How to Polish Brass
Wipe the brass with a soft, damp cloth.Run a soft rag under lukewarm water., Buff gently with a dry cloth., Assess the brass.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Wipe the brass with a soft
Wring out the excess, then wipe the brass with the damp cloth using small circular motions.
Lacquer is a protective coating, and for lacquered pieces, most mild to moderate dullness can be buffed out with physical means rather than chemical ones.
In fact, if you use a household cleaner or other type of polish, you risk ruining the lacquer coating.
Use a soft cotton or terrycloth rag for best results. -
Step 2: damp cloth.Run a soft rag under lukewarm water.
If the lacquered brass still appears somewhat dull, take a dry cloth and buff the surface for several minutes, working across the entire surface in small, circular motions.
For this part of the process, you could consider using either cotton cloth or jewellers' cloth.
Jewellers' cloth has an outer layer of soft flannelet and an inner layer of flannel with bits of hematite embedded into it.
This hematite acts as a fine abrasive.
Note that if you do use jewellers' cloth, you should buff with the abrasive side first and follow up by buffing with the non-abrasive side to remove and residue left behind by the hematite. , At this point, the brass should appear fairly polished.
If it still looks tarnished and dull, however, you may need to strip the lacquer completely and clean the brass more thoroughly. -
Step 3: Buff gently with a dry cloth.
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Step 4: Assess the brass.
Detailed Guide
Wring out the excess, then wipe the brass with the damp cloth using small circular motions.
Lacquer is a protective coating, and for lacquered pieces, most mild to moderate dullness can be buffed out with physical means rather than chemical ones.
In fact, if you use a household cleaner or other type of polish, you risk ruining the lacquer coating.
Use a soft cotton or terrycloth rag for best results.
If the lacquered brass still appears somewhat dull, take a dry cloth and buff the surface for several minutes, working across the entire surface in small, circular motions.
For this part of the process, you could consider using either cotton cloth or jewellers' cloth.
Jewellers' cloth has an outer layer of soft flannelet and an inner layer of flannel with bits of hematite embedded into it.
This hematite acts as a fine abrasive.
Note that if you do use jewellers' cloth, you should buff with the abrasive side first and follow up by buffing with the non-abrasive side to remove and residue left behind by the hematite. , At this point, the brass should appear fairly polished.
If it still looks tarnished and dull, however, you may need to strip the lacquer completely and clean the brass more thoroughly.
About the Author
Megan Torres
Enthusiastic about teaching hobbies techniques through clear, step-by-step guides.
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