Cleaning cymbals

[Drumdame]

Use a lemon cut it in half and rub it on and wipe with a clean rag it does wonders, chemical free.

Each cymbal is made with different alloys and yes lemon is good for brass but just because some of the cymbals look like brass doesn't mean their brass... so I would go by the manufacturer of the cymbal company who made them, in my opinion.

Some companies even tell you to stay away from water. So I would be very careful before you ruin your cymbals. Maybe a good habit to get into is wiping your cymbals down with a dry soft cloth after every few gigs so the dust, dirt and grime don't get embedded. But if you're looking for a factory shine like when they were new maybe you should call the company... each company has their own unique juice. Hope this helps.

Drummer_D

 

[JimmyM]

Welp, I've got a little cymbal cleaning experience now. I bought a set of Sabian AA Regular 14 hi hats, they came on Monday, and they sounded completely dead with little to no sustain:



Decided I had nothing to lose by cleaning them except the logos, and I hate cymbal logos anyway. All I had was Brasso, which didn't do a lot of cleaning, but it did enough to turn those clunkers into tone machines.



A handful of folks recommended I use Bar Keeper's Friend on them since it cleaned better and took less effort, so I got a bottle of the liquid BKF this morning, busted out a sponge with a Scotch Brite pad for tougher stains, did 3 or 4 rounds of cleaning, rinsed them off with warm water and Dawn dishwashing liquid, and this is how they look now:



Wow, some difference, eh? So I did all my cymbals. Here's before and after, except for the hi hats in the before pic...those are Tyrko nickel silvers from the 60's and I don't want the sound to change, nor do I feel good about using BKF on them:




Pretty! The AA crash and Diril ping ride that I use as a big crash don't quite look like new, but they're pretty close. The SR2...well hey, it still looks like an SR2 but a guy who's good at IDing the previous lives of SR2's on DFO said it was likely an HHX at one time. He thought it could have been an Evolution cut down an inch. At least it no longer says SR2 on it, so I'll go with a "customized HHX Evolution," sure

All these cymbals got noticeably more bright, though. I'm pretty surprised that their patinas made that much of a difference in dulling the tone. I didn't think they were all that dirty except for the hats, either. Didn't have to work as hard on those cymbals, which was nice. Only took a couple cleanings on the SR2 and AA and one on the Diril.

Wouldn't use BKF if you're a logo fan or have fancy schmancy finishes, but it sure worked well for my purposes with these. I thought I was going to get stuck with hats I hated, and now I love their sound and they all look so shiny. Nice!

 

[Drumdame]

Welp, I've got a little cymbal cleaning experience now. I bought a set of Sabian AA Regular 14 hi hats, they came on Monday, and they sounded completely dead with little to no sustain:

View attachment 115371

Decided I had nothing to lose by cleaning them except the logos, and I hate cymbal logos anyway. All I had was Brasso, which didn't do a lot of cleaning, but it did enough to turn those clunkers into tone machines.

View attachment 115372

A handful of folks recommended I use Bar Keeper's Friend on them since it cleaned better and took less effort, so I got a bottle of the liquid BKF this morning, busted out a sponge with a Scotch Brite pad for tougher stains, did 3 or 4 rounds of cleaning, rinsed them off with warm water and Dawn dishwashing liquid, and this is how they look now:

View attachment 115373View attachment 115374

Wow, some difference, eh? So I did all my cymbals. Here's before and after, except for the hi hats in the before pic...those are Tyrko nickel silvers from the 60's and I don't want the sound to change, nor do I feel good about using BKF on them:

View attachment 115375
View attachment 115376

Pretty! The AA crash and Diril ping ride that I use as a big crash don't quite look like new, but they're pretty close. The SR2...well hey, it still looks like an SR2 but a guy who's good at IDing the previous lives of SR2's on DFO said it was likely an HHX at one time. He thought it could have been an Evolution cut down an inch. At least it no longer says SR2 on it, so I'll go with a "customized HHX Evolution," sure

All these cymbals got noticeably more bright, though. I'm pretty surprised that their patinas made that much of a difference in dulling the tone. I didn't think they were all that dirty except for the hats, either. Didn't have to work as hard on those cymbals, which was nice. Only took a couple cleanings on the SR2 and AA and one on the Diril.

