TromboneChat

I'm based in europe and find it impossible to get my hands on this stuff!!!

Anybody any suggestions?

Warmest regards
Boomtown

I got mine via the internet from a store in Canada, it wasn't that expensive at the time.

But if you don't mind getting several lifetimes worth of brass polish.. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/124497631007 ... SwWZZf4ips

It works great!

CarlVicVogel

You could use 'Brasso' made in the uK and readily available. I have both and find brasso is just as good as Wrights?... Doug

DougHulme wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 1:58 am You could use 'Brasso' made in the uK and readily available. I have both and find brasso is just as good as Wrights?... Doug

Brasso, at least the versions I am familiar with, has an abrasive in it. Works fine, but is not a direct substitute for Wrights.

For example, i don't put Brasso inside a slide.

Cheers,
Andy

DougHulme wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 1:58 am You could use 'Brasso' made in the uK and readily available. I have both and find brasso is just as good as Wrights?... Doug

All polishes contain abrasive particles - it's their material and size that varies.

The abrasive particles in Brasso are considerably larger. I wouldn't consider the two directly comparable, and I would agree that Brasso is too rough for use on slide outers.

Wright's has two versions: a liquid and a paste. The paste is more aggressive, possibly like Brasso. I've also heard that Flitz liquid is pretty good, but I'm not sure what brands are in EU.

The brasso we have is impregnated in a cloth and comes out of the tin like a fibre? Many of us have been using it for years on non laquered horns but I am not in a position to offer an authoritive opinion, just the results for both wrights and brasso seem similar to me. There is a good 'anti tarnish' result for both after use so I am guessing there is something in both of them to put a barrier on to hinder tarnshing?... I know nothing except my fingers are black after I have used either!

Ah... Different stuff. The Brasso that I get here is a liquid that is fairly thick with very chunky abrasive bits in it. Feels quite gritty to the touch. The Wrights that I get is a significantly thinner liquid with no significant grit that I can feel.

Cheers,
Andy

BoomtownRath wrote: ↑Sun Nov 28, 2021 10:25 am I'm based in europe and find it impossible to get my hands on this stuff!!!

Anybody any suggestions?

Warmest regards
Boomtown

Amazon.com

DougHulme wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 7:44 am The brasso we have is impregnated in a cloth and comes out of the tin like a fibre? Many of us have been using it for years on non laquered horns but I am not in a position to offer an authoritive opinion, just the results for both wrights and brasso seem similar to me. There is a good 'anti tarnish' result for both after use so I am guessing there is something in both of them to put a barrier on to hinder tarnshing?... I know nothing except my fingers are black after I have used either!

We have similar stuff here and I have used it to polish bare spots on an inner slide (which I subsequently dab with either Superslick cream or Trombotine). Ours appears to be impregnated in cotton. It comes in a number of names. I have some stuff that I inherited from my father-in-law called "Maserati" that dates to the 1960s. It's often sold in auto stores for the cleaning of chrome plate (one reason I use it on inners). Problem with it for outer slide cleaning is you can't thread it through the eye of a cleaning rod.

Another mild abrasive we have here is called BonAmi. Less abrasive than the brass cleaners (paste and liquid). Another similar material is called Barkeeper's Friend.

If you go to the Wrights homepage you'll see that the brass polish in the 8oz and larger size is out of stock. You can pay through the nose elsewhere for an 8oz bottle, and as much as £80 if you're desperate..

BGuttman wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 5:35 am Wright's has two versions: a liquid and a paste. The paste is more aggressive, possibly like Brasso. I've also heard that Flitz liquid is pretty good, but I'm not sure what brands are in EU.

Hmmm?!? I didn’t realize that Flitz came in a liquid. I have only used the blue paste. I see that it is widely available on the Internet. The Flitz PASTE can be a bit aggressive…..a little more abrasive than something like Wright’s liquid. I’m wondering if the Flitz liquid has a similar abrasion as Wright’s liquid.

I always try to use the most appropriate polish for every situation. Would this be a fair categorization in terms of abrasives?

Courser abrasion:
Flitz Paste = Brasso Polish = Wright’s Paste

Finer abrasion:
Flitz Liquid = Wright’s Liquid

BoomtownRath » Sun Nov 28, 2021 6:25 pm
I'm based in europe and find it impossible to get my hands on this stuff!!!

Anybody any suggestions?

I see the OP was back in November - did you manage to get any? If not PM me with your address and I'll put some in a suitable bottle and post it to you. I still think Brasso is just as good but maybe that's not available in the Nederlands either?... Doug

I always thought from what I've read previously that Wrights was water based? Is that the case?

BellEnd

bellend wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 9:01 am I always thought from what I've read previously that Wrights was water based? Is that the case?

