Cleaning and polishing rivets

So I've looked all over, and in all the stuff I've found on polishing, I haven't seen a thing on a specific technique on treating rivets. I'll be polishing a plane soon enough, but I hate the polish jobs with tons of black around all of the rivets. The other issue is sanding(if needed) what methods are out there that don't compromise the rivet heads. I know I'm in the weeds on this one but some direction would be sweet.

as weird as it sounds, after polishing liberally sprinkle cornstarch and wipe with a microfiber towel; that will remove all the black residue around rivets and skin joints. I didn't do any sanding so I can't help you there.

As Chris says, cornstarch is your friend. Mineral spirits will remove a fair bit as well, and usually precedes a cornstarch step for me.

I wouldn't think sanding, even with VERY fine sandpaper, around your rivets is a good idea.

My thinking is you will quickly remove the alclad and will cause problems down the road.

Try finishing your buffing with flour. It will remove the last of the buffing compound and oxidation.

Polish

Try using rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle spray and wipe