Wouldn't use BKF if you're a logo fan or have fancy schmancy finishes, but it sure worked well for my purposes with these. I thought I was going to get stuck with hats I hated, and now I love their sound and they all look so shiny. Nice!

Liquid Keepers Friend definitely has abrasives in it and it definitely leaves very fine scratches... now you may not notice it on your cymbals because of the grooves from the lathing but when I use it on copper you can see all the fine scratches so I understand that you don't care about logos but for those drummers that care about fine scratches both liquid and powdered Bar Keepers Friend will scratch your beautiful cymbals.

I'm really happy for you Jimmy they sounded dead now they came alive and you're enjoying them that's all that matters. They look pretty awesome also.

The reason why I'm not cleaning mine is there's just too much history that I would be washing away. My father played those in the 40's and every time I hit one I think of him. I just play for my own enjoyment and my son and I play together. Last weekend I bought a used 5 piece Pearl Decade Birch kit, with an extra Yamaha snare, a Zildjian A custom box set, 2 Paragon splashes 8 and 10 in, a block, Zildjian cymbal bag, drum stick bag and a ton of sticks and all the stands for $800 so now my son and I can play together and the first time we did was last weekend and we had a blast creating new memories.

Drummer_D

 

[JimmyM]

I'm really happy for you Jimmy they sounded dead now they came alive and you're enjoying them that's all that matters. They look pretty awesome also.

The reason why I'm not cleaning mine is there's just too much history that I would be washing away. My father played those in the 40's and every time I hit one I think of him. I just play for my own enjoyment and my son and I play together. Last weekend I bought a used 5 piece Pearl Decade Birch kit, with an extra Yamaha snare, a Zildjian A custom box set, 2 Paragon splashes 8 and 10 in, a block, Zildjian cymbal bag, drum stick bag and a ton of sticks and all the stands for $800 so now my son and I can play together and the first time we did was last weekend and we had a blast creating new memories.

Drummer_D

I'd never clean such keepsakes, either. Wow, that's really sweet. Passing along the family tradition and starting a new one of your own. A's are great cymbals to do it with, too. Was going to get a set of New Beats or A hi hats till I saw the AA's for $120 shipped. Sold American!

 

[Drumdame]

I'd never clean such keepsakes, either. Wow, that's really sweet. Passing along the family tradition and starting a new one of your own. A's are great cymbals to do it with, too. Was going to get a set of New Beats or A hi hats till I saw the AA's for $120 shipped. Sold American!

Awesome! It's always great to find a Savage deal. Keep on drummin'!

Just thought I'd mention there are 8 drummers just in my immediate family with me being the only female and I have 2 nephews and a cousin that are also a drummers, 11 all together. DRUM ON!!!

Drummer_D

 

[Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX]

I'm really happy for you Jimmy they sounded dead now they came alive and you're enjoying them that's all that matters. They look pretty awesome also.

The reason why I'm not cleaning mine is there's just too much history that I would be washing away. My father played those in the 40's and every time I hit one I think of him. I just play for my own enjoyment and my son and I play together. Last weekend I bought a used 5 piece Pearl Decade Birch kit, with an extra Yamaha snare, a Zildjian A custom box set, 2 Paragon splashes 8 and 10 in, a block, Zildjian cymbal bag, drum stick bag and a ton of sticks and all the stands for $800 so now my son and I can play together and the first time we did was last weekend and we had a blast creating new memories.

Drummer_D

yeah...I won't clean my dads 40's and 50's Zildjian's either for the same reason. Just warm water and a trace of Dawn if they get real bad...have maybe done that 3 times in the past 40 years

 

[Eric_H]

I've never boughten cymbol polish and i was just wondering what's the best polish to get and if there's and specail technique to use when polishing it. Thanks.

Groove juice. Easy to use, fairly inexpensive. Just make sure you are either using it outside or in a well ventilated area like all chemicals

 

[yammyfan]

Groove juice. Easy to use, fairly inexpensive. Just make sure you are either using it outside or in a well ventilated area like all chemicals

Just a heads-up that the original poster asked the question 17 years ago and hasn't been back in 15 years. He or she may not see your answer.

 

[Eric_H]

Just a heads-up that the original poster asked the question 17 years ago and hasn't been back in 15 years. He or she may not see your answer.

Thx for the clarification

 

[BobC]

This is a 17-year old post? Oh well. I didn't see that until now.

