much better. i know it doesn't look like much. i know its very dull. but if you will look closely at this picture compared to the previous one, this time the tumbler got almost all of the scratches out. this means that when i apply the polish it should look amazing.
i was right by the way. the problem is that the dry steel wool wasn't getting out the scratches from the 220 grit and a little bit of gun oil allowed the steel wool to abrase the surface in a way that it couldn't when dry.
learning so much yet so much more to learn. im quickly learning that this is an art as much as it is a science.