Electropolishing

[Stumble]

While doing some research for my new job, I ran across an article entitled "The Worst Possible Chainplates" where Brion was discussing the problems with stainless, and mentioned that he recommends against electropolishing 316L. I am just curious why electropolishing is recommended against.

[Brion Toss]

Hi there,
How embarassing. In the draft I meant to say "or", and also meant to expound a moment on the differences between the two treatments. Either will do nicely for chainplates, though regular polishing is usually easier to come by. Electropolishing is very handy for odd-shaped objects, with crannies that are difficult to get at manually. It also passivates the surface, though this can also be done easily with various acid treatments.
Fair leads,
Brion Toss

[Stumble]

Thanks for the clarification. For the life of me I couldn't figure out what the problem with electropolishing would be, though I did find some potential issues with sulpher depletion causing weird finish issues (but I think that was only on specific grades of stainless).