Buffer for small parts...

Buy a tumbler to polish all small parts. Its safer (no small parts flying out of your hand like little missles when you lose grip on them in the buffer wheel) and far more effective.

A good tumbler can be had for under a $100. Walnut and corn-cob media are cheap.
 
I have one of those. Yes it works but I almost never use it. Small parts go into the vibrating parts polisher (see here). Big parts get either sandblasted and sprayed, acid dipped, cleaned with soapy water and a brush, hand polished with brasso, or some combination.

Note you really need it on a stand (like this) to secure the tool and have it at a good height. I've had it snag pieces out of my hand and throw them across the room. I'm probably doing something wrong because the polishing compound won't bite into most plated metals and tends to leave a nasty waxy residue that needs to be cleaned by hand. I'm just unhappy with the results compared to other options.
 
Depends what you do. I prefer the Berry's tumbler (here) from my link because it has a very wide opening and keeps the parts constantly spinning in the media. The Harbor Freight tumbler that you saw has a narrower opening and it's a way bigger difference than you'd think. Harbor Freight also sells a giant version (here) but I don't own one so I can't really comment.

Note, tumbling works great on metal brackets but I usually preclean with brasso then throw them in the tumbler for polishing. It doesn't remove caked-on dirt and doesn't remove rust. In some ways it's underwhelming but I've accepted that it turns a part from clean to shiny. It doesn't turn a part from nasty to good without some prep work.
 
I've got a Hornady myself. Make sure you get plain walnut and corn cob media, not the stuff w/ the buffing compound mixed in. Sometimes the walnut isn't small enough to get the parts w/ tight spaces and sometimes the corn cob isn't hard enough to remove the dirt. But, definitely recommend a tumbler.
 
This is exactly what I use to polish all of the parts you mentioned on my pins. I use mothers chrome polish and it brings them to a super high chrome finish.

I'll second this. A tumbler is nice to have, but it doesn't replace a good ol' buffing wheel. If you don't have room for a bench mounted buffer, you can get buffing wheels for your drill or dremel that work pretty well.
 
I'll second this. A tumbler is nice to have, but it doesn't replace a good ol' buffing wheel. If you don't have room for a bench mounted buffer, you can get buffing wheels for your drill or dremel that work pretty well.

I just grabbed the 6" one at HF...I'm more of an immediate gratification guy...

But WTF? I just shined up one nut (seemed to work 'ok') and the thing threw fibers from its cloth wheels all over the place...What a mess!
 
I love a good buffing wheel and they work so nice for big parts.

I've always been afraid to use them on small stuff. I'm bad enough about dropping a screw in the cab or on the floor and spending the next 1/2 hour looking for it.

I keep picturing the buffing wheel grabbing the head of that little screw and sending it across the room into low earth orbit.....

- Don
 
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