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Brass piano casters need cleaning

2004

I purchased at auction an old Starr 6' Grand a couple of weeks ago and the brass casters are really green. Has anyone used Tarn-X [affil link] to clean brass? Also what would anyone recommend to clean these wretched looking wheels? The piano was sitting on an old carpet that had been soaked in water. The roof leaked and part of the floor had caved in. Fortunately the piano was in remarkably good shape.

Elwood D [last name deleted for privacy by Editor]
Piano technician - Martin, Tennessee, USA

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June 27, 2008

Hi, Elwood. There are so many brass polishes that it's hard to recommend any one over the others, but some readers on these pages have seemed to be satisfied with Tarn-X.

Usually, how fast a brass polish works is inversely proportional to how warm a glow the polish leaves. No commercial polish is as fast as vinegar plus salt, for example, but this leaves a rally raw look (and it's too aggressive for some things). At the other extreme I think no other polish leaves as warm a look as Brasso [affil link] but it is so slow you may scream from the lactic acid burn in your fingers :-)

Regards,

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