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I like doing it! Instant gratification.

Something to help make the time pass while you polish.

Spend the time practicing harmonic minor scales in 3 octaves, instead.

This is why I avoid silver.

I get many requests to 'clean up' instruments. Once I explain that there is no 'magic bullet' and make folks aware that my shop rate for 'polishing' and technical work is the same... they usually go home and do it themselves.

I love my silver tuba but it is starting to look a little less shiny than when I got it. I have no idea what to use on it that won't remove silver, so it's probably going to end up not so shiny, and besides I'm not someone who is all hung up on looks (my horn is unlacquered.) The guy I bought it from apparently shined it up for sale....because he complained about it. Ha.

MaryAnn wrote:The guy I bought it from apparently shined it up for sale....because he complained about it.

The only time I've ever polished a silver tuba is when I was getting ready to sell it. I suppose that at some point I will polish my Willson, but only because it's easier to do touch-ups than it is to remove a TON of crud and tarnish all at once.

Do those silver polishing gloves work well for minor maintenance and touch-ups?

MaryAnn wrote:I love my silver tuba but it is starting to look a little less shiny than when I got it. I have no idea what to use on it that won't remove silver, so it's probably going to end up not so shiny, and besides I'm not someone who is all hung up on looks (my horn is unlacquered.) The guy I bought it from apparently shined it up for sale....because he complained about it. Ha.

I use these Blitz cloths. I spend maybe 10-15 minutes every couple of months wiping both my horns' bells and outer bows down with these and they work great for me (and I usually don't have to replace them but once every 18 months or so). If the horn is quite tarnished, then it could possibly use of the entire cloth to take care of it, depending on the size of the horn and the area you are trying to polish. I usually find them at music stores for around $5 or so.

https://www.amazon.com/Blitz-303-Metal- ... B002Q0WT8S" target="_blank

My silver 1912 Martin gets polished each spring. It is used all summer in an old city band that plays concerts weekly throughout the summer in an outdoor band shell. They give me all kinds of grief if it isn't shined up.

I find that ultrasound cleaning of raw brass does most of the job. Amazing difference in how it looks, with no work on your part.

Hey Wade, have you ever tried that Flitz instant tarnish remover before breaking out the polish on very tarnished stuff? I haven't tried it, but the videos look interesting. Looks like you need to have water ready to spray it off near-immediately.

I use Cape Cod polishing cloths. Very little hard work [tedious, though], it smells like vanilla and won't eat your hands when it gets on you. Washes up with soap nicely. I've used this for years.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Cape-Cod-Pol ... 3=&veh=sem" target="_blank

the elephant wrote:Don't need a new polish, folks. Simichrome is the best I have ever tried, bar none, and I have used many, many metal polishes over the past four decades....

+1

Do any shops use 'Bright Dip' anymore? I've never had it in my shop simply because I vow to keep my chemistry as simple as possible.

I have used Maas on my unlacquered brass horn....

the elephant wrote:I am talking about a decade plus of patina on raw brass. It took me eight hours and three tubes of Simichrome to make it look sort of buffed. Hard work. Ugh...

That there is some manly polishing. Have a beer and a brats.

It is a rainy day so I embarked on cleaning and polishing my Martin tuba. It needs a yearly internal flushing and the tarnish on the silver finish. So, I silver polish it, wash it with windex, and then polish with car wax. It took a while, but the result was something to be proud of.

I just heard about this thread from my friend, Emily Litella and had to respond.

Elephant, if you don't like Polish tubas, buy a German tuba.

58mark wrote:I have a 1927 Conn Eb over here that I was planning on polishing up, and then look into selling it. It has 90 years of tarnish on the satin silver, but the spots I have cleaned look nice.

Every day I try to work up the motivation to Polish it, but yet, it's still not polished. Maybe I should sell it as is

I don't think you will get much more from a tuba player is it is shined up. Old Eb's don't seen to be selling for high prices now. Although Lee Stofer has plans to restore several more unique examples.