I bought it. I think you could use the No. 2 stuff from Lowes for about the same results.

I've got to refurbish a number of corny kegs early next week for my club. They were donated to our club to use as raffle prizes. One of our members found them in the basement of a local dive and picked them up for free. I think they were abandoned about 10 or 15 years ago and they look it. Most of them contain some syrup and were still pressurized after all those years. That was a surprise to say the least. So, I will need to buy some more pads and compound. I will pick up a variety of the compounds and get back to you on which works best for this.

So yeah, a fine pad and some kind of fine compound and it was probably similar to the No. 2 stuff.
 
Honestly, I've never tried using the abrasive "scrubby" pads with any compound on them. I assume that it would work OK once the pad wears out. In other words, you wouldn't want to put a finer compound onto a pad that was already a coarser grit.

I've only used the compounds on the polishing pad which is soft and white.

Even kegs that are in relatively good shape could use a light touch with the burgandy "fine" finishing pad. Then go to the white buffing pad with #2 compound. Then change to a new white pad with #5 compound, push hard for this step at first, then back off for the buff.

As you're working with the burgandy pad, if you can still see deep scratches that are NOT being made by the pad, you have to keep working until that scratch is gone. A good way to figure this out is to hold the pad perpendicular to the scratch.
 
wanted to give you guys an update and a cheap backing alert.

While at Harbor Freight i found a 4 1/2" angle grinder backer pad for 2.99. cant beat that!!!!

That is 10 bucks off the lowes one!!

Now on to my update. I was using a 4" angle grinder with a 4" backer pad and 4.5 inch discs. It seemed to work okay but i was getting that black stuff. I also tried to throw the polishing disk on this angle grinder and it widened the whole too much and ruined a brand new pad :)

I decided to hit Harbor Freight for the 20 angle grinder and give it a shot again. The keg i had issues with is now excellent as well as my other two kegs. I have now used the fine on all three kegs and the polishing pad with number 2 on 2 of the 3.

They are looking MUCH better.

Thanks everyone
 
NNatic said:
wanted to give you guys an update and a cheap backing alert.

While at Harbor Freight i found a 4 1/2" angle grinder backer pad for 2.99. cant beat that!!!!

That is 10 bucks off the lowes one!!

Now on to my update. I was using a 4" angle grinder with a 4" backer pad and 4.5 inch discs. It seemed to work okay but i was getting that black stuff. I also tried to throw the polishing disk on this angle grinder and it widened the whole too much and ruined a brand new pad :)

I decided to hit Harbor Freight for the 20 angle grinder and give it a shot again. The keg i had issues with is now excellent as well as my other two kegs. I have now used the fine on all three kegs and the polishing pad with number 2 on 2 of the 3.

They are looking MUCH better.

Thanks everyone
Click to expand...

I'm thick. I don't understand what exactly was the problem the first time. Was it the original angle grinder?
 
oh trust me i dont either LOL. I dont know if the smaller angle grinder with the larger pad meant that move of the pad was being used up (since it had no backing on the last .5 inch).

I am clueless.. trust me :(

All i know is that it is working. I needed the 4.5 inch anyway to use the polishing pads so it was a needed purchase. At harbor freight a 2.99 backing pad and 18 dollar angle grinder, who cares. It was cheap and gets the job done.
 
man i spent hours out there in the GA humid ass heat to finish these damn things. I kinda rushed it and said screw the mirror finish. I hit them with the polishing pad and number 5 stick, they looked good. I then hit them with the 2 and a different polishing pad and the first one looks pretty good, but they are not what I was hoping for.

The bottom line is they look great anyway, and im over it LOL.

I am going to get my sight glass in my boil kettle, ball valve and thermometer in my mash tun and my ball valve, sight glass, and thermometer in my hlt.

Hoping to brew on Saturday or Sunday, so hoping that i can get all of this completed before then... or i will be pushing my brew day back ha ha
 
NNatic said:
here are the pics... could my keg be aluminum?

http://picasaweb.google.com/NNatic/KegPolishing#5505024358426300418

I just picked up and cut open two miller kegs. they look very different from each other as you can see.

