OK, where do I start on this old friend.....

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oldvarnish

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... to return it to that showroom sparkle? (and chucking it over the side isn't an option).
 

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If this is solid brass, and it looks old enough to be, I would start with something fairly coarse like No.3 wire wool or even a medium wet and dry paper. Then work down to 0000 wire wool lubricated with Brasso, then polishing rags. There are brass/chrome cleaners that are used in classic car/bike restoration that have a wax incorporated to help keep shine. I use a large buffing mop on a grind-wheel machine, prob you don't have one of those. Elbow grease is a must.
I know people recommend such things as lemon juice/vinegar/Coca-Cola, etc but I would suggest these things are ineffective or may cause pitting to the surface. Otherwise try an antique motorcycle restorer or similar.
 
I have one that looked similar.

They are solid brass but lacquered so when the finish breaks down there is no real alternative than to re-polish the lot.

The glass and frame can be unscrewed. The "movement" is oft held in place by tiny screws in the face. Think about how you are going to store the works when you take them out. The pointer, and the back of the thing, are fragile.

The plastic liner and glass is probably pressed in place and best left as they are while you polish. It is a fiddly job, a Dremel is a good thing to try around the pressed base and emery cloth for the flatter areas. After going down through grades of abrasive paper I polished it up with a mop in an electric drill:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/7PC-Hard-..._Metalworking_Supplies_ET&hash=item1c3dbbbe2b

I got bored and just improved the thing rather than making it perfect. You might be best to finish things off with Metal Lacquer Spray from up the £ shop.
 
Seashoreman said:
If this is solid brass, and it looks old enough to be, I would start with something fairly coarse like No.3 wire wool or even a medium wet and dry paper. Then work down to 0000 wire wool lubricated with Brasso, then polishing rags. There are brass/chrome cleaners that are used in classic car/bike restoration that have a wax incorporated to help keep shine. I use a large buffing mop on a grind-wheel machine, prob you don't have one of those. Elbow grease is a must.
I know people recommend such things as lemon juice/vinegar/Coca-Cola, etc but I would suggest these things are ineffective or may cause pitting to the surface. Otherwise try an antique motorcycle restorer or similar.
Click to expand...

I have a couple of items in HP now.
No pitting had it done so i would not have suggested it
 
doug748 said:
I have one that looked similar.

They are solid brass but lacquered so when the finish breaks down there is no real alternative than to re-polish the lot.

The glass and frame can be unscrewed. The "movement" is oft held in place by tiny screws in the face. Think about how you are going to store the works when you take them out. The pointer, and the back of the thing, are fragile.

The plastic liner and glass is probably pressed in place and best left as they are while you polish. It is a fiddly job, a Dremel is a good thing to try around the pressed base and emery cloth for the flatter areas. After going down through grades of abrasive paper I polished it up with a mop in an electric drill:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/7PC-Hard-..._Metalworking_Supplies_ET&hash=item1c3dbbbe2b

I got bored and just improved the thing rather than making it perfect. You might be best to finish things off with Metal Lacquer Spray from up the £ shop.
Click to expand...

a squirt of ACF 50 works well
 
I bought a hand-drill polishing kit and it works a treat. http://www.thepolishingshop.co.uk/acatalog/Standard_Polishing_Kits.html
I started on my carb dash pots.

This only took half and hour. I stopped from going for the whole mirror finish as I couldn't see I would be keen enough to keep it that way.


polished%20dashpots.jpg
 
Agree 100% with lakesailor except I got my polishing kit from here:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/heavy-duty-polishing-kit-for-brass-copper-non-ferrous-metals

Works a dream and its little effort. I put the mandrel in the chuck of an old drill and clamp the drill in a vice. (Wear some ear-protectors as the noise is continuous and potentially hearing damaging.)

You spin the polishing mop up and dab a little of the compound (I believe that its called polishing soap in the trade.) on the mop and then manoeuvre the item to be polished up against it. The results are truly miraculous.

Good luck.
 
In the absence of power polishers-

Vinegar (or HP etc.. other sauces available) works well on solid brass. No pitting. Submerge the item overnight, initially it looks as if nothing is happening.

It gently takes the the hard oxidation off leaving a brown scum that rubs off with a finger, leaving TCut, Goddard or Solvol Autosol to finish with a damp cloth.

On a boat lacquer is going to be needed unless Roger the cabin boy can polish it regularly..

N
 
NickRobinson said:
In the absence of power polishers-

Vinegar (or HP etc.. other sauces available) works well on solid brass. No pitting. Submerge the item overnight, initially it looks as if nothing is happening.

It gently takes the the hard oxidation off leaving a brown scum that rubs off with a finger, leaving TCut, Goddard or Solvol Autosol to finish with a damp cloth.

On a boat lacquer is going to be needed unless Roger the cabin boy can polish it regularly..

N
Click to expand...

ACF 50 is better than lacquer as its easy to remove it
 
I would avoid any chemical methods, not that they are likely to do much harm, but having possibly dissolved any corrosion products you will be left with pits and similar damage that will need to be abraded anyway. Commencing with coarse abrasive papers and gradually going finer is the way all professionals would do it, including we metallurgists who need a mirror finish on everything we examine.

I recently refurbished a clock that was not quite as bad as your barometer. I started with about 360 grit wet and dry, using Brasso as a lubricant. After more doses of 500 and 1000 grit I continued with Brasso only, to finish with a bright, flaw free appearance.
 
If it were plated, what ( non ferrous?) would be the base material?
I think I might try a judicious scratch on the hidden back, before going at it full bore..

When revarbishing and re-lining my boat interior , the various brass fitments, catches locks and hooks got the soak overnight in white Asda vinegar(?29p?) to come up like new without rubbing. But not the baro and clock.
 
vyv_cox said:
I would avoid any chemical methods, not that they are likely to do much harm, but having possibly dissolved any corrosion products you will be left with pits and similar damage that will need to be abraded anyway. Commencing with coarse abrasive papers and gradually going finer is the way all professionals would do it, including we metallurgists who need a mirror finish on everything we examine.

I recently refurbished a clock that was not quite as bad as your barometer. I started with about 360 grit wet and dry, using Brasso as a lubricant. After more doses of 500 and 1000 grit I continued with Brasso only, to finish with a bright, flaw free appearance.
Click to expand...


IF it were to be pitted by chemicials those voids caused by corrosion would still be there with the wet n dry method
 
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