How to use

All buffing bars are intended to be used with a buffing wheel (Buffing Bars are also called Polishing Compounds or Buffing Soaps).  Regardless of wheel pattern or size the method is the same: With the wheel spinning, lightly touch the bar to the buffing wheel for one second, then proceed to clean or polish the workpiece. Then repeat the process as required, the secret is to apply the bar to the wheel little and often. Try not to overload the wheel with buffing compound, because otherwise the excess buffing compound can transfer onto the workpiece as a black line or mark (called a grease line or a grease mark) to remove those grease marks simply sprinkling some Vienna Lime Degrease Chalk onto the workpiece and then gently polish the grease mark off with either a soft, clean cloth, or re-polish with a buffing wheel, we have Vienna Lime Degrease chalk listed in our Ebay Shop in various amounts from 100g to 1kg

 bolpol™ Buffing Bar types

bolpol Buffing bars are graded with two numbers from 1 up to 10 divided by /. The first number is called "The cut" and this number refers to the abrasiveness of the bar, the higher the number the rougher the abrasive and the more stock (material) will be removed from the work piece.  The second number is called "The Colour" this refers to how much shine the compound could produce on a prepared surface - the higher this number, the higher the level of shine. 

e.g. 10/1 -  This is the most abrasive and would produce a dull / matt finish with little or no shine. Whilst 1/10 is the exact opposite, this has no abrasive qualities and is able to produce a very highly polished, fully mirror bright shine on a prepared surface.

Grey for Ferrous metals like Iron & Steel, High Cut - Matt finish 8/4. Made from high grade sharp Alumina Emery abrasive to give an aggressive cutting action, combined with a non-greasy, silicon free binder to give a cleaner finish and to produce a low rake performance on flat plate, making it ideal for pre plating, coating work and further polishing stages. Used to buff out light tooling, casting and grinding marks on all ferrous metals to a low sheen, matt or lined finish. Best used with a hard Sisal buffing wheel for maximum stock removal, but equally suitable for use with standard Sisal or Stitched Cotton buffing wheels where a less aggressive cutting action is required. 

Emery Grey a slightly more coarse grade of bolpol Grey, for Ferrous metals like Iron & Steel - High Cut - Low Shine  9/0

Brown Tripoli for Non Ferrous metals like Gold, Brass, Copper, Aluminium, Hardwoods and hard Plastics - Medium to High cut and shine 7/7.  Bolpol Brown Tripoli is an excellent general purpose polishing compound, used to clean surfaces, to polish out scratches and to produce a reasonable high level of sheen. Primarily used for cleaning and first stage polishing of Non-Ferrous soft metals like Brass, Copper, Aluminium, Gold and Silver, but its also used in the plastics industry for polishing out scratches, removing casting blemishes and marks, suitable for all hard plastics and resins including Cellulose Acetate, Phenol-urea, Melamine and Formaldehyde Resins, Bakelite and composite materials. Also used by woodturners and woodcarvers to polish Hardwoods, Acrylic and Horn with a buffing wheel.

Green for Stainless Steel, Carbon steel, Tool steels, Cobalt alloys and all hard metals. Medium to High cut and Very High shine 7/8. Bolpol Green is a silicon free, Chromium oxide abrasive, a true multi stage polishing compound used with Sisal wheels for cleaning and surface preparation and for intermediate and final polishing stages with either a Stitched Cotton buffing wheel or a Loose leaf buffing wheel where a softer and more flexible cut and high gloss finish is required. bolpol Green is also suitable for use on leather wheels, hard felt wheels and leather power strops for sharpening carving knives and other tools. bolpol Green is also used by the jewellery trade to polish Coral.

Green - Animal free / Medical Grade this bar is 100% identical to bolpol Green, the only difference is the binder which is a bovine / animal free formula and is classed as a medical grade polishing compound. 

