silver plating removal?

[Homerun]

Anyone ever done it? I hate my silver horn, but couldn't have asked for a better deal on it. I'm thinking about either getting it re-plated or keeping it in raw brass. Thoughts?

[SousaSaver]

Before you receive a reply to your question, the T'net gallery will need some more details.

1.What is your horn?
2.What is the condition of your horn?
3.Why do you want to do this?

All of that being said, you can have the silver chemically stripped or it can be polished off which (in my opinion) I do not recommend.

Having your horn overplated is a possibility.

If you like the way your horn plays, I would suggest leaving it alone. Again, your question can be better addressed after receiving further details...

[Dan Schultz]

Removing silver plating isn't easily done as a 'bathtub' project. Here's how to do it:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4898690_remove- ... ating.html

The EASY way to do it is to send the horn to Anderson Silver Plating in Elkhart.

[SousaSaver]

Removing silver plating isn't easily done as a 'bathtub' project. Here's how to do it:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4898690_remove- ... ating.html

The EASY way to do it is to send the horn to Anderson Silver Plating in Elkhart.

When I said silver could be chemically stripped, I didn't mean a bathtub project. I meant to send it to Anderson. Just some clarification.

[Dan Schultz]

Removing silver plating isn't easily done as a 'bathtub' project. Here's how to do it:
http://www.ehow.com/how_4898690_remove- ... ating.html

The EASY way to do it is to send the horn to Anderson Silver Plating in Elkhart.

When I said silver could be chemically stripped, I didn't mean a bathtub project. I meant to send it to Anderson. Just some clarification.

I was addressing the original poster.

[Homerun]

1. MW 5450
2. Bought it in decent shape, but I don't like spending alot of time cleaning and polishing only to get it back into the shape it's in instead of the shape I want it.
3. I don't like the look of polished silver horns (no offense intended to anyone who does, just a personal opinion), and the only reason I bought the horn in silver was because of the deal I got on it.

I have always liked the look of raw brass. My main problem is that the finished product after I clean and polish is not worth the amount of time I spend on it.

[Bob Kolada]

Just don't polish it! I've never polished any of my silver horns.

[Homerun]

I tried - my boss got on me. Unfortunately, my Officer in Charge gets to tell me what to do with my personal horn when I'm in uniform .

[SousaSaver]

In my opinion, you should send it to a professional plater to have the silver chemically stripped. This will strip only the silver and leave the brass or nickel under it alone.

The reason I do not suggest polishing or buffing the silver off of horns is because you remove extra material when you polish off the silver, hence making the metal thinner.

Let us know what you decide!

[Dan Schultz]

Isn't "chemical" stripping of a whole, assembled tuba a misnomer?
Doesn't the way to do it use electrical current to an anodic target in some ammonia style bath? ....

Yup. That, too! You can take silver off the same way it's put on... only with the polarity reversed. I doubt if Anderson would just toss a fully assembled tuba into the tank.

Even being in the repair business... I wouldn't attempt to do it either way.

[The Bone Ranger]

I would trade it in for a lacquer model.

The time and expense required to remove silver plate would be quite a hassle, plus it will most likely affect the way the horn plays. Maybe positively, maybe not...

You'd be better off going to a major retailer and trading it on a lacquer version of the same horn that plays to your liking, and paying the difference.

Andrew.

[Homerun]

As always, you all are a wealth of knowledge. I am humbled by your wisdom.

[MartyNeilan]

I tried - my boss got on me. Unfortunately, my Officer in Charge gets to tell me what to do with my personal horn when I'm in uniform .

If they don't like tarnished silver, do you think they would like raw brass any better?

[Rick Denney]

I tried - my boss got on me. Unfortunately, my Officer in Charge gets to tell me what to do with my personal horn when I'm in uniform .

If they don't like tarnished silver, do you think they would like raw brass any better?

I was thinking the same thing.

There are things you can do to keep the silver from tarnishing so quickly. One is to keep it in its (closed) case. If you deprive it of circulating air, the sulfur in the air that causes the tarnishing won't have nearly the same access to the silver. You can put a sacrificial tarnish cloth in the case with the tuba. You can even cover the silver with a wax that will slow the oxidation process down.

Rick "or, you can polish it every day and pretty soon the silver will be gone anyway" Denney

[MartyNeilan]

I had one of those pink silver polishing cloths I used on my Kalison K2001. I purchased the largest size, and cut it into smaller squares. They did an excellent job polishing it, and would protect for months.

[J.c. Sherman]

First, if you like the horn, don't screw with it. Use a little Haggerty’s (sp?) spray polish and keep it clean, rather than waiting until black develops.

Second, if you don't like the horn as much as you think you would, I would sell it and try again.

Third, I have brass instruments stripped by Anderson all the time, though usually euphonium sized or smaller. Usually it's for an overhaul... strip, dent-work, light buff, replate. Anderson doesn't disassemble the projects I send them, and they would most likely not do the work if it wouldn't fit in the strip. Or they would contact you and ask permission to take it apart.

J.c.S. (who loves Anderson - best work!)

[Homerun]

Like I said, just a feeler to see if I could have it done. Thanks, everyone.

[Homerun]

I tried - my boss got on me. Unfortunately, my Officer in Charge gets to tell me what to do with my personal horn when I'm in uniform .

If they don't like tarnished silver, do you think they would like raw brass any better?

I was thinking the same thing.

A few other instrumentalists have raw brass horns and nothing is said about it, but a tarnished silver horn is not, in his view, professional. And it's hard when your in the military to tell an officer that an enlisted man disagrees with his assessment, especially when it's over something that can be viewed as trivial.

[Rick Denney]

A few other instrumentalists have raw brass horns and nothing is said about it, but a tarnished silver horn is not, in his view, professional. And it's hard when your in the military to tell an officer that an enlisted man disagrees with his assessment, especially when it's over something that can be viewed as trivial.

Are you required to use your personal instrument? If not, then maybe you have your answer.

I should add that I was in Brazil a few weeks ago on an official visit. While traveling as a representative of the U.S. government, my own choices might have been very much constrained by my public responsibilities, had I gone in the with the expectation that my own choices really mattered much.

Rick "life is full of choices" Denney

[Brown Mule]

I agree with Sherman above --------if it blows well and gets the job done, leave it alone.