Restoration ???

[len]

I have a 1975 Ludwig kit. Haven't touched it in years. It's complete except for the hi-hat. Problem is the chrome is looking pretty bad. Both on the stands and the rims. It feels sticky to the touch. Shells are all mahogany, except for the snare, which is all chrome. What's the best method for cleaning it? I want to do this right and get it back to looking as close to original as possible. Is it better to find a pro?

[ThePloughman]

Do not use steel wool, no matter what anyone says.

[fumbled time]

I would suggest a product called never-dull. It is great for polishing and cleaning metal(not abrasive) You can get it at wally world or truckstops. If you look in the cymbals forum under the title (Allas pegasus) you can see what it did to my cymbals. I use it on alot of projects. Best of luck! F/T

[Ribkick]

Never-Dull is for non-ferrous metals like brass and aluminum. For chrome, and all chrome is alike, use any good automotive chrome polish.

[fumbled time]

Never-Dull is for non-ferrous metals like brass and aluminum. For chrome, and all chrome is alike, use any good automotive chrome polish.

Ribkick, You are a little off. Never dull is great for all metals, Here is what the can says: Never-dull cleans and polishes all metals including: silver, gold, brass, cooper, pewter, steel, aluminum, and chromium. Removes rust and corrosion instantly.

Never dull removes rust and tar from automobiles and motorcycle chrome. Leaves no deposits in crevices of metal work.
Excellent for steel and chrome.

F/T

[fumbled time]

Oh ya welcome to D/C Len! F/T

[ThePloughman]

Start with a general and very careful disassembly of the drums. Give your metal parts a good cleaning before attempting a polish. A generous bath in a heavy mix of Dawn dish soap and water works well, there are other methods that you can use also. Nearly everyone has a preferred way to do this. I generally use the Dawn with water method on Rogers chrome, then carefully and fully dry everything out. Also, I only use 100% cotton cloth baby diapers on my chrome. No terry cloth, no abrasive cloth, no scotchbrite pads, just the cloth baby diapers. They will not scratch chrome. ANY abrasive......is well..... like using sand paper, including all grades of steel wool. I have seen many chrome drums ruined by the use of steel wool.
On wrapped finishes, again the cloth baby diapers, give them a good cleaning with dampened cloths, dry thouroughly, and assess whatever more needs to be done. NOVUS #1 is good for a general polish. #2 and #3 are for deeper scuffs, and ARE abrasive. Follow the directions well...... On some sparkle wraps you will find an "orange peel" like texture to the finish, this is normal. Overpolishing these finishes will even out that finish and is not good, so be careful when using them on wraps, as that is NOT what you desire.
On reassembly, be very careful to adequately tighten screws, but DO NOT overtighten. Early Rogers Beavertail Lugs, on drums produced at the introduction of the beavertail, around mid 1963, used the same sized screws as the phased out Bread and Butter lugs, and overtightening WILL break the screw post off the lug. Thats the reason Rogers quickly began to use a smaller screw in those lugs shortly after they went into production. The same care applies with any vintage, and even modern hardware. Do it by hand, dont use battery powered screw drivers and such to assemble. And pay attention to what you are doing. Once a mishap occurs, its too late to go back.

[Johnny G]

I just finished restoring my 1968 Sonor's. In order to get the chrome back to a 'like new' shine, I used, that's right, steel wool and Dawn with outstanding results. The lugs and rims are really shining now with no visible scratches. I know the previous posts said something about seeing kits ruined with steel wool, but I had to point out my success.
Maybe I got lucky by using a really cheap steel wool.
I would post pics but I am at work cuz my home PC crashed.