Cleaning Chapter Ring?

[Joe Gargery]

Hello All,
While my case is over at the restoration shop I decided it was a good time to service the face parts of this clock. I don't mind some patina but this has accumulated 300 years of general crud and grime, so it is well overdue for a thorough cleaning.
The parts all disassembled easily enough and now I'm wondering what the best course is for this chapter ring? I see it is made of heavy brass but the front is "silvered" (terminology?) to sort of a dull grayish color. Perhaps someone can explain to me how this was done. I want to be certain not to polish through this silver colored layer.

The small "seconds ring" (again terminology?) is put together in a similar fashion, with a silvered front on heavy brass, so I'll use the same caution there as well.

The face plate itself is simply heavy brass with some burnishing in the center. I think polishing this piece is pretty straight forward.

I would truly appreciate some guidance here before I start this process.
Best, Joe

 

[Willie X]

Looks good to me. Willie X

 

[Joe Gargery]

Thanks Willie, it does look better in the pictures than in person. But they're actually pretty grubby.

 

[bruce linde]

fun and easy...

resilvering site:mb.nawcc.org - Google Search

 

[John P]

We use a "magic eraser". White foam pad I stole from the wife.

johnp

 

[Chris.K]

A while back I bought a Junghans 3-train "bracket" clock with a badly messed up face insert and chapter ring and upper rings around the chime and speed adjustment. I took the chapter ring, using double sided tape mounted it to a nice flat board. Then drawing lines from the 12-6 and 3-9 got the center and pounded a finishing nail making a central pivot point. Then get a small stick of flat wood and drill a hole at one end to go on the nail. I used 5000-grit wet sandpaper and super light pressure and kept going in circles till all of the light scratches were gone. But like I said, this was trashed so I went all the way to the brass. But you could use the same set-up but just polish the silver layer. As far as the face piece went, I nickel-plated it and polished it to a mirror finish and re-assembled it and kept the contrast between the brass and nickel face. Here is a pick before the final polishing. Chris..

 

[Joe Gargery]

Hmmm?
I tried polishing the brass back plate but it didn't make any difference. I realize now that it has some type of varnish on it. Acetone would not budge it. Should I perhaps try some 400 or 600 wet/dry sand paper? Or is there another way?

 

[Joe Gargery]

Solved.
I used a light, non-aggressive citrus based paint stripper and it loosened the coat of lacquer easily. Then the plate polished up very well. I think before final polish and reassembly, I will give it a new coat of lacquer to preserve the look as long as possible.

 

[Bernhard J.]

For cleaning the silvered Dent dial I used a stuff called "metal restorer" actually sold for the automotive sector, which presumably is something similar to toothpaste, but with cleaning additives in the liquid phase. Applied very carefully, i.e. with light pressure only and permanently rinsing and checking inbetween. It really improved, any grime was removed and the process did not remove the silvering, only uncovering areas, where the silvering had been already rubbed away previously. After that I applied a thin film of renaissance wax (on the polished brass and steel parts also) for conservation.

But I agree with Willie, yours look fine to me and I would think that a very light (!) treatment with toothpaste would make them look even better. In any case, test a very small area initially.

Cheers, Bernhard

 

[T.Cu]

Hi Joe Gargery, It's all a matter of taste, like on the Dutch clocks which have the saying "Nu elk syn sin", "To each his own" or something like that.. But I don't think greasy dirt counts as "patina". The problem is, you have to be really careful with metallic coatings like silver, and with paints. I think your dial looks ok as is, and I wouldn't use any grade sandpaper on it if it were my clock, because that really does "refinish" it.
But if you wanted to try to "improve" it, here's my system for what it's worth: Gunk is sometimes more easily soluble in water, sometimes more soluble in solvents like acetone. Sometimes I need both, in a series, so that the different kinds of gunk both can be dissolved. It really IS true you should first try an unseen or unimportant area first to avoid disaster.
To get water soluble dirt off a non-permeable surface (not paper of course, but vitreous enamel or metaI) I use Simple Green on a folded up paper towel, nice and wet so it doesn't scratch, but not so wet that it runs too far, and rub small areas circularly flipping the towel until no more really black crud comes off. But I don't go all the way to super clean.. A little remaining tan stuff on the towel is sometimes ok, as I don't want to start removing desirable stuff. I move fast.
Then I cleanse the Simple Green off with a water wipe, then blot dry and then dry with a hairdryer if it seems like I need to.. Then I move on to the next spot and get the whole thing done 'well enough', get it dry, and then stop. These things have a right to be old, I just don't like the greasy dirt.
Usually, then I use a liquid beeswax product like Howard's Feed 'n Wax (not Howard's Restor-a-Finish, mind you). I blot a little on. Or a good paste wax, but they are harder to use I think. (Harder to get out of cracks, where it shows, and can't buff certain areas well enough.)
I love hearing how others clean their stuff.

PS:Sometimes when a dial or other part like a brass bezel needs more aggressive treatment, I've found that 0000 steel wool (finest grade) with the Simple Green or acetone or wax leaves fewer scratches than the synthetic scrubby material does, which seems strange. Sometimes I have had to use steel wool on varnishy dirt patches, but it can be tricky not to mess it up and I don't think your dial needs it. I think most of these old things look great just after having been cleaned and waxed.