Topband: Cleaning Up Large Air Variables?

[Donald Chester]

>I once had a brass blade fan from1925.  I didn't know it was brass.  I put 
>it in the sink and sprayed it with 409 cleaner.  I thought I had ruined it. 
>stuff was running off and lots of streaks.  The 409 cleaner cleaned it to 
>the brass and wiping it off I looked like new. Do not do what I did.  Test 
>a small spot with a Q tip and a spot of 409 on it to check reaction.
>John w9zy

But be very careful about using 409 and Fantastik on anything.  I once 
ruined a very nice pair of antique National Type A 4" bakelite Velvet 
Vernier dials.  They were covered with a layer of dirt, and as I was 
cleaning them in the kitchen sink, I spotted a bottle of 409 nearby.  The 
idea hit me to use that to clean them.

It took off the layer of dirt, but also dissolved the "skin" on the 
bakelite.  The dials lost their sheen, and no matter how much I polished, 
they remained flat black.  The thin outer layer of pure phenolic was 
dissolved away, exposing the filler, which was probably nothing more than 
finely ground sawdust.

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