Rouge

[Patstone]

When I put my felt mop onto the rouge it flicks everywhere, is there anything I can add to it to make it less dry as I have to have the motor running to get any onto the mop or am I using the wrong mop, that was another thing lacking on the course I went on, nothing mechanical, all hand polished with a cloth and silver polish.

[Goldsmith]

Pat,
Rouge is used as the final polish and felt mops are used as the first polish for removing marks and preparing the surface for it's final polish. On felt mops I would use Tripoli or a similar first polish compound. After using the Tripoli, change the mop to a softer mop, I use swansdown mops for final polish. I also slightly lubricate the swansdown mop before adding the rouge, I use a jamjar filled with paraffin oil that has a six inch length of wooden doweling dipped inside and I just wipe the paraffin soaked stick across the face of the spinning mop before touching the spinning mop with rouge. I also clean the spinning mops surface regularly by holding the back of an old knife against the spinning mop, which cleans off any old polish compound residues.
I hope this all makes sense.
James

[Dennis]

In case you don't have one Pat, it is also worth cutting up a stout box for a dust hood, or buying something like this:

http://www.cooksongold.com/Jewellery-Tools/Plastic-Dust-Hood-prcode-999-AXR

Dennis.

[Patstone]

I only have a pendant motor to do everything with. I dont have many mops - I have got two felt ones, (one little one and one about an inch across), I also have a lambswool one, and a cotton one that bits fly out everywhere. This is the way I finish off things, file bits that need smoothing a bit, then fine sandpaper, put in pickle for a while, then when it comes out, I put it in the tumbler to see what needs smoothing/sanding. Then I normally use rouge with my pendant motor with a felt mop, then finish it off with a silver cream and a cloth by hand. Time consuming and I hate polishing silver, had to do the silver cleaning when I was a kid, my gran used to have lots of silver plate fruit bowls and of course all the cutlery had to be done too. If there was a magic way of cleaning it I would do it. Andrew Berry was talking about some calico mops that he is trialing and said they were good so I am going to get some to see if it really is magic.

[ps_bond]

http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/nenam/foredom-shield.htm

There is no magic, there are no quick fixes.
Felt mops I'd use with Tripoli or similar; hard felt on surfaces where I'm trying not to erase crisp lines. I use wool mops for rouge in the micromotor. Equally, I tend to use rubberised abrasive wheels to refine the surface before going to polishes.
I've tried the Alcantara mops on a polishing motor; to date, I'm not all that happy with them - because they're layered, as soon as you poke anything into them the layers split to either side...

[Goldsmith]

I have posted this before but incase anyone missed it, I have a perspex shield that clips under my benchpeg which is great when using mops and grinding wheels fitted on a pendant drill. Not sure who sells them these days as I bought this one years ago. Perhaps this is something that Cookson could source and sell in the future.
546654645465

James

[medusa]

http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/nenam/foredom-shield.htm

There is no magic, there are no quick fixes.
Felt mops I'd use with Tripoli or similar; hard felt on surfaces where I'm trying not to erase crisp lines. I use wool mops for rouge in the micromotor. Equally, I tend to use rubberised abrasive wheels to refine the surface before going to polishes.
I've tried the Alcantara mops on a polishing motor; to date, I'm not all that happy with them - because they're layered, as soon as you poke anything into them the layers split to either side...

Funny, I love my Alacantara mops, but possibly it's because I'm using them for the final two stages.

Pat, is there no room for you to set up a bench top polisher? I recently did this (one old grinder from lidl which got repurposed and a new polisher giving me four stages) and I really wish I had done it years ago.

[ps_bond]

Funny, I love my Alacantara mops, but possibly it's because I'm using them for the final two stages.

So am I, but they don't behave like a "proper" mop and I'm not entirely convinced by them. I'll persevere - out of bloody-mindedness - but so far, not impressed.
I wasn't all that taken with Luxi or Magic Boric either, remember :)

[medusa]

So am I, but they don't behave like a "proper" mop and I'm not entirely convinced by them. I'll persevere - out of bloody-mindedness - but so far, not impressed.
I wasn't all that taken with Luxi or Magic Boric either, remember :)

See I never had 'proper' mops. Like Pat, I struggled with stupid little things I stuck in my foredom. Getting a real proper polishing set up has been fantastic. I even rather enjoy the polishing stage now :)

[CJ57]

I had a 1/2 hp double spindled motor before I bought the Dustmaster, I can't polish without them..
Like Peter everyone was always raving on about Luxi so I succumbed but I'm still not sure apart from being less messy if I don't still prefer the finish of tripoli and rouge. I find myself starting off with Luxi and then going b..... It and putting rouge on!

[caroleallen]

I think a lot of people have moved onto Alcantara mops and Menzerna polish. I use the mops with my pendant motor as well. It's all so much cleaner than rouge or Luxi. I hardly ever have to change the water in my ultrasonic these days.

[CJ57]

I think a lot of people have moved onto Alcantara mops and Menzerna polish. I use the mops with my pendant motor as well. It's all so much cleaner than rouge or Luxi. I hardly ever have to change the water in my ultrasonic these days.
:) by the time I catch up with that Carole you'll all have found something else!

[caroleallen]

Ooh, you have to get up early in the morning to keep up with us movers and shakers! :)

[Patstone]

I have plenty of room, the problem is that I am using my spare bedroom. When we moved in to this house, there was just me and my husband and because I worked for a flooring company chose the best quality carpet I could get ( retail £70m²) in Dijon Mustard, so its a creamy pale beige. Now we have two dogs, one Black Labrador who moults all the year round (every time he sits down, he leaves a black blob on the carpet) and a Border Terrier and of course now I make jewellery as well, so most of the carpet is covered by rugs etc in that room. I have a grinder that a friend lent me, and he said as long as he can use the grinder bit to sharpen his tools on, I can put a spindle on it and use it for polishing, but.............. its very noisy and the old fellow in the other half of the semi has leukemia and he is in his 90's, so I cant really use it, plus its a bit big. I have my eye on a little one that Cooksons have, that would suit me down to the ground. Mostly I make pendants, earrings and that sort of thing so I dont need big.

P.S As for a shield as James suggested, an old coke bottle cut in half lengthwise and the neck left intact slipped over the handpiece works well with the pendant motor


Funny, I love my Alacantara mops, but possibly it's because I'm using them for the final two stages.

Pat, is there no room for you to set up a bench top polisher? I recently did this (one old grinder from lidl which got repurposed and a new polisher giving me four stages) and I really wish I had done it years ago.

[CJ57]

Ooh, you have to get up early in the morning to keep up with us movers and shakers! :)

:xmaslaugh:

[caroleallen]

Even with a proper Foredom extractor I still get black fluff all over the floor and surfaces of my studio. Mind you, I've used up 2 mops already in the last month. We've been so flat out busy. Thank God I'm nearly caught up now. Hopefully, just about half a dozen things to make tomorrow and (fingers crossed) I'm done.

[ps_bond]

And then onto the Christmas Eve deliveries?