Cleaning out an old box of Military Pins I found in my old collection, Collected in 1960s

I found this Nice Balfour Bombardier SweetHeart Bracelet and was thinking of drooping it  in some
Silver/Gold Liquid cleaner ? Since it has a Gold Backing AND Silver Wings once cleaned and polished
the WINGS should really stand out.

  Its very well worn and has lost a lot of the detail so dont think it should hurt anything
and would look so much better ??? Should I clean it ??




 

While I don't have an opinion about proper cleaning or polishing of military insignia (its yours, you can do what you want with it), I do highly discourage anyone from using dip-based, instant tarnish removing chemicals.  These dips are extremely harsh, use acidified thiourea (known carcinogen), and over time will etch away the surface of the item.  I note that this item is gold filled.  Dips are harsh enough to possibly remove enough gold to reveal the underlying base metal.  If you do decide to polish it, or any other antique item, it is worth reading the advice on Jeffrey Hermann's (a professional silver restorer) website:

 

https://www.hermansilver.com/care.htm

I'd leave it alone, unless your girl is wearing it. LOL 

1 hour ago, cwnorma said:

While I don't have an opinion about proper cleaning or polishing of military insignia (its yours, you can do what you want with it), I do highly discourage anyone from using dip-based, instant tarnish removing chemicals.  These dips are extremely harsh, use acidified thiourea (known carcinogen), and over time will etch away the surface of the item.  I note that this item is gold filled.  Dips are harsh enough to possibly remove enough gold to reveal the underlying base metal.  If you do decide to polish it, or any other antique item, it is worth reading the advice on Jeffrey Hermann's (a professional silver restorer) website:

 

https://www.hermansilver.com/care.htm

 

58 minutes ago, 268th C.A. said:

I'd leave it alone, unless your girl is wearing it. LOL 

Thanks Guys I probably should of waited and read the responses First 🤪
But thinking how much better it would look cleaned I went ahead and dipped it for about 20 seconds and then did a fast polish
on the silver wings .

 

If you are going to clean it, do it right.  I recommend a wire wheel and some brasso!   NOT

Here we go, the clean or not to clean question shows it’s head once again.

Nothing gets collectors horns of opinion to come out like this one, lol.

Tried Tarn-X on a silver bowl a while ago and it smelled terrible. Plus, it tarnishes again.

 

For collectible stuff, the patina/tarnish/ toe jam encrusted in crevices adds to the authenticity.

A gentle washing up liquid and a very soft paint brush then leave it as is. If it was mine, id leave it as is providing there is nothing on it that is detrimental to the piece.  

For silver I use baking soda, sheet of aluminum and hot water. It has cleaned up some nasty tarnish and leaves the finish natural, not highly polished (unless it was polished already).