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Cleaning Victorian Brass Hinges

I am assisting with some renovations on a 1920's Victorian home in Newark, Ohio. The home has some beautiful oak casings, rosettes, doors and mouldings. I have found that all of the doors have the original hinges, they are spiral brass hinges, that look so black now, it appears as if they were painted black. How to I properly clean or restore the brass finish so that I don't detract from the value of the hardware.

J

Jennifer Cartwright
hobbyist - Granville, Ohio
2007

2007

First, check them with a magnet to make sure they are solid brass. Brass is non-magnetic. If they are thoroughly black it is unlikely that they have much lacquer on them, but I'd use lacquer thinner [on eBay or Amazon] anyway. After that there are almost countless commercial brass polishes. You may need something stronger like lemon juice plus salt. If this leaves the brass salmony color (too coppery) you may need to continue with something like Brasso [on eBay or Amazon] to restore the warmer brass color. When it looks good, lacquer it.

Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey

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