Lets talk: Cleaners / Sprays / Chemicals used on our drums.

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dwludzild

dwludzild

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The other day I was with my friend Jeff Chonis and he had a little spray bottle of stuff he was using and said it was 2/3 water 1/3 Glass Plus or 2/3 Glass Plus and 1/3 water. He said he liked it cause it did not have ammonia.

I taked to another guy last week that used 1/2 CLR / 1/2 water on drum hardware.

Lots of us have used BKF on our cymbals. Novus on our wraps.

Saw the Paiste guys at NAMM with Pledge on their cymbals.


So what chemicals have you found that worked well for you on cymbals, hardware, wood shells, wrap finishes? What do you NOT like on your prize drum equipment?


Thanks,
 
Cymbals - Bar Keepers Friend

Wrap - after a polish with Novus, I put on a coat of Meguiars Gold Class wax for UV protection.

Hardware - I use a window cleaner called Invisible Glass. Less soap than most cleaners and does a good job on finger printed metal.

Chris
 
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Wow... I remember when my mom used to use the Jubilee on the kitchen floors. I would have never thought to use that stuff on my drums, but it totally makes sense. I do use Pledge or Behold spray cleaning wax on drums and hardware.

I used to use the Nevrdull wadding, but it just seemed to labor-intensive. I've gone over to the Barkeepers Friend side when I tackle that job, once every 4-5 years.
 
I found an old bottle of Jubilee at my parents house earlier this year. Mom used to use it on the stove and fridge as well as the counter tops. I guess the original formula contained some unhealthy chemicals. The new version replaced those chemicals with something a little less toxic! Whuda thunk it would be good for drums. Bermuda recommends it also.

Chris
 
Brite Stuff green on shells and hardware. Paiste orange cymbal cleaner and blue protector on cymbals (I only play Paiste and Heather Stine/37 Cymbals)
The Brite Stuff green leaves a silicone coating that sheds dust and dirt. An excellent product for wraps, lacquers, and preserving nickel/chrome.
 
Have always used Lemon Pledge on my blue shadows. Catalano recomended it in MD years ago in answer to the question, "what to clean my shadow finished drums" Cymbals I normally just use soap and water unless they are unevely dirty, like something spilled on them then I'll use a cymbal cleaner in attempt to get them cleaned. (obviously there's some cymbals that are supposed to look that way)

Hardware had a bottle of Trick that really worked well, but haven't really felt the need to clean in years. I guess since I don't have any drums that are left set up they don't really get that dirty.
 
Barkeepers is awesome on hardware also. It has become one of my main cleaners period. awesome on chrome, they have a creme cleaner now it is tops.
 
I have a friend who owns a company that makes high end lubricants, polishes and surface treatments that are well beyond the quality of the products you normally see in automotive, motorcycle or marine retail stores.

He recently sent me a sample of a polish for various surfaces - including chrome - that works EXTREMELY well.

The stuff isn't cheap, but I would recommend it over any cleaner or polish you can get at the grocery store.

Check it out . . . .

http://www.mptindustries.com/mpt_products/classic.htm
 
I love the NevrDull stuff for my Sabians and Zildjians, but I found that Windex does a great job of taking off the black residue it leaves behind.




Dan
 
dwludzild said:
The other day I was with my friend Jeff Chonis and he had a little spray bottle of stuff he was using and said it was 2/3 water 1/3 Glass Plus or 2/3 Glass Plus and 1/3 water. He said he liked it cause it did not have ammonia.

I taked to another guy last week that used 1/2 CLR / 1/2 water on drum hardware.

Lots of us have used BKF on our cymbals. Novus on our wraps.

Saw the Paiste guys at NAMM with Pledge on their cymbals.


So what chemicals have you found that worked well for you on cymbals, hardware, wood shells, wrap finishes? What do you NOT like on your prize drum equipment?


Thanks,
Click to expand...
[SIZE=9pt]In my opinion, your friend, Jeff Chonis, is spot on about avoiding cleaners with ammonia. I was just searching DFO for a warning post regarding household ammonia and the risk to copper alloys such as brass and bronze. Since I did not find such a post, I will share my understanding here.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]According to metallurgists, copper alloy (e.g. brass, bronze) is susceptible to stress corrosion cracking (SCC) where a particular alloy (even steel) is at risk to fracture when exposed to a particular chemical.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]With copper alloy, common household ammonia (e.g., Windex and others) is a known SCC risk.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]So, I would like to spread the word to keep ammonia away from, bronze, copper, brass and nickel over brass (NOB) components. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]I am sure there are some reading this who already knew to avoid ammonia. I was lucky enough to buy most of my vintage NOB parts from a drummer who never used cleaning products with ammonia. He said he has known about this for at least 20 years. And that he thought he last saw it in a Not So Modern Drummer magazine. So, credit to wherever credit is due. Regardless, lucky me, to score my NOB parts from him. :)[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]All this to say, I hope you read the labels and that you find this helpful in caring for copper, brass, and bronze components.[/SIZE]
 
Let me start by saying I rarely let my stuff get overly-dirty to begin with, but I've gotten excellent results for years w/Trick drum polish for my shells/chrome/hardware. Looks like water, but does a great job and is easy to work with. For my cymbals, I'm a "bright & pingy" vs a "dark & clicky" guy and most of my cymbals are brilliant finish. I've always used Wrights Brass Polish. It looks like milk and is very thin and runny, but dries quickly and always makes my metal pies look brand new.

I recently picked up a 20 K Custom ride on CL , and it was supposed to be a briliant, but was so filthy, I ended up cleaning it twice! I even very carefully used some steel wool to try and remove some of the more stubborn marks. But I gotta say, it looks (almost) new now and sounds fantastic. Those are the two main products I swear by.
 
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