White is the highest grade of white rouge, its made with pure Alumina abrasive which is silicon free, it is used for fine scratch removal and to produce a highly polished, reflective mirror bright and clean finish. Particularly recommended for polishing Aluminium, because Aluminium has an elongatated grain structure and has naturally imbedded impurities, which when polished causes a tearing effect commonly called "drag lines"  (because the impurities are being “dragged” out of the material) and into the buffing action causing an overall "blushed" finish, bolpol White uses special abrasives and binders which help eliminate drag lines and blush. Bolpol White is equally suitable for use on Chrome, Silver, Nickel plate, Platinum and is widely used by the Denture / Orthodontic manufacturing trade for polishing Acrylic. - Low Cut - Very High Shine 3/9

White  - Animal free / Medical Grade this bar is 100% identical to bolpol White, the only difference is the binder which is a bovine / animal free formula and is classed as a medical grade polishing compound.

Yellow is the preferred choice of the plastics industry for low speed polishing of all hard plastics and resins, including Acrylic Resins, Cellulose Acetate, Phenol-urea, Melamine, Formaldehyde Resins, composite and hard setting resins. bolpol Yellow is made with static free ingredients to reduce the build up of static electricity during polishing. bolpol Yellow is also used for light polishing of wood veneers and lacquers. As a general rule all hard plastics and resins are best polished at a low speed of around 1400 rpm and with minimum pressure applied, this is to reduce heat build up, however if you are polishing plastics at a higher speed (around 3500rpm) then the bolpol Cream bar may be a better choice - Low to Medium Cut - High Shine 4/7 

Cream was originally developed by bolpol for the plastics industry as a soft cut, high speed final polishing compound for hard plastics and resins, then it was discovered to be perfect for final polishing lacquer finishes and natural materials such as exotic oily hardwoods, Buffalo horn, Coral and Tortoiseshell also as it’s silica free, it’s also suitable for final polishing of Stainless Steel and Chrome finishes. Traditionally hard plastics are best polished at a low speed (around 1400rpm) and with minimum pressure applied, this is to help reduce the heat and build up of static electricity during polishing, however the bolpol Cream bar is made with a special binder and static free ingredients to help reduce heat and static electricity and is suitable for both low speed and high speed polishing of around 3500rpm. Soft "chalk type" Medium Cut - Very High Shine  5/9 

Cream - Animal free / Medical Grade  this bar is 100% identical to bolpol Cream, the only difference is the binder which is a bovine / animal free formula and is classed as a medical grade polishing compound. 

Red - Bolpol Jewellers rouge is the finest quality Jewellers rouge and used by professional Jewellers all around the World to clean and polish Gold, Silver, Platinum, Pewter, Nickel Plate, Brass sheet and castings, Diecast Zinc parts and also used to polish fine scratches from Glass. Bolpol Rouge is a traditionaly made Jewellers Rouge made from high quality Iron Oxide (111) this is what gives the compound its red colour and produces an ultra fine, slow, soft cut polishing compound that tints and enhances the natural colour of Gold, unlike other Jewellers rouge where the red colour is simply a dye and therefore does not enhance the colour of Gold. Bolpol Rouge is best used with a Loose leaf wheel or the even softer Loose Leaf XS pattern wheel and with a polishing speed of around 2800 - 3,450 rpm. ( Bolpol Rouge is also available in a soft paste form from our Ebay Shop) Ultra fine soft cut – 1/10 - Fully bright Mirror finish – 9/10

Blue aka Smurf Poo, is a true multi purpose, multi stage polishing compound, developed by bolpol intended as a final stage polishing bar for Copper, Brass, Bronze, Nickel plate and Zinc, but it is more commonly used as a medium cut, high finish polishing compound for Steel, Stainless Steel, Aluminium and Chrome.  Medium Cut and High Sheen finish 5/8    bolpol Blue is also widely used as a stropping compound. To use on a leather strop simply rub the bar on the rough side of the leather, then hold the bevel of the knife (or the cutting edge of the tool) against the leather while pushing from left to right for a minute or two to achieve a razor sharp polished edge. Bolpol Blue bars have become more widely known worldwide on facebook and youtube as " Smurf Poo ". - Medium Cut - High Shine 5/8 ( also available in soft paste form)

