Your favorite finish

[PaulMaybery]

As far as touching up silver plate, there are at least two ways to go which I have had some success with. There is an electro-plate spot technique that uses a small sponge on the end of an electrode. The solution is in the sponge (need to keep dipping it). The other electrode is attached to the horn. It is tricky as the preparation of the substrate brass needs to be impeccable and totally degreased.

The other method is a bit simpler. A product from the UK "NU-Shine" (there are others) is a non-electric process. It involves simply wiping on the solution which has a chemical reaction to the base metal. It turns black at first, and then a simple buffing with a rag brings up the silver lustre. The process needs to be repeated over and over until thick enough. The problem is that, usually at best, it is quite thin and if in a heavily handled area will like wear through in a short time.

In either case, if there is any pitting or roughness on the base metal, it will telegraph through. Preparation is key.

IMHO - a few raw brass spots on a silver tuba are marks of distinction and show that a serious player has had some improvements/modifications done. Wear/repair spots show that the horn actually gets used more than once a week.
That actually impresses me more that a shiny horn that looks brand new.

I do understand that those first blemishes from either repair or modification create a bit of a sting when other than that the horn still looks brand new. (Similar to the first 'ding' on a new car)

[Donn]

I do understand that those first blemishes from either repair or modification create a bit of a sting when other than that the horn still looks brand new.

Sure, and that's the obvious place to try one of those home plating solutions. It's pointless where the factory plating has worn off, given that the home remedy will be much thinner and wear off much faster, and anyway as you observe those wear spots belong in the `aging with distinction' category.

I expect an overall improvement in silver finish appearance over time, starts off too bright and takes a few years to get to the right color. Don't know if that's due to tarnish that settles into microscopic scratches or what.

[bort]

Funny you mention that Donn -- when I first got my Willson, it was freshly polished and SO shiny, it was hard to look at in direct sunlight. It's far from tarnished now, but with a little bit of normal touching and wear, it's a little easier on the eyes.

And Paul, I completely agree. Tubas look best when you can tell they are used. I want to keep things looking nice for as long as I can, but I ain't running a museum here. Same with my car -- a few months ago I backed out and scraped some yellow paint from a pole onto the side of my car, on the fender. It's a really nice car, and it's very minor, but everyone who sees it asks me when I'm going to get it fixed. I just reply "meh" or "the engine is fine" or "I can't see it from the inside!" Same attitude with tubas.

[GC]

If my memory is correct, one manufacturer lacquers their silver sousaphones. That would definitely cut down on polishing, but would have the same liabilities of lacquer (cracking, bleeds, etc.). Does anyone have experience with older lacquered silver horns?

[michael_glenn]

I love the look of polished silver. However, I hate the maintenance. Lacquer gets my vote.

[Michael Bush]

I've been playing lacquered tubas for going on three years after a couple of years of mostly silver ones. Picking up a new-to-me silver one this weekend. Both look fine, and my ears aren't fancy enough to notice an audible difference. But this thread does remind me of how peeved my wife is going to be at the prospect of black stains on my pants again...

Edit: at dinner I showed her a picture of the incoming tuba. It took about a second and a half before she said, "It's silver?"

[oedipoes]

My Rudy is Nickel plated, and that is probably the strongest finish you can get.
From far away it looks like silver plated, but it tarnishes 100x slower.
Therefore this finish is virtually maintenance-free... at least I don't polish it.

(drawback: probably also the least repair-friendly finish, and IF tarnished, not easy to shine up by hand...)

If it gets dented, does the finish crack and peel? Or is that just St. Pete tubas?

PS -- my favorite *look* is lacquered gold brass, with nickel silver slides.

Yip, if it's a bad dent, it will flake off locally, like I said, it's not repair friendly... also if it's a Rudy.
It came like that, and I like it because I don't need to polish it.
I think if I would ever order a new tuba, it would be lacquered... but I'm not sure... I like the looks of raw brass patina a lot.

PS my Norwegian star looks exactly like your favorite look, and I can follow you

[toobagrowl]

Guess I'll chime in since I created this poll/thread.

Surprised at how many ppl like the satin silver finish.

For me, I picked soft-sheen lacquered finish. I like that between mirror and brushed look. It can also be between mirror and satin. I like this with lacquered brass, not silver-plate.

I've noticed that with spray can lacquers from the store it can be hit-or-miss with what finish it really puts on. But I've also noticed lacquering a tuba or bell is an art form -- it takes practice to get it looking good and even with no runs.

Not a big fan of raw brass finish because it tarnishes/patinas SO fast and it makes my hands smell. Silver-plate finish also tarnishes, but does so much slower and (to me) looks much better than raw brass.

[bort]

Surprised at how many ppl like the satin silver finish.

Not totally my thing, but I do like the contrast between the matte and shiny parts (inside of bell, slides, leadpipe).

Question -- do any upright tubas have a gold-wash inside of the bell? Or is that just done on Sousaphones?

It sounds a little pointless, but I think it'd look pretty cool from above (like in a large orchestra hall).

[Donn]

Question -- do any upright tubas have a gold-wash inside of the bell?

Well, did. It was fairly common like 90 years ago. Now, I'd guess special order only. It's a great look, and not seen just by observers in the ceiling.

[groovlow]

Satin Silver looks good polished to tarnished, plus
it is durable and lasts a long long time.

Everybody loves satin silver 'cause its like their significant other(s)
cleans up nice...rough and tumble___ <---natural brass on the icon

Joe

[groovlow]

Silver plating stinks worse than raw brass...' smells of sulfur.

It's not the tarnish it's the Greek salad.

[Donn]

I wonder if there is a significant enough range in what "satin" means, that I would like what you all are talking about, and you'd detest the gross junk I'm thinking of just as much as I do? Maybe there's a really fine textured version that still presents a somewhat metallic appearance, which would be OK. What I usually see - particularly laughable in photos of newly finished restoration jobs - is a coarse white finish that flattens the appearance of the horn by reflecting light equally from all directions. Often tarted up with gold accents. I'd ask for Plasti-Dip over that.

[Zypher]

I like a finish that shows the craftsmanship. Not the polished finish that doesn't have any bearing on the purpose of the instrument. Something that can be maintained without the negatives (smell or stains). I also like when it can be repaired after frequent tweaks.

Scotch-brite it is for me. I hope I have the courage to do that some day. It's expensive to go back.

I'd love to see examples of the precisely describe finishes in this topic. I don't get to see such a variety.

[Ken Crawford]

Rustoleum. Lots of color choices and the sound is darker or brighter depending on the color.

[Aglenntuba]

I love my scotch brite finish- easy to do, and cheap. Looks good from afar. I'd really like to get it media blasted, but I don't really have enough info about it.

[MikeMason]

Is there a wax or polish that can prevent/diminish the smell or tarnish on the hands effect of raw brass? Saw something in bigbob's thread about his Martin that Lee stover did for him. My little conn looking rough and after upcoming drop bow and dent work,I know it's lacquer will look even worse.

[Peach]

Renaissance Wax