I was wondering how everyone cleans their knobs & buttons.
I was thinking maybe an Orange cleaner ?? Looking for simple/ easy.
I use GoJo and a toothbrush to get the first layer of grunge off then if there is still stuff in the small indentations I'll use some dental tools to do a little scraping and more brushing. I've heard of folks using an ultrasound bath....but I don't have one of those. When they are clean I might use some novus to polish them up and then buff them. How easy and quick depends on how dirty and grungy they were to start with.
For light cleaning (finger grunge and the like), hot water and a denture cleaning tablet like Polident or Efferdent works very well. For heavier dirt and even some kinds of paint splatters, straight ammonia can't be beat. But only use ammonia on bakelite…it can actually melt some kinds of plastics.
they are mainly covered in white (Moldy?) stuff. I did dish soap and Murphys Oil soap with a toothbrush ....got some of it.
I let them soak after a liberal spray of furniture polish like Pledge. Then a soft toothbrush and a soft cloth will get them clean and polished in one step.
I soak mine in Tide, then scrub with a brush. Dry and polish with Plastx.
Eric, do you mean straight Tide, or Tide mixed with water?
Straight. 15 minutes does it.
Very interesting...
I would like to thank everyone who posted. This is good information.
That white (moldy?) stuff is likely caused by outgassing of the material. You can clean it off but it will eventually return. I don't thinik anyone has figured out a way to eliminate it yet.
I also soak mine but in hot water and Dawn followed by scrubbing with a brush and finally steel wool. The steel wool takes off the top oxidized layers. Then I polish the knobs on my buffing wheel using tripoli polishing compound. Just be careful not to apply too much pressure as the friction can actually melt some plastics. Lastly I apply carnauba wax for protection.
Steve D
For knobs in really bad shape, I basically do what Steve does except I start with the fine wire wheel on my grinder. It can get into the cracks and is fast. Any of this rough treatment requires polishing afterwards. If you use this technique, move quickly. Bakelite is very tough, but if you put too much pressure or stay too long you can burn it.
I've always used Scrubbing Bubbles Mega Shower Foamer. Just put them in the laundry tub. Spray very well. Come back in 15 minutes and rinse in hot water. No fuss. Super clean. Here is a pic from the 37-116 I'm working on. I didn't even pre-clean them, they were super dirty. I'm going to give them a quick coat of gloss lacquer.
Tony
.... very artistic!!