Pink Chrome Rouge is a soft cut silica free polishing compound used to polish out fine scratches and to remove frosted burn marks from Chrome over plating. Commonly used to highly polish Aluminium and Chrome parts on classic cars, motorbikes, musical instruments and used in the Jewellery trade for the first and intermediate polishing stages for Gold, Silver and Platinum. Pink is suitable for all ferrous and non ferrous metals and frequently used to highly polish brass water fittings, marble and granite worktops - Low to Medium Cut - High Shine 4/8

Super Finish XS10 is suitable for all materials, this compound is able to produce the very highest possible professional standard of high gloss shine, without removing any surface material in the polishing process. Excellent to maintain a mirror bright finish on all metals, hard plastics, resins, lacquers, horn, polished stones etc, where no mark removal is required. Use with a soft, loose leaf buffing wheel. Jewellery is often made from materials differing in hardness and this one bar will give that brilliant shine. Please note, XS10 is a professional polishing compound that is only intended to be used on an already absolutely perfect finish that has been polished to the very highest professional standard. XS10 then takes the shine way beyond perfect, it is used to achieve the very ultimate level of sheen referred to in the professional polishing trade as a "deep black or deep blue" finish -  Zero Cut - Ultimate Bright Shine  0/10

bolpol™ Blue and Rouge are also available in soft paste form

Further information on each polishing compound can be found on the individual product listings

 bolpol™ Wheels and Polishing compounds are all manufactured in the UK to ISO 9001:2008 Quality Standards

  bolpol™ Wheel Patterns

bolpol™ Buffing wheels are available from our Ebay shop in a choice of wheel patterns, Sisal, Stitched Cotton, Loose Leaf and Satin finish.

Sisal Buffing Wheels are a coarse buffing wheel, basically they are regarded as a modern, safe version of a wire wheel. They are used for heavy duty cleaning and 1st stage metal polishing to remove light tooling, casting, grinding marks and light rust removal etc. Changing the buffing compound to a finer or more abrasive compound will increase or decreases the cutting action of the wheel and make it best suited to a specific material or task. Sisal wheels are available in 2,3.4.6 and 8 inch diameter and in a choice of widths, we also have the harder and more abrasive Green Sisal wheels also available.

Stitched cotton wheels are a general purpose buffing wheel for cleaning and heavy duty polishing of metals and hard plastics. This pattern wheel is quite firm and stiff, this allows for the polishing action to be concentrated on precise areas for the removal of imperfections or for detail polishing as required. Changing the buffing compound to a finer or more abrasive compound will increase or decreases the cutting action and we have polishing compounds to suit specific materials. We have Stitched cotton wheels in 2,3.4.6 and 8 inch diameter and in a choice of widths.

Loose leaf pattern wheels are made from multiple layers of Soft Calico Cotton, these layers are joined together at the centre, then the wheel is attached onto a tapered nose (pigtail). During use, the rotation causes the layers of cotton to flares out and cover a wider surface area and is able to produce a mirror bright finish. This soft and flexible wheel is used for cleaning and polishing surfaces including curved, concave, convex and irregular shape items such as pipes, mouldings and tanks or difficult access and tight areas. Commonly used by Jewellers for polishing soft and precious metals like Gold, Silver and Plated surfaces, but equally suitable for use on Brass, Pewter, Copper, Chrome, Stainless steel and Plastics etc. Also widely used by Woodturners for polishing items like bowls where a soft and flexible wheel is required. We also have a Super Soft version loose leaf wheel called the XS pattern that is made from an even softer grade of pure cotton. We have Loose leaf wheels in 2,3.4.6 and 8 inch diameter and in a choice of widths.

