Shining and polishing your still

[kckings]

Hey guys,
I have read several post with different methods of polishing stills, and they all sound like a lot of work. I just finished my first still and used cymbal polish to give it a very nice shine with very little time and effort. I used this brand because it is what I had laying around, but I'm sure any brand would work just the same.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/drums-pe ... c=3WWRWXGP" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[NcHooch]

Well bust out the camera and show us then .....you KNOW we all like looking at shiny copper !

[kckings]

https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/16cK ... oF5mQ/edit" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Here is my Liebig. I put the polish on a paper towel, rub it with force until the metal turns black, then keep rubbing until the black dries and starts to come back off on the paper towel. Buff out with a cloth, and it is nice and shiny. This piece took 10 minutes tops.

[beelah]

Looks nice, but over time it's just going to loose that sparkle.....it will still produce great product no matter how it looks on the outside! Good stillen.

[rad14701]

Looks good but my personal preference is an aged rustic patina rather than shiny copper... No sunglasses required...

[fatman]

im to lazy for shiny copper!

[vinper]

looks really nice , I ordered some . wonder if it will work on the stainless keg .... crap on backorder

[NineInchNails]

Copper is really easy to shine up. I've used Brasso and it works very well. Just wax on wax off. I think stainless takes much more time & effort even with the right tools. I've seen YouTube videos of people polishing up their kegs using an angle grinder, disks and polishing compounds. I gave one of my kegs a good once over using a disk I bought at Lowes. It took off that dull finish, but left a lot of rotary shaped marks on the keg like what's shown below. That would likely take more time, finer disk and polishing compound to give it a nice even shine.

[Prairiepiss]

I had full intentions to shine all my copper up in the beginning. But never fails something always happens to it after I get it built. Falls off the bench. Or something like that. And I gave up on pretty. I'm going rat rod steampunk from now one. Looks like hell but performs like a fine tuned racecar.

[NcHooch]

But never fails something always happens to it after I get it built. Falls off the bench. Or something like that. :

Oh man, been there! .....spittin mad when that happens !!

[Pyewacket]

I'm going rat rod steampunk from now one. Looks like hell but performs like a fine tuned racecar.

Hahaha Awesome~

[rumbuff]

But never fails something always happens to it after I get it built. Falls off the bench. Or something like that. :

Oh man, been there! .....spittin mad when that happens !!

mine fell over... as I was attempting to braze for the first time.. Thats my excuse for why it looks so ugly, the next one'll be prettier!

[dis-still-in]

The simple home made remedy for copper is a vinegar/salt/water solution. Any acid will do though (lemon juice, tomato sauce/paste, etc.) This will remove the patina although the patina is only superficial (unlike rust) and actually serves as protective coating over the rest of the copper.

[striker85]

Bar Keeper's Friend is super easy. I diluted some and ran it through the jacket of my liebig (the outer wall is vinyl tube) and it shined up no problem.

[winterhorse290]

i used to keep mine all nice and shiney. beerkeg with copper riser and heat exchanger(liebig?). i sure was a looker. no? flat blank and green. figured i don,t want it screaming "here i am! arrest him!"