Brass Whistles--Polish or Patina?

Darwin · Post by **Darwin** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 1:42 am

I have added a Burke C wide-bore in brass (CBW) to my collection, and it's already beginning to darken irregularly.

How many of you just leave your brass whistles to darken on their own, and how many keep polishing them? And, why?

For those who polish, what do you use? If I go this route, I'd prefer something that is neither messy nor smelly (nor, probably, extremely poisonous).

An impregnated cloth might be nice, but my only experience is with Blitz cloths in an earlier life, which I think might have been a bit smelly.

talasiga · Post by **talasiga** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 1:58 am

I pefer tamarind

Zubivka · Post by **Zubivka** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 2:49 am

Darwin,

I clean the metals about twice a year, then let an even patina build up.

I use a mixture of salt and vinegar. It cleans the brass, doesn't smell, and leaves a shiny (better than new) protective metal coating. So some patina occur, but slowly and with an even brass tinge.
The mix is not abrasive and of course not more toxic than your salad dressing (except if you're into these shrimp-flavoured goey californianas

)

It works very well with a Parkhurst copper whistle, too. After a few weeks, a patina grows back, but to an even, dark bronze colour, gradually lightening up to clean copper where the fingers rub.

See these threads for the detailed recipe (fished out of 19th century books on household care):
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php ... lt+vinegar
then
http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php ... lt+vinegar

buddhu · Post by **buddhu** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 3:01 am

I just let mine age as they will. I just clean the insides of the tubes and wash the plastic mouthpieces every now and then. I have a Feadog brass D that has, in less than a year, achieved a thoroughly vintage appearance.

trisha · Post by **trisha** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 6:52 am

Worcester Sauce is supposed to clean brass so I'm told....rub on with a cloth then rinse off...

Do you have this stuff in the US?

Trisha

lixnaw · Post by **lixnaw** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:18 am

i use toothpaste

slowair · Post by **slowair** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:30 am

Do what Zubivka says.

I do it and it does everything he claims.

There's nothing like a shiny piece of brass.

Mike

Zubivka · Post by **Zubivka** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:53 am

trisha wrote:Worcester Sauce is supposed to clean brass so I'm told....rub on with a cloth then rinse off...

Sheesh... Trisha, the question called for something preferably:
1) non-smelly
2) only mildly toxic

trisha wrote:Do you have this stuff in the US?

I've seen it. It apparently came only with Bloody Maries in Norhern California brunches.

But Ralph Nader shoud take care of that (the Woostersaws, not the jacuzzi brunches), as soon as he gets elected

GaryKelly · Post by **GaryKelly** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:57 am

trisha wrote:Worcester Sauce is supposed to clean brass so I'm told....rub on with a cloth then rinse off...

Do you have this stuff in the US?

Trisha

They didn't when I was living in Las Vegas. Worse than that, they didn't have Marmite!

I eventually found a small shop in Vegas called "The British Food Store"... which carried Lea & Perrins, and yes, beloved Marmite...and proper Salt 'n' Vinegar crisps! But by cracky what prices they charged! It's amazing what you find yourself missing when living in another country

OnTheMoor · Post by **OnTheMoor** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 9:37 am

Not much Worcester Sauce in the States? Learn something new every day, we have Worcester and Marmite (God forgive us) all over the place.

peeplj · Post by **peeplj** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 10:10 am

So far on my brass Burke I have let it patina naturally.

I like the look of a well-played whistle.

--James

The Weekenders · Post by **The Weekenders** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 10:32 am

I just cleaned my Burke with vinegar last night because I couldnt remember the rest of the formula..I don't know what the salt would do but will add that next time...

Worcestshire sauce comes in huge bottles at Costco. Widely available. Whaddya think, we are uncivilized??? I love that stuff.

Speaking of which, my 14-yr old repeated a new acronym for PETA he learned at school: People Eat Tasty Animals.

Zubivka · Post by **Zubivka** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 10:41 am

By the miracle of C&F threading, a talk on "polish or patina?" gets transformed into "Marmite or Bovril?"

To stay on topic, I prefer Cenovis. The one in toothpaste tubes. It's yeast as well, but it's handier to polish one's boots than Marmite. Available in any decent town grocery (Geneva, Zürich, Lausanne...)

Norma · Post by **Norma** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 11:18 am

Worcestershire...couldn't make decent sweet and sour ribs without it! After growing up hearing my Mom pronounce it ...
"Wor-ches-ter-shyre", I actually heard someone on TV say...
"Wortch-t'-sher"
Any of you UK'ers out there care to straighten me out?

Chuck_Clark · Post by **Chuck_Clark** » Tue Feb 24, 2004 11:23 am

OnTheMoor wrote:Not much Worcester Sauce in the States? Learn something new every day, we have Worcester and Marmite (God forgive us) all over the place.

I have no idea where anyone got an idea like that. I have two different brands (Worcestershire sauce) in my cabinets and there are more on the store shelves. If I'm not mistaken, WalMart even has it in a store brand. How much more common can you get than that?

What's marmite? If it's anything like Vegemite, I can understand why we don't have it. That stuff is just plain nasty.

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Brass Whistles--Polish or Patina?

Brass Whistles--Polish or Patina?

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