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world gathers for metal finishing
Q&As since 1989


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Brushed Stainless Steel Finish

I am building a custom exhaust hood for my kitchen out of 316 stainless steel and am looking for a cost effective way to obtain a "brushed" finish. Can sheets of SS be purchased with this finish already applied? Can this finish be hand applied (with low expense)? If so how?

Carey Cooper
homeowner - Cocoa Beach, Florida
2003

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2003

Yes you can buy brushed sheets. I've run across them before but my suppliers don't carry them so I can't help you there.

As for doing it yourself..one way to do it is use scotchbrite pads (like what you use for scrubbing dirty dishes) you can hand rub with them, you can buy sanding belts made out of them, wheels to use on buffers/die grinders [adv: die grinders on eBay or Amazon]. You can even cut pads into round shape and hook them to a die grinder or high speed drill. Many interesting patterns can be made this way. Practice on a scrap piece of course.

Jason Aube
- Flint, Michigan