I wonder which cymbal cleaner he "boughten?"

Just for the record, I have always used old fashioned Bon Ami powdered cleanser, because it's non-abrasive and removes all the fingerprints and gunk and leaves the cymbal shining. It costs very little and a can lasts forever.

I clean them in the bathtub and dry them with a towel. Simple.

 

[Mediocrefunkybeat]

Each cymbal is made with different alloys and yes lemon is good for brass but just because some of the cymbals look like brass doesn't mean their brass... so I would go by the manufacturer of the cymbal company who made them, in my opinion.

Some companies even tell you to stay away from water. So I would be very careful before you ruin your cymbals. Maybe a good habit to get into is wiping your cymbals down with a dry soft cloth after every few gigs so the dust, dirt and grime don't get embedded. But if you're looking for a factory shine like when they were new maybe you should call the company... each company has their own unique juice. Hope this helps.

Drummer_D

There are only really two alloys that are commonly used in cymbal making. B8 and B20. B8 has 8% tin, B20 has (you guessed it), 20% tin. You do see other alloys too from time-to-time (e.g. B12, B5, B18) but they're all fundamentally the same thing. Brass is sometimes used in very low-end cymbals and nickel-silver (really just nickel, copper and zinc alloy) used to be reasonably common at the low-end but you don't really see them any more. The last major series of NS12s that I remember were the Paiste 4o2s and they were discontinued nearly twenty years ago.

The main difference isn't the alloy, it's how the cymbal is finished. Cymbal alloys are not unique and neither is the juice they'll try to sell you...

 

[Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX]

This is a 17-year old post? Oh well. I didn't see that until now.

I wonder which cymbal cleaner he "boughten?"

Just for the record, I have always used old fashioned Bon Ami powdered cleanser, because it's non-abrasive and removes all the fingerprints and gunk and leaves the cymbal shining. It costs very little and a can lasts forever.

I clean them in the bathtub and dry them with a towel. Simple.

I started experimenting with our 40+ year old Zildian A marching cymbals at school (b/c they ain't getting any worse than they already are....)....I have this little hand held scrub brush with soft bristles, and have used:

Soft Scrub
Paiste cymbal cleaner
lemon jjuice
Simple Green (diluted)
Brasso

the Simple Green + scrub brush works the best for actually getting dirt out. Leaves no marks. It also leaves a natural shine
the Paiste cleaner also was good, but is a way more messy process, and takes a bit longer; it leaves a better shine, but does not get the dirt off as well

I tried the Simple Green and brush on one of my older A crashes, and it was fine, so that is what I use now. I am not so much worried about getting the shine back as much as I want the fingerprints, stick marks and grime gone.

the lemon juiice worked ok

I would not use Soft Scrub on my upper level cymbals, but for the marching cymbals, iit worked fine to get the real old cymbals clean, and they go through a war, so I am not worried about scratching

Brasso was sort of like the Paiste cleaner...worked fine, but a "bigger" process

 

[pinstripe]

Brasso was sort of like the Paiste cleaner...worked fine, but a "bigger" process

The caveat with Brasso is that it's abrasive. It will take off the patina if you use any pressure. It will also remove the labels. So if you're going to use Brasso, you need to be sure you're good with having a bright new looking cymbal with no labels when you're done.

Lemon juice and Bar Keepers Friend (oxalic acid) will also remove the patina thanks to their acidity.

I can't tell what the deal is with Soft Scrub. In some places it's described as mildly abrasive and in other places non-abrasive. It may depend on the formulation (Soft Scrub for Sinks, Soft Scrub with Bleach, Soft Scrub Commercial Kitchen & Bathroom, etc).

With Simple Green I'd be really careful with the dilution. It is strongly alkaline and I know from experience that it will chemically mar unfinished aluminum when undiluted. It wouldn't surprise me if it could do something similar to bronze. But I also know from experience that it's an outstanding cleaner if used right. I'm seeing dilutions as high as 1:10 recommended for unfinished metals.

The Paiste cleaner claims to be designed for clear coated cymbals but just seems to be a mild detergent with no abrasives so would seem to be fine for all cymbals.

And of course good old soapy water with something like Dawn would be a low risk general purpose cleaner for all cymbals.

