TromboneChat

Hello:

Any high-level tips for cleaning a newly purchased vintage trombone, 1960s era? Specifically, I'm wondering about DIY approaches to both removing any internal residue, gently cleaning lacquer finishes and any advantages / caveats of ultrasonic cleaning.

Appreciative of any pointing to previous posts on this topic.

James

The Yamaha lacquer cleaning solution works really well! I would start by just using normal dish soap and a bore snake on the internal tubing and looking through the tube to see what they look like. Use old newspaper to clean off the old slide grease, and if the tubes look okay, then reapply some synthetic like Ultrapure. If the outer slide has minor corrosion, you can swab it with a mild brass polish, like Wright's. Use the trombone slide rod and a long strip of bedsheets or soft cloth. You can seal the tube from future corrosion with Slide Dr. slide cleaning compound (or a light automotive wax polymer, if you can figure out which one Slide Dr. bottles as their product).

Ultrasonic cleaning is pretty harsh, especially if done by the wrong shop. If there is excessive buildup or corrosion, bring it to a real tech.

Insider tip……you can do your own “chemical clean” with standard vinegar (5% acidity distilled white vinegar). It is acetic acid.

I know a few trumpet players that buy 4 or 5 gallons of vinegar and put it in a large painter’s bucket for repeated uses. They just take the trumpet completely apart and put all the parts that have mineral deposits in the bucket for 20-25 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and let the parts dry. If the tubings have a thicker coat of mineral deposits, you might need to soak longer.

Using vinegar to clean the inner and outer slides requires a bit more planning. Before doing the outer slide, you must ensure that the water key cork does not leak. Carefully pour the vinegar into outer slide and then lean it (upright) into the corner of a room for 20-25 minutes. Yes, you will need to rinse it thoroughly.

For the inner slide, you can buy rubber corks of the appropriate size at hardware stores. Pour the vinegar in, lean in a corner and let the acetic acid do its job. The inner slide requires a more careful rinsing process. You must run water through the upper tube upside down for a good length of time so that you remove any vinegar that could have seeped in between the inner slide and the leadpipe. This is why I feel that removable leadpipes are far better for instrument maintenance than soldered leadpipes. Likewise, you must also rinse the inside of the cork barrels.

The bell section can be done as well if you take apart all of the components. It is easier to do the bell section with a five-gallon bucket of vinegar. However, I have seen trombone players use corks for the inside of goosenecks and narrow, tapered table legs (substituted for large corks) to hold vinegar in bell stems.

Side note: One of my trumpet playing buddies did the “vinegar chemical clean” thing a few times a year, using a large bucket in the same place in his garage. He claims that after about 12-13 years, the cement on his garage floor started to get crusty and disintegrate a bit. Makes sense to me. After all, vinegar is a (mild) acid!

I like to take a shower with a new used instrument. I've got a hose that fits in a slide to flush it well. I use Dawn soap, a snake and wash rags. You might also clean the inside of the outer slide with a rod and cheese cloth, also maybe polish it, and snake out the crook with soap and water. Sometimes I use the water to check for serious leaks.

Vinegar is great to use for cleaning, but I have muriatic acid. Don't use this if you're not sure what you're doing. You can get this stuff at good hardware stores. Wear glasses and gloves. Keep small amounts cut down (with water) in a glass container, labeled with a secure lid, out of the way of the curious. Don't use it around nice cosmetic stuff in your expensive bathroom.

Definitely clean mouthpieces (mouthpiece brush), leadpipes, along with the rest of the horn. Especially if there's some question of illness or a foul odor.

I re-lube all tuning slides, and disassemble any valves that I think I can put back together. In the summer I put new old cases outside in the sunshine (poor man's U-V disinfect), and spray them with alcohol.

One time I bought a tuba, and I cleaned a dead mouse out of it the SECOND time I washed it. You have to be thorough. I've cleaned several ebay trombones with layers of green flakes inside. Some are pristine when they get here. You never know what you're going to find.

Note. Muriatic acid will remove chrome.

Thank you all for these kind and helpful replies. Very appreciative of the expertise in this forum!

As a chemist, I recommend the acetic acid (vinegar) route. Hydrochloric (muriatic) acid is very aggressive and can cause red rot if you aren't careful. For that matter, you can create red rot with vinegar, but it will take a much longer time. Soak times with muriatic acid should be measured in seconds while the soak times with vinegar can be minutes. You could leave a very crusty slide in vinegar for a few days, but not in muriatic acid.

Following a soak in any acid, you should soak in a solution of either sodium carbonate (washing soda) or sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) to neutralize the acid. A general idea is around 0.5% by weight (5 grams per liter, or about a tablespoon per quart) in water. Follow up with a good clear water rinse.

Different approach.
I stay away from acid soaks.
To the bathtub.........
A good cleaning with Dawn dish soap, lots of warm water, and a snake brush.
Dawn brand because it is very good at emulsifying oil residues so that they mix with water.
Then the inside of the outer slide gets polished.
Go to Home depot and buy a 3/8" diameter, 36" long wood dowel. Cut a long 1" wide strip of cloth. With a hacksaw, saw a I" long slit in one end of the dowel. Anchor one end to the cloth strip in the slot, and wrap it around the dowel until it fits the slide snugly. You're making a giant Q-Tip. Barber pole the remainder of the strip along the full length of the dowel. When you insert this into the slide tube, one end of the cloth strip and the dowel will always be outside of the tube. Apply a water soluble brass cleaner/polish to the fat end of the cloth and work it back and forth in the slide tube. Then, it's back to the bathtub to wash out the polish.
Wright's Brass polish used to be the go-to product, but that seems to no longer be available. Wright' Silver Polish also works, and that is available at Home Depot