Butler Finish Nickel
Question: What is “butler finish nickel?” How does one apply this finish? R.J.
Answer: This question was asked by another reader a number of years ago. Here is the
response I gave at that time. The butler finish nickel is a fine satin finish.
This finish originally resulted from the regular cleaning and polishing of fine
silverware. One way to produce the finish is to wet scratch the surface with a
suitable wire brush. An easier way is to buff the surface using fine grit, greaseless
buffing compound. The type of nickel bath is important. Bright nickel baths give
a finish that is too glossy so a dull or semi-bright bath should be used.
Since you have not used this process before I suspect you will have to do some
experimentation with the conditions in order to get the most satisfactory results.
