So long story short, there's a scratch on my gun. Not a big deal. I took some scotch brite to the gun - it looks better (wasnt that bad to begin with). It got me thinking, if any of you guys hand polished any of your guns back to a factory shine?

I have those swirl marks you'd expect scotch brite to leave. Looks a little ehh when light reflects on it.

Maybe someone has a method with some before/after photos?

I use mothers mag on my stainless smith revolver.  Without too much work, I can get a mirror finish.