Polishing vulcanite

I can get vulcanite to look really good, until it hits my lips and it is back to it looking crappy.

My best bet has been to send my pipes in to a professional and have the vulcanite stems treated to a week at the pipe spa.
When I get them back, keep them out of the sun, wipe down after smoking and obsidian oil on the stems really does help before it goes back on the pipe rack.

I love the feel of Vulcanite, but the con with that media is it's propensity to oxidize and get funky looking.

Yeah, I prefer to maintain the vulcanite on my estates, but for new purchases the tradeoff of having Acrylic wins the day.

There may come a time that I invest in a buffing wheel and get all the right components to maintain my vulcanite, but for now it is easier to pay someone else, rather than spend my downtime performing the mundane duties, when I retire that may very well change.

Veeeeery interesting.

Looked it up on Amazon. It's a metal polish. Wasn't expecting that. The description says "special ingredients produce a long-lasting, water-resistant layer that protects against rust and tarnish for weeks."

I wonder about ingesting whatever that is. That wouldn't really be a major consideration on a fountain pen. Can't tell from the Amazon listing what the "Harmful if Swallowed" warning is. Are we talking about an "induce vomiting and consult a physician" type thing, or more of just a "not for human consumption" warning?

Yeah, the metal polish thing threw me off a bit, too, but it's a non-abrasive polish that repairs (to some small degree) oxidation and provides a waxy, protective coating that isn't slick or sticky.

The part of the box that isn't written in Thai says to induce vomiting and ingest plenty of water. It has the consistency of toothpaste, and although it smells nice I can't imagine anyone who doesn't have Pica being tempted to eat it. 

I recently purchased the Le Belle Époque deoxidizing stuff and have been getting good results. Look for Le Belle Époque Pens on Facebook or Google it to get his website. He originally developed the stuff for restoring old pens which were also made from vulcanite.

I’ll post pictures once I get them over to Imgur.

I've restored a couple thousand rubber stems, and have heard and tried every trick in the book. Many guys claim to have found the ever elusive magic shortcut to making a stem look good by wiping on an oil or using a polish. Many products can make an oxidized stem look better (to a certain degree), but most of these methods are simply covering up or even "soaking into" the oxidized material, to eliminate the chocolate scummy appearance, giving it a darker look. I can't tell you the hundreds of times I've received pipes which actually looked fairly decent...only to reveal the serious oxidation underneath the layers of wax / polish / oil once removed.   I am no smarter than the next pipe restorer, but in my own experience, you've got to rid the stem of the oxidation before you take steps to finish and make it shiny...otherwise it's like the old saying goes - you've put lipstick on the pig.  I'm not taking the high road and telling you you're wrong for simply slapping on some oil or polish...I'm simply confirming what you've done. 

Kerosene and white spirits do not sound best designed to enhance the flavor of anything.  I think I might pass on this one, however good it may be at removing oxidation.