BellEnd

Yup, water / oxalic acid / ammonia. Not the trippy hydrocarbons of traditional Brasso (the UK-market liquid in the tin).

(A quick Google suggests that what is sold in the US as Brasso is something else entirely, and also water-based these days.)

There is a program in the US to minimize the use of organic solvents called "Resource Conservation and Recovery Act" (RCRA) and they have been at us for years to stop using products with organic solvents in them. They wanted me to switch my solvent based solder masks to something either water based (nothing readily available) or 100% solids (UV cured). This goes to other things like instrument lacquers, hence the use of things like acrylates (can be sprayed and UV cured from 100% solids) or urethanes (can be water borne) over the old lacquers used for decades. Same goes for metal polishes. Transition to water borne from solvent based.

You can find out if a material is water borne or solvent based from something that must be available for any [non-food] chemical sold in the US, the Manufacturer's Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). It shows all active ingredients in the chemical. Water is considered an inert ingredient and need not be listed as such, but if the inert ingredients are a sizeable percentage it's probably water. You can usually find the MSDS for anything on the manufacturer's Web Site. If there is no Web Site there are repositories for MSDS sheets. They must be offered free of charge to anyone who requests one.

ithinknot wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 9:24 am

bellend wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 9:01 am I always thought from what I've read previously that Wrights was water based? Is that the case?

BellEnd

Yup, water / oxalic acid / ammonia. Not the trippy hydrocarbons of traditional Brasso (the UK-market liquid in the tin).

(A quick Google suggests that what is sold in the US as Brasso is something else entirely, and also water-based these days.)

Hmmmm...
Oxalic acid is the primary ingredient in Barkeeper's friend. I feel better now since I've been using it to clean out the occasional horn...
--Andy in OKC

Oxalic acid is also used in car radiator flushes. Good cleaner for copper alloys.

Blue Magic works great for me and is non abrasive.

Thrawn22 wrote: ↑Tue Jan 18, 2022 3:45 pm Blue Magic works great for me and is non abrasive.

No, it's not. I know they say this, but it's marketing nonsense. (I also know no one cares.)

https://www.bluemagicusa.com/content/pr ... 500-06.pdf
Al₂O₃ is the second ingredient, as with most metal polishes.

BoomtownRath wrote: ↑Sun Nov 28, 2021 10:25 am I'm based in europe and find it impossible to get my hands on this stuff!!!
Anybody any suggestions?

Wright's brass polish is hard to find.
Instead, I use Wright's Silver Cream. It's much easier to find.
The Wright's Silver Cream does not contain ammonia like the Wright's Brass Polish or Brasso, so it is less aggressive. It cleans brass well, but because it has no ammonia it does not etch the surface and cause roughness. It is also water soluble; two very good things if you use polish to shine up slide tubes. I see that it is available at Ubuy on your side of the Pond.

https://www.ubuy.fr/en/product/34H7YQO- ... ly-clean-a

CharlieB wrote: ↑Mon Feb 07, 2022 12:08 pm

BoomtownRath wrote: ↑Sun Nov 28, 2021 10:25 am I'm based in europe and find it impossible to get my hands on this stuff!!!
Anybody any suggestions?

Wright's brass polish is hard to find.
Instead, I use Wright's Silver Cream. It's much easier to find.
The Wright's Silver Cream does not contain ammonia like the Wright's Brass Polish or Brasso, so it is less aggressive. It cleans brass well, but because it has no ammonia it does not etch the surface and cause roughness. It is also water soluble; two very good things if you use polish to shine up slide tubes. I see that it is available at Ubuy on your side of the Pond.

https://www.ubuy.fr/en/product/34H7YQO- ... ly-clean-a

Does this work on brass? I've always had some, since my drum corps days, never thought to use it on brass.

It works pretty well on brass, it takes some more elbow grease to really get a polish, but its worth it imo, given the lack of ammonia, and I suspect the abrasive is less aggressive as well. I use it to polish my outer slide tubes about once a year.

Good to know! I'll have to give that a shot.

I got a tip from a colleague that saves a bit on the "elbow grease" for polishing the inside of the outer slides.

I took a snake with the plastic coating and cut off one end. You can then insert that end in a drill or a power screw driver. You can use that to polish the inside of the outer slide tubes (I use Wright's Brass Polish). You do need to be careful to guide the snake and keep one hand around it at the top of the slide as you are guiding it into the slide so it can't start swinging wildly, and keep the speed low on the drill. I follow up with the Slideomix terrycloth on a cleaning rod and lots of rinsing to get rid of any last traces of brass polish.

This has worked well for me - I don't go through all of this every time I clean my slide - maybe once or twice a year. Just be careful -power tools and trombone slides in the same room!

Jim Scott