Should I clean the silver tarnish off of my vintage trumpet?

Supercatfishdude · New Member Joined: 08 Apr 2017 Posts: 7

Hello every one! I just bought a vintage conn pan american 34B trumpet and it has lots of tarish which in my opinion looks nice but i dont know if its bad for the trumpet to be tarnished or not. So My question is, is the tarnish bad for it and should i clean it off? or if it isnt bad for the trumpet should I just leave the tarnish or remove it. There is also one spot on the bell where it has some green oxidation looking stuff so if anyone has info on that please let me know! Thanks again everyone!

shofarguy · Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2017 11:12 am Post subject:

Green residue probably indicates that there is raw brass underneath, meaning the silver is gone in that spot. Tarnished silver is not entirely a bad thing. The layer of silver-oxide eventually acts to protect the silver below it. Polishing removes those molecules of oxide to reveal the bright silver, which is once again subject to oxidation. 3M Tarni-Sheild is the polish of choice for some manufacturers. It leaves a bright finish and a chemical layer of protection.

So, it really depends on what you want. The green stuff should go, in my opinion. You can put a car wax on the bare brass, or have that area spot plated. Or get the whole horn reworked and re-plated! It depends on whether you think that particular horn is worth the cost and effort.
_________________
Brian A. Douglas

Flip Oakes Wild Thing Bb Trumpet in copper
Flip Oakes Wild Thing Flugelhorn in copper

There is one reason that I practice: to be ready at the downbeat when the final trumpet sounds.

Dale Proctor · Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2017 1:57 pm Post subject:

If it's just tarnish, It won't hurt anything. If the horn has corrosion you can feel with your finger, then I'd remove it.
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"Brass bands are all very well in their place - outdoors and several miles away ." - Sir Thomas Beecham

razeontherock · Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2017 2:01 pm Post subject:

There are techniques for removing dross via hot water, aluminum foil, and maybe baking soda to be found on this site. No metal removal.
A "smoky" amount can look cool to my eye on certain horns, but it doesn't stop there and of course the worse it gets the less likely you are to get it bright w/o damage.

Supercatfishdude · New Member Joined: 08 Apr 2017 Posts: 7

thanks for all the reply guys! On the topic of the green i cant tell fron the pics (havent recieved it yet) if its actually corrosion or something stuck on it. I can tell the it is sticking off of the actual metal because you can see the height difference. The reason im not sure whether or not its corrosion is because on the tuning slide there is a fairly large space of raw brass which has no sign of corrosion and no color of green to be seen. If the tarnish will slowly remove the silver plating over time i wouldnt mind cleaning it off since its easier to get tarnish to come back then the silver plating. Plus the tarnish is free! As for methods of cleaning tarnished silver i know with coins you put them on tin foil in hot water mixed with baking soda and that seems to work.

Crazy Finn · Posted: Mon Apr 24, 2017 4:17 pm Post subject:

Supercatfishdude · New Member Joined: 08 Apr 2017 Posts: 7

i think i will go ahead and clean the tarnish off of it to give it more of a show appeal. And does anyone have a recommended brand for a thing that will protect the silver once the tarnish is gone?

Supercatfishdude · New Member Joined: 08 Apr 2017 Posts: 7

I just got the trumpet in the mail and upon looking at the green it has a crayon consistency but i am gonna clean the tarnish off anyways with the hot water, tin foil, and baking soda method.