Surf Wiki
Save to docs
general/metalworking

From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Brushed metal

Aesthetic treatment of metal surfaces

Summary

Aesthetic treatment of metal surfaces

thumb|A piece of brushed [[aluminium]] thumb|A collection of brushed stainless steel [[Breville]] small appliances thumb|A [[DMC DeLorean|DeLorean]] featuring non-structural brushed stainless steel panels thumb|The [[Gateway Arch]] in [[St. Louis, Missouri]]

Brushed stainless steel or dull polished metal is metal with a unidirectional satin finish. It is produced by polishing the metal with a 120–180 grit belt or wheel then softening with an 80–120 grit greaseless compound or a medium non-woven abrasive belt or pad.

Commonly brushed metals include stainless steel, aluminium and nickel. Brushed finishes are popular in both small appliances and whiteware, and feature in architecture and automotive design. The Gateway Arch and DMC DeLorean are both clad in brushed stainless steel. The intensity of the brushed finish is specified as a surface roughness and is typically 0.5–1.5 micrometres Ra.

Characteristics

Brushing gives metal a distinctive look, as it retains some but not all of its metallic lustre and is given a pattern of very fine lines parallel to the brushing direction. For this reason, it is commonly used for decorative items like jewellery and watches.

A brushed finish is susceptible to damage. Brushed finishes also typically have a detrimental effect on corrosion resistance. In particular the brushed texture limits the ability of fluid to bead on the material surface. In the case of stainless steel the grooves of the finish can accumulate chloride ions which break down the chromium oxide passivation layer, enabling rusting to occur.

References

References

  1. "Brushed metal". Euro-inox.
  2. "A Comparison of Enameled and Stainless-Steel Surfaces - Porcelain Enamel". Appliancemagazine.com.
  3. "Article: Specifying mechanically polished, brushed and buffed stainless steel finishes and their applications". Bssa.org.uk.
  4. "Brushed Finish".
  5. "Importance of Surface Finish in the Design of Stainless Steel". British Stainless Steel Association.
Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

metalworking
Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Brushed metal — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report