Scuffed Stainless Steel

[Swiss Army Knife]

Or at least I think it's stainless steel.

I've got one of those knock off Old Boy Lighters that Peterson makes, or at least slaps their name on, and I've managed to scuff it up.




I don't know if this was caused by alcohol used to clean the wheel and heads or some errant butane that got on my hands. Maybe it was something else but I assume it was either one of those two as the scruffed bit showed up suddenly rather than being long term wear and tear.

Anyone have a wealth of metals experience that could clue me in and possible recommend a fix? And if it is a done deal, what the cause was so I can avoid it in the future?

 

[yanoJL]

If only there was a member on this forum with 4 decades of jewelry/metalworking experience...

(Paging @cosmicfolklore)

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I’m really not sure what metal this is. My Old Boy is pure brass, maybe bronze. If I had it in hand, I’d look at the scratches under magnification to see what color the exposed metal is inside the scratches. If it is the same color as the outside, it could be polished out. If not, then it would mean that it was most likely pot metal that was either coated, plated, or anodized to color. If it is, then polishing it would just destroy it.

I have no idea why the fluid or alcohol would or could do this, unless it was paint coated with a reactive metal paint and then anodized to color.

Peterson usually puts their name on quality products, so there is a chance it is brass or bronze, which can be polished. But, I can’t speak to everything Peterson contracts with.

 

[ssjones]

I have a small, scotch-brite like wheel for my Dremel that I will occasionally use to touch up the brushed finish on my stainless watch bracelets/clasps. My are Dremel brand, but like this:

https://www.net32.com/ec/becht-scotch-brite-hp-mounted-wheels-25-d-170104?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&adpos=&scid=scplp170104&sc_intid=170104&utm_source=google_shopping-nonbrand&utm_medium=paid-search&utm_campaign=MG+-+Shopping+-+Finishing+-+New+Prospecting

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I didn't see that the only place stainless was mentioned was the title... it doesn't look like a scratch on stainless to me. If you are absolutely certain that it is stainless, then sure, hit it with a polisher or as Al mentions a scotch-brite.

 

[ssjones]

I doubt it is stainless. If not, the scotchbrite, while somewhat forgiving, will likely remove that finish. So you may end up needing to remove all of that colored coating.

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

Definitely not stainless. It’s either plated pot metal or brass.

The plating will wear off, not much you can do about it. If you want to give it a quick shine up, get a jewelry polishing cloth. Any mechanized polishing will remove the plating.

 

[Swiss Army Knife]

I didn't see that the only place stainless was mentioned was the title... it doesn't look like a scratch on stainless to me. If you are absolutely certain that it is stainless, then sure, hit it with a polisher or as Al mentions a scotch-brite.

Thanks for the expertise Cosmic. I just assumed because these are essentially knock off Old Boys produced by, I believe, the same folks making the Kiribis they'd be fairly cheap metal. And as far as I knew stainless is pretty cheap commercial product metal.

It's titled as "Silver Pinstripe" described by SmokingPipes and Peterson themselves as "Silver-Hued". This thing ain't a Sillem's though. I'll hit it with the Mayflower cloth anyway and see if I get anywhere.