I recieved the Tamiya Polishing Compounds

I recently received a set of these, bundled with the polishing cloths, but I am nowhere near a stage with my current project to justify taking them out of the box. I've heard good things and I am curious about trying it out. Do you have any tips to share?

You need very little of the polish. Maybe the size of a pea.  Then buff that grade until it is dry and buffed out.  Then wipe off any residue from that grade and go to the next grade.  You have to decide whether to start with course or fine.  It also seems like you will use more finish grade than the others just to get the final result where you want it.

Some of the better hardware stores- the old fashioned kind that really specialize in hardware- usually have some polishing compounds that are quite usable for modelling.

In addition to stuff labeled as polishing compounds, pumice and rouge are great for fine polishing.  Toothpastes are polishing agents too.  Usually more of a medium than a fine grit- I have never tried the stuff sold for "sensitive teeth".

Don, I have frequently used toothpaste for this in the past. It's not bad.  I would however recommend the Tamiya compounds from what I have now seen.  You can polish clear plastic to near glasslike.  Then dipped in Future it looks showroom.  When the age of a model should be showroom finish.

I spent $16 dollars including shipping from Hong Kong. I figured if the package didn't arrive it wasn't the end of the world.  They did arrive in a reasonable time.

I figure these will last a long time as I will only use them for clear parts canopies and maybe the finish to buff out a model car paint job.  I don't build many model cars as a rule, but the stuff will be on hand.

Another tip is to just use your index finger and not a cloth with these Tamiya polishes.

Wilbur Wright

Don, I have frequently used toothpaste for this in the past. It's not bad.  I would however recommend the Tamiya compounds from what I have now seen.  You can polish clear plastic to near glasslike.  Then dipped in Future it looks showroom.  When the age of a model should be showroom finish.

 

Yeah, toothpaste is a coarser abrasive, but useful if you need a coarser abrasive quickly.  I find it is about like 600 or 1000 grit paper. The stuff I mentioned as available in some hardware stores is finer.  Jeweler's rouge is often used to polish plexiglas or other acrylics.

White Diamond polishing compound is specifically designed for polishing plastic/acrylic ...

https://www.amazon.com/Beall-Tools-White-Diamond-Bar/dp/B0037MG8PY

Shown here at 4:40

Paul