polish bogota titans?

[alanwelam]

Saw a video on youtube by kokomolock called pick polishing 101.

Very insightful for the difference between commercial locks vs. homebrewed.

I just recently purchased a set of bogota titans. I understand that Raimundo does not hand crank these out anymore in order to preserve his hands and meet demand of the picks. I know that there are some differences with working with steel vs titanium, but I am not sure about how that all works out.

Would polishing these picks be of help? I'm still trying to figure out the style for using these picks, and haven't quite mastered it the way I want to yet.

Thanks

AE

[Jedilocksmith]

I dont know much about polishing titanium, but I can tell you that I have a titanium bogota I and never polished it. It works amazing. There are lots of posts on here about the bogota and techniques to use while raking with it. Rocking it, jiggling it, etc.. Tension is also a key element...very very light tension.

[catsoup]

I polished my titans a while ago, but it was mainly because I was was sanding other picks and had the stuff out, I don't think they needed it.

I used 400 / 600 sand paper and then a cotton wheel on the dremel. Quick and easy.
I doubt it made much of a difference on the bogotas, they dont scratch up at all really. Definitely makes spring/stainless steel look nicer.

[misterwonks]

I think my newest Bogota.... my first titans.... were sub-par. There were excessive tool marks, rough edges and inconsistent/badly executed bends (they wouldn't even seat together properly). They were still okay, but not as much as they were hyped. I had to bend them properly which is tough with titanium, then refinish them. I started with 400 grit, then 800, 1000, 2000, and lastly an Emory cloth that felt around 4000 or so. They have almost a mirror finish ATM (this won't last long), but the resurfacing of the "squared off" edges made a massive difference as you use them.

If I hadn't purchased the titans.... and instead bought the steel ones of some sort.... I would have been irrate from the quality. Matt from serepicks is really helpful, and idk if Raimundo has anything to do with them anymore, but somewhere in production these are becoming lower quality compared to the older production runs so i hope they get this stuff right again. I wouldn't hesitate to buy the titans again because I'm great with metal, but I know some aren't good with metal.

[catsoup]

I think my newest Bogota.... my first titans.... were sub-par. There were excessive tool marks, rough edges and inconsistent/badly executed bends (they wouldn't even seat together properly). They were still okay, but not as much as they were hyped. I had to bend them properly which is tough with titanium, then refinish them. I started with 400 grit, then 800, 1000, 2000, and lastly an Emory cloth that felt around 4000 or so. They have almost a mirror finish ATM (this won't last long), but the resurfacing of the "squared off" edges made a massive difference as you use them.

If I hadn't purchased the titans.... and instead bought the steel ones of some sort.... I would have been irrate from the quality. Matt from serepicks is really helpful, and idk if Raimundo has anything to do with them anymore, but somewhere in production these are becoming lower quality compared to the older production runs so i hope they get this stuff right again. I wouldn't hesitate to buy the titans again because I'm great with metal, but I know some aren't good with metal.

Sorry but 2000 grit... really? even 1000 - come on. you can get a near flawless finish on this titanium with less than that.

I don't think you need to be great with metal to bend/polish two picks, I have one of the first sets, and it was finished to a very high quality. ordered another set recently and it was also very nicely done. A friend has one in the mail right now, I will report back if the quality is lacking on his order. I agree that Matt at Serepick is awesome, so I guess all Im doing is defending the quality of the product as I have experienced it.

[misterwonks]

Sorry but 2000 grit... really? even 1000 - come on. you can get a near flawless finish on this titanium with less than that.

I don't think you need to be great with metal to bend/polish two picks, I have one of the first sets, and it was finished to a very high quality. ordered another set recently and it was also very nicely done. A friend has one in the mail right now, I will report back if the quality is lacking on his order. I agree that Matt at Serepick is awesome, so I guess all Im doing is defending the quality of the product as I have experienced it.

I was originally going to stop at 800 but noticed such a dramatic difference when going to it that I went ahead and hopped up higher and higher. 1000 is sufficient for a finish of a pick, but there is a dramatic difference between 1000 and 2000 finish as far as cosmetically... as in ones a brushed finish look and the other is a grey mirror.

My initial post may have came off bad. I think they're fantastic picks and they will be my edc, though I wanted Alan to know that I agreed with him on them needing a good refinish. Maybe I got the bad egg though... who knows. I am familiar with the older stuff they made and agree that they were premium in every aspect *shrug*.

[Optagonal]

these picks are really really good. I am new to this sport and received the straight 7 piece set at lunchtime and have spent the afternoon picking through some practice locks. These picks have a much better finish and construction than my Southord 62 set and seem to open locks faster but that is just my wishfull thinking I know.