Could it be aluminum? if not likely, how the heck can i get rid of that black.. tried paint thinner again with no luck at all.
Click to expand...

I had the same thing on my keg. just use the medium pad and go over everything. then switch to the blue pad (fine). the black junk is some coating I think was on the keg. Also make sure you're using the right side of the pad.
 
I can give some insight now that I actually started polishing my first keg. The black stuff is contamination on the keg. In my case glue from stickers and glue from tape that was used in packaging during shipping. I used mineral spirits to take off the glue before the first go around with the medium grit pad. Still some black. I again wiped off with mineral spirits and on the fine pad it was completely clean. Bobby had it right when he said to keep the pad flat. Don't use the edge. If you do the black stuff comes back. I suspect that the pad gets hot and melts. If you keep it flat no problems. I will post some pictures of the finished product. Hopefully tomorrow I will start with the #2 grit. Cheers!!
 
FYI, sometimes the metal will get hot while buffing if you stay in one area too long and the compounds can gum up and stick to the hot metal. This gummy residue can be difficult to remove, but if you let that area cool down and come back to it a few minutes later it will come off without too much trouble. I've found through trial and error experimentation that it's best to keep moving forward, then backtrack some and buff some more. This helps avoid the overheating problems and produces faster results.
 
I just got my hands on three kegs for a single tier setup and I'd like to polish them up before I get the whole thing put together. If I just put a 4" stainless steel cup on my angle grinder would that do the trick or would I still have to polish after that? I'm sure it's been mentioned in here somewhere but 310 posts is alot to read through. I understand that normally people wouldn't go this route because of the expense of the SS cup but I figure it might be quicker than 4 hrs of pads. Thanks guys.
 
I just want to throw up some pics of my kegs in this thread pre-polishing then post-polishing.


Pre-polish:

Bought%201.JPG



Kegs post-polish:

Stick%205-1.JPG




If you want to see the kegs after each step take a look at this thread - Polishing my kegs Thanks again Bobby for this thread!!! :mug:
 
Is there a parts/order list that someone can post up for when I go to Lowes?
The tool is a 4.5" angle grinder yes? Or something else?

Thanks!
 
Look at my post #262 for a pic of what I bought from Lowes. Also, yes it is a 4.5" angle grinder used. I got mine from Harbor Freight as it was way cheaper than the cheapest av available at Lowes or Home Depot.
 
Got the equipment over weekend, did the fine pad first with #2 compound.
Then did polishing pad with #5 compound.

Did get a decent shine, but it seems like there is so much residue from compound that it's just making a mess and thickening/building up... maybe I'm using too much compound? When I wipe the kegs there is a lot of black residue. I think I just need a good cleaner or degreaser and then try it again. Anyone else experience this?

When I my 3 gallon keg it was very easy... and shined up quick. I'm thinking the sanke keg has compound build up...

Again, the shine is good, but nothing mirror like... which is what I was hoping for! :)
 
I think I may have to make another video clearly explaining the steps I take to get a mirror. The only time I get a build up of black junk is when the something starts melting, whether its the edge of the backing pad or the edge of a gator pad. It will come off with a wiping of acetone or lacquer thinner.
 
For my initial polish, I got a paint stripping pad, those plastic scotch brite ones, and put it on my palm sander. Did a nice job taking the paint off and cleaning it up. Going to hit it with the polish wheel tomorrow.
 
I didn't realize it was a contest, but since Lehr and/or Pat aren't making polishing videos, the HBT masses will have to settle for my chopped liver methods resulting in sub-par mirror finishes like this:

hltshine1.jpg
 
Bobby_M said:
I didn't realize it was a contest, but since Lehr and/or Pat aren't making polishing videos, the HBT masses will have to settle for my chopped liver methods resulting in sub-par mirror finishes like this:

hltshine1.jpg
Click to expand...

I thought I saw some sarcasm in that post, but I had to look away before my corneas melted...
 

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