Autosol Polish recommended in the National Trust’s Housekeeping Manual

April 6, 2009 · Filed Under Autosol · Comment 

In this polish tip, Autosol metal polish and Autosol Leather Cleaner are used to restore 2 antique sleigh bells on a short leather strap.

Autosol in a tube Autosol Leather Cleaner

The National Trust Manual of Housekeeping on page 256 section 6.7.3 Removing  tarnish and other corrosion. “If tarnish is heavy, use a mild abrasive paste advised for copper/brass instead. Autosol has long been used by National Trust for this.  Applying sparingly on a soft cloth or cotton wool swab with a light touch, as more pressure means more risk of abrasion. Wipe off with a white paper towel and then buff as above. Light rusting can be removed from burnished iron or steel which has not been waxed by Solvol Autosol as above, but moving in a lateral direction. A curved plate brush or a small  natural bristle toothbrush can be used to reach into crevices. For heavier rusting use fine 0000 steel wire wool together with a mild abrasvive paste as above, the latter catching any fragmated wire wool. Buff as above to remove traces of paste. Light rust from cast iron gates, firebacks and kitchen ranges can also be removed using 0000 steel wool.”

Pictured below are before and after pictures of 2 old sleigh bells on a short leather strap, that were polished using The National Trust Manual of Housekeeping technique. For good measure the leather strap was cleaned using Autosol Leather Cleaner.

Materials Used to polish bell & leather strap:

1.  Apply Autosol polish right from the tube onto your finger tip ( the use of nitrile gloves help keep your hands clean ).

2. Spread polish evenly over the entire surface of each bell and let sit for a couple of minutes.

3. With a soft cloth ( micro fiber cloths work well for this )  buff the Autosol paste off the brass bell.

4. Use the small horse hair natural bristle brush to get out any remaing polish from the crevices of the bell slots. Repeat steps above until you have the shine you desire.

5. Use the  Autosol Leather Cleaner directly from the tube. Put a few small dabs of cleaner onto the leather strap and rub in with a soft cloth.  Flip the cloth to a clean spot and buff clean.

Before and After:

bell before being polished bellafter being polished with Autosol
leather before cleaning leather after Autosol Leather Cleaner applied

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