Hi All, This section is not an area of the forum that I usually post in, as my expertise about tins could be written on the back of a postage stamp. So a bit of help from the masters of the art that lurk in these parts would be much appreciated.

I have seen posted in the past tips on the gentle cleaning of tins to help get ride of many decades of grime, I have spent the last hour going back over threads but cannot find the one that went into details of tricks of the trade , products to use, as I seem to remember a couple of before & after pics posted by members, on this thread  were impressive enough to lodge in my brain & think "thats good work", anyhow I have an old tin, nothing  of any real note, that i would like to have a go at, but dont want to go bull in a china shop, & 10 minutes later end up  with a face like my icon !!.

Thanks in advance for any help forthcoming.

Still luvin the site Al. Keep it up

NOMAD

Hi Nomad,

I have been collecting tins for years and have experimented (sometimes disastrously) with different cleaning products. My Dad always used to advocate the wash with warm soapy water but this can sometimes get behind the print or transfer and leaves the tin cloudy and impossible to reverse.

Guru of tinnage Rustytins recommends a clean with Cif (formerly known as Jif) sometimes let down 50 - 50 with water. I use at the moment Brasso wadding, which cleans a lot of nasty away and buffs up to a nice polish with a soft cloth.

Once youve done a side its worth cleaning and buffing back. As always use a little at a time and if you're nervous about the tin clean an inconspicuous area first. About 90% of tins I''ve cleaned this way come up a treat but if they're really bad the Cif option first then a polish works wonders. You'll be amazed how they can come up even really grubby tins.

Be wary that on rough surfaces and embossing that brasso wadding can leave residue which you may need to clean off with cotton buds. It can leave residue anyhow if youre not careful, be sure to open lids and clean the edges because the polish will build up there too.

Good luck, its worth it.

Jezmondo

Just use soap and hot water.  I would never put Brasso or Brasso wadding on a tin.  It contains ammonia, and that can have a distastrous effect on the laquer that the tin is coated with.  I wouldn't recommend Cif either, it may well work, I don't know I've never used it.  If a tin is really grimey, as they often are, I usually start of with a rag and some white spirit.  You can't do any harm with it, and it'll bring off old dried out oil etc.  Then use hot water and soap - plain unscented white soap, not your wife's fancy toilet soap.  Moisten some kitchen tissue and use just a little soap.  Do a small area at a time, and keep looking at what you've got off, keep an eye out for anything that looks like the colour of the tin, and stop immediately if you see anything suspicious, as sometimes you can start removing small amounts of colour from the transfer.  Make sure you rinse it well after you've done each side, and then buff it up with a dry clean towel or cloth. Put it somewhere warm to dry.

The blooming effect that you sometimes get on tins isn't the water getting behind the transfer, it's just the effect of water on the laquer, usually caused by having not removed all the dirt.

Sure its all good advice Camwal. My experience is that I have never had a bad experience with the Brasso, bear in mind its a polish and cleaner. You need to make sure it is all polished off and it wont affect the lacquer and not all tins are lacquered admittedly early ones are. I guess what I am saying is that it's horses for courses and trying all ways is worth while what ever works best....

Maybe try both techniques. I would say in Camwal's defence that soap and water is a lot cheaper!!!

Happy Cleaning,

Jezmond

I still wouldn't use it though.  I've seen the results of tins that have been treated with it.  Soap and water will do the job as well as anything, you just have to be prepared to spend some time.  You can't clean old tins quickly, not if you want to do it properly. 

On the matter of Cif, it contains fine particles of white sand, which makes it abrasive, not the ideal thing to use in my opinion.

I use the term "laquer" generically.  "Not all tins are laquered".  They've all got a protective coating, they have to have, otherwise the transfer would just wear away.  That protective coating, whether you want to call it laquer, varnish etc etc is what I'm talking about.  It'll stand a fair amount of rough handling, but some substances will damage it irrevocably - household cleaners, metal polish, surgical spirit, to name but a few. 

I'm just trying to offer help and advice, which is based on over 20 years experience of cleaning and restoring tins.

 Hey Nomad, How about putting a picture up of the tin as it is now ..

I've found that there are no hard and fast rules with regard to cleaning / restoring tins .
Factors  such as Temperature fluctuations , Humidity etc over a tins life determine how stable the surface is and all tins will respond differently  ..

I think taking it slow and steady is the only way to go .
Gauge the response before you go too far .

I remember once gently wiping the face of a tin to test how stable the litho was , and taking the rag off to see that most of the image had come  away with it . Bummer .
Only did that once

I do not use much soap and water to clean tins .
I find a gentle wipe over with Mister Sheen will get most grime and grease off and leave a silicone like sheen on the surface after buffing  . . For tins in reasonable condition that is all I will use 

I have used a product called Farecla which is a cut and polish for vehicles . The lowest or finest grade seems to be efficient for restoring much of the original colour to realy grimy tins ,without being too harsh .
Best of luck  .. Look forward to  pics

Relics

You're absolutely spot on Relics, atmospheric conditions do have a big determining factor on the stability of the surface.  But it's no good telling that to someone who hasn't really cleaned tins much before.  You can only judge things like that after you've handled a lot of tins.

That Farecla you mention sounds like it might be similar to T-Cut here in the UK.  I've used T-cut with successful results.  It doesn't seem to do any damage either.

Whatever method you choose, one thing is crucial, don't apply to much pressure, the general rule is the less the better. 

 I found this tin last saturday  can anybody shed any light on it ? I thought it might be tea.

 Sorry forgot to say it was black and you could just see a faint pattern I cleaned it with T cut. cheers Broadie.

Hi All, Thanks the lot for the advice on cleaning the tin, I had a go at it,  but as I had no reference points from previous experience I didnt push on to far, certainly not as brave as the before & after photo posted ( above ) on this thread.As I said its not really my area of collecting, the tin passed my way & I  just wanted to do it to see how it went .

Hopefully my skills at attaching some photos is up to it as I did take some before & after photos, We'll know soon enough !! . First 2 in as found condition, then 4 after.

Thanks once again for the helpful info, sorry I fell at the final hurdle & posted the photos arse about face!!. NOMAD