WOW Pattern Open Stitched Buffing Wheel. This pattern wheel was especially made for polishing wood, following the repeated requests of many professional polishers, woodworkers and woodturners, they all wanted a wheel which was not hard, but quite firm. Made from the same material as our standard stitched and loose leaf buffing wheels and it sits comfortably between the two for polishing performance; the stitching is set wider apart to make this wheel softer than a standard stitched wheel, but much firmer than a loose leaf wheel. The result is excellent polishing properties with reduced abrasion, allowing the unstitched edges to polish concave and convex surfaces and also grooves, spirals etc, while the stitching allows it to polish out minor surface blemishes. Changing the buffing compound can increase or decrease both the cutting and polishing action to suit, allowing them to be tailored to a specific use and material. We currently only make this wheel in 6 inch diameter x 1 inch wide and 8 inch diameter x 1 inch wide. 

Satin finish wheels also called Satine Mops, these wheels are made from a non-woven, open web synthetic nylon (similar in texture to a dense, kitchen scouring pad). The nylon resin is impregnated with grit to make a wheel that is durable, water and solvent resistant, fairly firm yet still retaining enough flex for use on irregular and contoured surfaces, angles or odd shapes. The wheels are intended to produce a satin / satine) or brushed type finish. As the wheels wear down with use a fresh cutting edge is exposed. Suitable for light surface preparation prior to welding, brazing, soldering and plating, light to heavy duty cleaning, sanding, shaping, deburring, blending, polishing and finishing on metal, wood, fibreglass, resins, hard plastics and composite materials. They may also be used for adhesive, contaminate, paint and light rust removal. These wheels are used without a polishing compound and are graded with an approx grit rating: Very Fine 320 grit, Fine 240 grit, Medium 180 grit and Course 80 grit, these wheels are available in 4, 6 and 8 inch diameter.

  Wheel Diameters available 

bolpol™ buffing wheels are available from our Ebay shop in a choice of diameter sizes from 50, 75, 100, 150 up to 200mm ( 2, 3, 4, 6 and 8 inch). Each wheel is also available in a choice of width. The smaller 50mm, 75mm and 100mm diameter wheels are commonly used with corded or cordless drills, 100mm to 200mm are used with converted Bench grinders and polishing machines. 

Width

bolpol™ buffing wheels are traditionally sold by the width called a “Section” and one section generally measures approximately 13mm (0.5 inch) wide, its approximate because this can vary slightly depending on the thickness of material used to make the wheel and also the binding pattern. An approximate guide to the width of a wheel. Although we usually also quote the width and number of sections of the wheel on that listing

1 section = 13mm (0.5 inch) wide,  2 section = 25mm (1 inch) wide,  3 = 40mm (1.5 inch) wide,  4 section wheel = 50mm (2 inch) wide.

We are often asked why "sections" and what does it all mean? For example if we looked at say a 3 section wheel, that is basically 3 wheels all sewn together at the factory to make up one wheel, in this case a 3 section wheel would measure approx 40mm wide. A wheel made up from sections is much better quality, because its better balanced, its firmer and it lasts much longer than when compared to say a 40mm wheel that was made as one piece.  bolpol™ Wheels and Polishing compounds are proudly made in the UK and are not low quality imports from India or China.  

Wheel Fitting

 The wheel is fitted by screwing it by hand onto a tapered nose (also called a Pigtail). When in use the wheel further tightens up onto the tapered nose. A Buffing wheel has a small hole at its centre, the hole is surrounded with leather washer to ensure a firm fit and prolonging the life of the wheel. (NB: the 50mm diameter wheels do not have this leather washer due to their small diameter). We have tapered noses to convert 6 and 8 inch bench grinders into polishing machines and also Pigtails to mount in a corded or cordless drill. We also have the popular pattern wheels available with a 1/2" hole to fit a 6" Bench grinder and wheels or with a 5/8th hole to suit an 8 inch Bench grinder. 

bolpol™ wheels and Polishing compounds are manufactured in the UK to ISO 9001:2008 Quality Standards

All of the above items are available from our Ebay shop