Glass Polishing Questions

[imported_MCA]

I was reading Cory’s great review on Ceriglass and did not want to muddy up his thread with my questions. Excuse my ignorance on the topic, but why is a dedicated polish needed for glass? I have a myriad of “paint” polishes that I will never use up and I am huge proponent of product versatility. What are the dangers/performance shortcomings of using traditional paint abrasives on glass (Examples: M105/M205, Menzerna, Optimum, etc)? In the past, I have successfully used very light polishing products such as Klasse AIO and Vanilla Moose to remove above-surface water spots and very, very faint below-surface water etchings. I typically do this twice a year, but is this process sound?



I am not against purchasing Ceriglass (or an equivalent dedicated glass polish) but I would like to use what I have if there are no dangers to doing so. With regards to tools available - I have a Flex 3401, various foam, foamed wool, and surfbuf pads at my disposal.

[togwt]

Paint and Glass polishing use different abrasives;

Paint- aluminium oxide

Glass - refined cerium oxide polishing powder, a fast acting micro abrasive rear earth mineral for glass polishing and scratch removal. Cerium oxide is the base form of most present glass polishing compounds

[imported_MCA]

Hi Jon - Thanks for the info on abrasive-type. With that said, what are the benefits of using cerium oxide instead of aluminum oxide in glass polishes (cut faster, better finish, heat resistance, etc)? Is there a reason why I should not grab my handy Menzerna polish and use it on glass like I do on paint?

[C. Charles Hahn]

The Cerium Oxide is a "harder" abrasive, which is what allows it to cut effectively on glass (because glass is much harder than paint). You might see a little bit of improvement from using a paint polish on glass, but if you`ve got any kind of etching going on you`ll need a glass polish to tackle it effectively.

[togwt]

Well stated Charlie



Cerium Oxide (CeO2) is considered one of the most efficient agents for precision polishing of optical components and is primarily used as a glass polishing powder that has been used for the past six decades, and has been proven to be an effective polishing agent. During the process of polishing glass, cerium Oxide reacts with the glass surface to produce a cerium-oxygen-silicon compound which is softer than glass, and is therefore easier to work with to produce the final polished surface.

[againsttheodds]

Really good review on the Ceriglass. Cerium oxide polishing compounds have an interesting history from the Rockford IL company that originated it and the subsequent lawsuit by it`s inventor..