 

[eric_B]

The caveat with Brasso is that it's abrasive. It will take off the patina if you use any pressure. It will also remove the labels. So if you're going to use Brasso, you need to be sure you're good with having a bright new looking cymbal with no labels when you're done.

I had not cleaned my Masterwork cymbals in over 10 years and first tried Groove Juice, which removed some of the dirt / marks.
I then used Brasso and it cleaned them very well.
Fortunately, I don't notice any fading on the labels, although I tried to avoid doing heavy scrubbing on them.
It probably matters which type of ink the cymbal manufacturer used and how many times you use abbrasive cleaners.

 

[pinstripe]

I had not cleaned my Masterwork cymbals in over 10 years and first tried Groove Juice, which removed some of the dirt / marks.
I then used Brasso and it cleaned them very well.
Fortunately, I don't notice any fading on the labels, although I tried to avoid doing heavy scrubbing on them.
It probably matters which type of ink the cymbal manufacturer used and how many times you use abbrasive cleaners.

A metal polish like Brasso is designed to abrade away the oxidized layer and expose fresh metal below. If you're careful with your pressure you probably can avoid removing enough of the patina or label to be noticeable, but the potential is there and it seems risky to me. Personally I wouldn't use Brasso on a cymbal whose patina I wanted to keep intact. Brasso is a very different beast from something like the non-abrasive Paiste cleaner.

 

[eric_B]

A metal polish like Brasso is designed to abrade away the oxidized layer and expose fresh metal below. If you're careful with your pressure you probably can avoid removing enough of the patina or label to be noticeable, but the potential is there and it seems risky to me. Personally I wouldn't use Brasso on a cymbal whose patina I wanted to keep intact. Brasso is a very different beast from something like the non-abrasive Paiste cleaner.

I agree and for me this was one time only as I hadn't cleaned the cymbals at all before.
Here is a picture - alas I didnt take a before one.
BTW: there is some fading of the logos on the hi-hat because of stick hits.



I intend to clean them now more regularly with just a damp towel.

 

[cbphoto]

All these posts about using abrasive cleaners in cymbals gives me the willies. I used Brasso on my kit when I was 15 and lived in a beach house. The salt air made my Zyn cymbal green and my hardware rusty.

No more abrasives for me. Nothing but a dry towel touches my cymbals. Only Nevr-Dull touches my hardware. Only Dunlop Formula 65 touches my lacquered shells.

 

[eric_B]

Only Nevr-Dull touches my hardware.

I saw this mentioned before and thought I would give it a try so just ordered it - it is less common over here.

 

[Xstr8edgtnrdrmrX]

The caveat with Brasso is that it's abrasive. It will take off the patina if you use any pressure. It will also remove the labels. So if you're going to use Brasso, you need to be sure you're good with having a bright new looking cymbal with no labels when you're done.

yeah, I have only used Brasso once just cause I didn't like the process

Lemon juice and Bar Keepers Friend (oxalic acid) will also remove the patina thanks to their acidity.

I can't tell what the deal is with Soft Scrub. In some places it's described as mildly abrasive and in other places non-abrasive. It may depend on the formulation (Soft Scrub for Sinks, Soft Scrub with Bleach, Soft Scrub Commercial Kitchen & Bathroom, etc).

yeah....I just tried regular Soft Scrub,, ,and would only ever really use it again on the worst areas. It is definitely - to me - mildly abrasive...

With Simple Green I'd be really careful with the dilution. It is strongly alkaline and I know from experience that it will chemically mar unfinished aluminum when undiluted. It wouldn't surprise me if it could do something similar to bronze. But I also know from experience that it's an outstanding cleaner if used right. I'm seeing dilutions as high as 1:10 recommended for unfinished metals.

yep, I use a little lid full in a gallon sized tub that sits in the sink. I use a cloth to get the whole cymbal wet with the solution, and them scrub with a toothbrush.

The Paiste cleaner claims to be designed for clear coated cymbals but just seems to be a mild detergent with no abrasives so would seem to be fine for all cymbals.

yep....I feel the least worried about using this stuff, but the process takes a bit longer

And of course good old soapy water with something like Dawn would be a low risk general purpose cleaner for all cymbals.

I love Dawn....Ii have also used this on cymbals that are just grimy from hands or as a quick clean

 

[denis1410]

Hey guys I wrote an article on this topic maybe you'll find it useful https://drumthat.com/how-to-clean-cymbals/