In my opinion as a collector and restorer of vintage drums, using any grade of steel wool will leave you with a life time of regrets and well deserved sorrow.
Never use an abrasive to "clean" anything. Unless it is covered in rust, and all other methods have been applied without adequate result. Steel wool is the absolute worst thing you could use. Combine Steel Wool with a cutting agent, whether that is a polish, WD-40, some other sort of petroleum product, or whatever, all you are doing is scratching your hardware.
Don't believe me? Clean your nice pretty chrome snare drum/hardware as suggested.
But first... photograph it in the sunlight.
Then photograph it after, and compare.
Did anybody suggest steel wool in this thread? What is your go to cleaning product?
How about putting the stands in the dishwasher with a squirt of car polishing compound and then wiping them down with a wet rag of iso alcohol.
Use a shotgun mop to dry and oil the insides.
In my opinion as a collector and restorer of vintage drums, using any grade of steel wool will leave you with a life time of regrets and well deserved sorrow.
Hi John,
You have a beautiful drum collection, my friend. I have to look it over again every time you post!
I will mildly disagree with your total ban on using steel wool, though. I've been using 0000 and finer wool for over fifty years as a last-resort remover of light corrosion on chrome. Once my initial learning curve was overcome, I've been able to use it with great success with unnoticeable scratches. Whoever tackled (literally!) that snare still has some learning to do.
I will note, too, a word of caution regarding steel wool grading. Some off-shore suppliers tend to be quite liberal with their grading methods. Buying wool labeled "fine" or "extrafine" does not always yield promising results. Know your supplier. Be careful.
Like anything, even with liquid polish, any careless idiot can damage chrome with enough aggressiveness. Ask me how I know. And, without doubt, the first cleaner used should always be the mildest. But once the corrosion has set in and the chemicals will no longer remove them, FINE or ExtraFine steel wool used carefully and judiciously is still the go to.
GeeDeeEmm