Obviously any of these products will remove metal on a microscopic level. I recall having a conversation with a repairman about how much metal (what was it, something like 10 microns?) is removed in hand polishing versus other methods and he explain that hand polishing effectively did not harm the horn, as the metal actually removed is relatively negligible.
My personal experience with Flitz is that it's safe to use and endorsed not only by my repairman from home, but it was suggested by others as a suitable solution for hand polishing. I have never used simichrome, but Ken Pope uses it exclusively and sells it to others and frankly I wouldn't think he would use and sell it to us if he thought he was harming our horns with it! I do wonder what we would put in our valves that would leave an anti-tarnish coating... I only put water, Copper Cup (coffee), and oil in my valves. I would highly suggest NOT putting any of above-mentioned cleaners inside the horn!!! I think the real experts would agree. Chris --- [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > Thank you for clarifying your own personal level of expertise on this > subject. I think I'll continue to use these products in the ways that I've > adopted over the years based on my own successful experience. > > Good sense should tell you that if you're polishing something, you're trying > to remove unwanted surface. Commonly, cleaners will contain a chemical that > reacts with the oxidized surface, combined with a mild polishing compound. > The polishing compound in Flitz or Simichrome is so fine that it will do a > nice job polishing plastic eyeglasses. > > Non abrasive cleaners should be avoided unless you have specific knowledge of > what the effects of the included chemicals are. For example, a chemical > cleaner for copper or silver may be safe with those materials, but instrument > materials are usually complicated alloys. If the chemical is aggressive to a > component of the alloy, serious damage can be done. It's not uncommon for a > residual reaction product to be left behind that eats away at the metal. You > may find your horn, a few months later, with irreparable 'red rot'. > > In general, Hand polishing with any of these products is not going to remove > much good metal, even over many years. If you want your horn to shine like a > lacquered instrument, get it lacquered. Removing finger prints and hand > slime is generally more important than the cleaner you use. When using any > cleaner, whether abrasive or chemical, know what it leaves behind and how to > clean it up. An 'anti tarnish' coating left behind on the valves can be a > real problem. One of the advantages to Brasso, for the amateur, is that, if > you don't flush the horn enough, you'll feel it in the rotors when you do re > assembly. > > Learning to do your own maintenance is important and fun. There are many > acceptable methods. Develop a method you are comfortable with, especially > cleaning up residuals, and stick to it. Keep the materials you use on hand, > and don't experiment. Unless you use a consistent method, you won't be able > to assess the results. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jared Disbro <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: horn@music.memphis.edu > Sent: Tue, 6 Dec 2005 15:55:02 -0800 (PST) > Subject: [Hornlist] simichrome or flitz > > > Hi, > > Brasso, simichrome, and flitz are all too abrasive > and take off more metal than Wright's. I've been told > this by the man that does all the work on my horn, and > made me one, and happens to be my teacher, Mr. Richard > Seraphinoff. This would make sense, because we all > want the least abrasive things for our horns, right? > I mean, if you want a horn to last as long as > possible. > > Best, > > Jared Disbro > > > > __________________________________________ > Yahoo! DSL ? Something to write home about. > Just $16.99/mo. or less. > dsl.yahoo.com > > _______________________________________________ > post: horn@music.memphis.edu > unsubscribe or set options at > http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/billbamberg%40aol.com > _______________________________________________ > post: horn@music.memphis.edu > unsubscribe or set options at > http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/tedesccj%40yahoo.com > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ post: horn@music.memphis.edu unsubscribe or set options at http://music2.memphis.edu/mailman/options/horn/archive%40jab.org
