Gold tone hardware & how to clean it - "...and I wonder, wonder"

[Mike]

What can be done against the wear and tear of the gold tone hardware? I know some don´t like it at all, but I do. (It´s a matter of taste anyway, I guess).

My LP and Matador has suffered scratches etc. Can I just clean them with a crome polish or anti-oxidant ?

Can the aging process be stopped?
Interesting question once you have become 40 years old
:laugh:

But I hope my drums & I can keep in good shape...

[Mike]

Well, to be precise, cleaning the hardware wasn´t the only question, but REFURBISHING the gold tone - what can you do, what shouldn´t you etc.

Any answers are welcome! Thanks

[deadhead]

LP gold hardware looks fantastic when its new, but the wear and tear of it is horrible. The hardware on my LP galaxies looked like crap, the gold was faded and flaked off in a lot of places. A guy who sold me a Galaxy quinto had redone the hardware and did a gold powder coat. It looked ok, but didn't match and was more of a dull color than shiny. If you wanted to you could probably go to a shop and get them replated, but it would probably be cheaper to just replace the hardware with new from LP. Auto part stores usually carry metalic paint, dunno how good it will look and it will probably flake, but theres a few options for you. Good luck

[Mike]

If you wanted to you could probably go to a shop and get them replated, but it would probably be cheaper to just replace the hardware with new from LP. Auto part stores usually carry metalic paint, dunno how good it will look

Thank you for the quick reply, deadhead!

Well, as my pecuniary situation is a bit strained at the moment (as I´ve just bought a Galaxy Ash Quint-o!! :;): , I tend to leave things as they are, because NEW hardware by LP is rather expensive (at least 7€ for one tuning lug, the rim of course more).
I find your idea about car shops better; a friend of mine works at a Renault garage , so why not ask him for some gold

[deadhead]

:cool: always helps to have a connection!

[ozrivera]

Saludos Hermanos
Mike
Im not a fan at all of any gold tone on congas or bongos. over time most gold finishes end up looking ugly. but sometimes you have no choice but to buy it because they only have a particular model you like in gold tone.
i have a set of matador bongos that had a gold tone finish. however overtime the finish was looking pretty bad. so what i did was, take apart the bongo and stripped the all the gold tone part on a grinding wheel with a buffing pad and some hard paste wax (turtle wax). they now look like a bronze color but they always stay shiny and wont tarnish. i will post some pics later for you to see.

oz

[Mike]

Yes, oz, that would be interesting to see indeed.
I have also wondered if you could make gold hardware polished steel hardware again.

It´s good to hear that I don´t suffer from the goldtone problems alone. And you´re absolutely right: A couple of years ago goldtone was all the rage.
As I said I don´t dislike it generally, but it really grows shabby after some while when you ´use ´ your congas. And use I do!! :laugh:

[zwar]

ho mike

my meinl mongos are goldplated, i dont know how old they are, bought them used, i guess about 8-10 years. there is no problem with the plating at all.
if i where you, i left it like it is. there were times, when goldplated hardware meant top of the line. nowadays a lot of the cheapies come with goldplating. so that is wearing thin. on the other hand the custom-drums mostly are made using black steel (simonsen) or chrome (reiche).
i am sure in near future gold hardware will loose its "high end flair". blackened or polished steel will come up, in company with oil finish. we ll see...
me dont bother anymore that much how the tubes look like. imho time is better spent playing or making new connections.

grüsse aus der sonnigen heckenschwalm

zwar

[Mike]

Hey-ho zwar,

I back you up, the focus should be on playing and not looking at hardware :p .

I´m enjoying the sunny day off (Völker hört die Signale: it´s the first of May after all) , going to do some kpanlogo on congas with the kids in the garden.

Greetings from "borderline" West Germany :;):

Mike



Edited By Mike on 1178024091

[ozrivera]

Saludos Hermanos
sorry for the delay on the pics.
i placed the bongos on the timbales just so that you can see the difference between the gold trim and how it is now.


take care

oz

Attachment: http://mycongaplace.com/forum/eng/uploa ... timbal.jpg

[ozrivera]

Hey-ho zwar,

I back you up, the focus should be on playing and not looking at hardware :p .

I´m enjoying the sunny day off (Völker hört die Signale: it´s the first of May after all) , going to do some kpanlogo on congas with the kids in the garden.

Greetings from "borderline" West Germany :;):

Mike

Focus is always on playing, however i like my equipment in excellent conditions, and maintain it accordingly. nothing wrong with giving your tools some love

oz