Polishing Grado Sr325i--What type of finish is the metal?

It is anodized aluminum.

im not sure if polishing an anodized surface is a great idea. i am sure that i am not sure of the accuracy of the last sentence though

Certain cleansers will destroy an anodized finish. Abrasives will remove the anodized layer, as well.

A damp cloth should clean off any dirt or grime. Unless you're looking to have them polished to a high shine - are you? If so, you could drop them off at a commercial metal polisher - they can make aluminum look like chrome. The best way to preserve that is to have aluminum powdercoated with a clear finish afterward.

If it's Type III anodizing (mil spec) you'd have quite a hard time damaging it, but given the application and the appearance of the anodizing, I'd be willing to bet a great deal it's not. I'd recommend exercizing more caution in cleaning it with chemicals.

I really like my 325is, but wish they looked like the 325s. A fan of gold I am not.

You can always use brass polisher =P ahahaha, i wonder what would happen

see below

it is only mildly irresponsible to recommend something like this after comments like that were made. perhaps more than mildly. at least its all in one thread, so no further searching is necessary for an opinion to be made on your statements.

nice. did you cover the mesh?

i didnt know that i always have to be serious and give a "responsible" opinion online. maybe u didnt see the =P sign.

NO homemade process is the equivalent of anodizing. You'd know if you'd seen the places this treatment is made at. Ever seen the movie The Mechanic?

I'd never mess with the finish. The main purpose of anodizing is not to give color, but to harden the surface of (always) soft(er) aluminum.

Why would you want to? Are there blemishes?

yea, anodizing is basically a step further from the normal reaction that aluminium undergoes. if you mess it up, there is not coming back. just clean it normally, it should be fine. anodizing is quite resistant. it will only be affected by strong chemicals.

I agree with the prior comments, anno can be damaged by polishing in that it removes the outer layer (including mil spec anno).

If you remove too much of that layer, it takes the color off too in this case. IF you wanted to shine them up some, but weren't hoping for a mirror finish you have a couple options.

1) Clearcoat them. Now you have a finish that is less durable than the anno under it, but the same can be said of many things that are clear coated, it can be a reasonable option but I wouldn't since you may easily be touching the surface when using them or they may come in contact with other things - that's what's so great about anno, it's durability and resistant to things like acidic oily sweaty human skin.

2) Light polishing. On bare anno it is possible to lightly polish to get a shinier surface. Examine the existing surface to determine if the underlying aluminum was smooth, brushed, or deeply brushed. Trying to polish brushed, let alone deeply brushed anno doesn't work well at all. Trying to polish smooth anno can be done if you don't go too deep, then followed up with a coat of wax for addt'l shine.

The key to polishing is a very low abrasive formula, or knowing how to use a moderately abrasive one. By this I give an example of Brasso metal polish, I have very lightly polished anno by evenly smearing some on a paper towel and letting it dry. When dry it is less abrasive than you would expect compared to wet (though still recognize it for an abrasive that can be used too much). By lightly rubbing and always looking at the surface, frequently wiping off residue you can see the results.

Rub too long or too hard and you are wearing through the anno and revealing the soft silver Al below which you don't want to it. Basically all you want (if you do it, that's your risk to your gear!) is to take a matte finish to a semi-gloss, not glossy, then after buffing off the residue with a clean cloth, put the wax on.

If you wanted to polish it because there were already deep scratches or dings in it that reveal the silver color of the Al beneath, you're looking at having to do a complete refinishing to remove all anno and have either a soft silver surface or to re-anno whole thing in your choice of color.

so any luck polishing these bastards up guys? i am new BTW- my name is Paul. i just bought a pair of Bose, the top end ones...i love the noise canceling part...it was perfect...for my 3 year old and wife... however, i had already read about the Grado..i found them on goodcans.com and it made me read, and then i took the Bose back for the Grados...i found a dealer in campbell, CA near my house. He had a pair of 325s so i tried them out. i love them, they sound great. i do miss the noise canceling of the Bose, i wil lbuy them again jsut for that and my wife/kid/work can all jsut be drowned out by them so perfectly....

 

ok, the real quesiton. has anyone taken a dremel and some mothers polish and let fly on these cups? they woudl look super awesome with a satin shine on them i think...