Okay folks, what's the best way to...

[Phil O'Keefe]

...clean your brass?

 

My cymbals are getting kind of ugly looking. I've never cleaned them. Is there a "best way" to clean your cymbals, and what do you recommend using for the task?

[1001gear]

Pre-clean with Windex and lots of paper towels and then have at it with whatever cymbal cleaner or polish you decide to go with. Barkeeper's Friend, Dendy's preferred cleaner, is a cheap household cleanser that works with a mild acid. It's basically an apply and rinse off affair. You will lose the silk screening though. The polish creams and stuff are better suited to use with a cymbal lathe.

 

[video=youtube;L8iS4v0Aq0M]

[1001gear]

[video=youtube;9SZ-TrMLRN0]

 

[Phil O'Keefe]

Thanks!

 

Any other suggestions?

[Voltan]

roadies...

[Phil O'Keefe]

roadies...

 

Mind if I borrow one of yours?

 

[keric]

Are you sure you want to? Do you not like the tone that your cymbals have? Cleaning them will most likely change the overall sound of them. What you see as ugly may be years of aging that give the cymbal a different sonic profile than it originally had. If you are not partial to the sound and would like to see the possibilities that may open up when you clean them then go for it. There are perfectly good cymbal cleaners available at most music stores that work just fine and are not expensive.

[Voltan]

different strokes and all... i prefer my cymbals with a rich patina...

[daddymack]

if you want them all shiny...? Brasso brass cleaner works great. gradual circular motions. Yes, the silkscreen will likely vanish in the process, but hey, it's studio gear, right? Now you can claim they are Zildjians or whatever,

[1001gear]

There's an electronic/dip process that's used to clean metal objects and I recall some people with access to the process had excellent results. I only saw the finished product; gleaming, brand new. Besides the original weathered condition that is.

[Phil O'Keefe]

FWIW, they ARE Zildjians!

 

Just not particularly NICE Zildjians.

[Phil O'Keefe]

There's an electronic/dip process that's used to clean metal objects and I recall some people with access to the process had excellent results. I only saw the finished product; gleaming' date=' brand new. Besides the original weathered condition that is.[/quote']

 

Electrolysis?

[Phil O'Keefe]

I respect that.

[1001gear]

I guess that's the technical term.

[daddymack]

FYI, Zildjian has their own cleaning polish...and you have to 'go easy' on the silk screen...

 

here's a test...of some common household cleaners...and ketchup...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wATn0is1pxk

[daddymack]

if you watch this, he makes the logo reappear like magic at the end....and they want over $2000 for that system...

[Voltan]

Originally posted by pipemaker View Post

i find the best way for me to clean cymbals is by using the tips of my drumsticks applied in a rhythmic barrage for hours on end. after spending many dollars and developing gargantuan forearms from the elbow grease application, i found that with my eyes shut i couldnt tell the difference between a sparkling clean crash or the same cymbal covered with ten years worth of road grime and sweat. of course if you have a drum tech and you happen to be mad at them, then by all means clean cymbals are a necessity... otherwise, i would just as leave improve my chops with the time spent practicing. but then again i would much rather send you home wondering "how the hell did he do that???" as opposed to " gee, what pretty drums those were." however, all this and two dollars still wont get ya a cup of coffee at starbucks....

[twosticks]

Like shown on the first post, Brasso or Zildjian cymbal cleaner works fine. I would have like 3 pads or towels handy: 1)scrubber towel, 2) wiper towel and 3) a very clean towel for the final polish/buff towel. When you apply the cleaner, run it into the grooves and wipe it out the same way. Use around logos or place tape over your logos to save them. Using cleaner on the logos will erase them. I rarely clean mine, but over time, with a lot of gunk and build up, it can dull the sound, so, even with a mild cleaning, you should get a brighter/slightly louder sound out of your cymbals. Hope this helps!!

[1001gear]

Forgot.

 

Ketchup.

[Mikeo]

I stopped cleaning my cymbals. and they have a nice aged patina to them now.

 

However many many years ago I was at a motorcycle show and a buddy and I were at a booth that was sell a chrome and metal cleaner for bikes called Master Formula Metal Gloss. You can also use this on brass

 

 

Right from there site

Especially formulated for: Aluminum, Chrome, Gold, Magnesium, Alloy, Brass, Stainless Steel, Silver, Copper, and all more metals. This new technology ( NOT ABRASIVE AT ALL ) includes ingredients for specialty metals such as Billet Aluminum.

 

If you have ever worked on detailing a motorcycle, there's nothing more difficult to clean I tell ya.

 

I also have the Zildjian cymbal cleaner, which is good, but doesn't last.

 

 

 

 

[video=youtube;ujhGAh6uD7o]

 

This guy is good

 

[video=youtube;MUWVWzwub28]

 

 

 

https://www.masterformulapolish.com/

 

I don't have the sealer, just the green bottle one. What was even better is that my buddy gave it to me.

 

Sometime I use it on my guitar chrome.

 

 

[daddymack]

was covered in the testing video I linked in post 9.2

[1001gear]

Sorry just buzzin around not paying attention. What a waste of food though. Then again I have a bottle just going to waste.

[Dendy Jarrett]

When I use barkeepers friend, I use the powdered version. I lay the cymbal in a bathtub. Get wet. Place a little BKF in a bowl of warm water, and pour over the cymbal. With my hand, I run the mixture in circular motion (without applying any pressure. You can instantly see the brilliance come back in the cymbal. I haven't lost a silk screen yet.

 

You can also just wet the cymbal in the bathtub, sprinkle the BKF directly onto the wet cymbal (not much, just a light dusting. Then run your hand around (again zero pressure).

 

Once done with either method, rinse the cymbal and then remove and dry.

 

Great results.

 

D

[Phil O'Keefe]

When I use barkeepers friend' date=' I use the powdered version. I lay the cymbal in a bathtub. Get wet. Place a little BKF in a bowl of warm water, and pour over the cymbal. With my hand, I run the mixture in circular motion (without applying any pressure. You can instantly see the brilliance come back in the cymbal. [b']I haven't lost a silk screen yet.[/b]

 

You can also just wet the cymbal in the bathtub, sprinkle the BKF directly onto the wet cymbal (not much, just a light dusting. Then run your hand around (again zero pressure).

 

Once done with either method, rinse the cymbal and then remove and dry.

 

Great results.

 

D

 

Thanks Dendy. One more question, if I may:

 

Is that because it's a safe cleaner, or are you taking extra care around the silk screen?

[Dendy Jarrett]

To me Bar Keepers friend is the easiest, cleanest method. I literally lay a cymbal on an old towel in the bathtub. We the cymbal completely. I place sprinkle bar keepers on a saturated paper towel and simply run the paper towel around the cymbal (NO PRESSURE on the paper towel to protect the silk screen). If you we the cymbal and simple sprinkle the power on the cymbal, you'll immediately see little clean star patterns form. It's that effective. If you have an old cymbal where no silk screens are a concern, you can apply as much pressure as you like, but follow the grooves (never against the grooves). It'll turn an old tarnished cymbal into a shiny new cymbal in a matter of minutes. (if you want that brilliant look).

 

D