First time Polisher question

[gmann]

Hello
I am new to Polishing; I am trying to polish the Stainless Steel trim on a 1947 Plymouth. I received my order from Caswell and started in on one of the larger Pieces the rocker panel. I followed "Polishing Stainless Steel" from this web page as below.

1st Stage - Rough Cut to Remove Scratches
Use Sisal Wheel with Emery (Black) Compound
2nd Stage - Final Cut and Initial Polish
Use Spiral Sewn Wheel with Stainless Steel (Green) Compound
3rd Stage - Final Polish (or Luster)
Use Spiral Sewn Wheel with Stainless Steel (Green) Compound

After stage 2 I had hundreds of scratches on the piece and stage 3 does not remove them. Where have I gone wrong?

[FigureLLC]

they're probably scratches left over from stage 1. if that's the case, do stage 2 more.

[CarWiz]

Stage 1 isn't complete until all the scratches are gone. You may have a "haze" left from the coarseness of the black compound but this step is to remove scratches.
Stage 2 is to remove the haze and get the surface smooth. You should see a high shine by this point an no sign of scratches.
Stage 3 is the polish.

If you have access to a DA sander and compressor, mount 400 grit PSA disks and go over the surface to remove scratches. Go to 600 grit to smooth. When the 600 starts to wear, it will polish the surface and you can eliminate Stage 1.

This starter was done with 400 as you see it. No 600 or polishing yet.