Brasso
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Brasso is a widely-used and well-known metal polish. It is sold either as a light brown, opaque liquid, or as impregnated wadding.
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[edit] History
Brasso has been in use for over 100 years, and originated in Britain in 1905. In 1904 Reckitt and Sons' senior traveller, W.H. Slack, visited the company's Australian branch, where he discovered such a product in use. Samples from Australian and US producers were then analysed by Reckitt's chemists, and by 1905 liquid polish under the trademark "Brasso" was being sold, initially to railways, hospitals, hotels, and large shops.[1]
The polish grew in popularity in England, eventually replacing the previous paste-style polishes. It has undergone very few changes in both composition and package design over the past century. Cans are often collected as a typical example of classic British advertising design.
[edit] Ingredients
The label of Australian Brasso lists "Liquid Hydrocarbons 630g/L; Ammonia 5g/L", whereas the MSDS for Brasso in North America lists: isopropyl alcohol 3-5%, ammonia 5-10%, silica powder 15-20% and oxalic acid 0-3% as the ingredients.[2]
[edit] Other applications
Brasso can also be used to polish out scratches in plastics:
- It is used to polish CDs, DVDs, screens, and pools in order to repair scratches. It is a mild solvent and an extremely fine abrasive, so when applied to the reflective surface of the disc and rubbed radially (in straight lines between the edge and center), it can smooth scratches and reduce their effect.[3][4] [5]
- Brasso can also be used on Lego minifigures to remove markings.[6]
- Brasso has also been used by watch enthusiasts to polish scratches out of acrylic crystals on watches.
[edit] Silvo
Silvo is a similar wadding product for polishing silver and gold, from the same manufacturer, and in similar packaging that is predominantly blue, rather than red. The wadding itself is pink, rather than light brown. Brasso is more abrasive than Silvo, so while Silvo can be used for polishing brass, Brasso should not be used on silver or gold.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Church, Roy A.; Andrew Godley (2003). The Emergence of Modern Marketing. Routledge. p. 30. ISBN 071465390X.
- ^ reckittprofessional.com MSDS Product Safety Data Sheet
- ^ Understanding and Servicing CD Players, Ken Clements, p 177
- ^ Big Book of Apple Hacks, Chris Seibold, p 584 - 585
- ^ http://users.fulladsl.be/spb2267/restorecd/restorecd.htm
- ^ Burks, Jared (Summer 2006). "Minifig Decal Application". Brickjournal 1 (5): pp. 97. http://www.fineclonier.com/Decal_Application.pdf.
- ^ http://www.burningissues.net/how_to/scratchrepair/scratchrepair.htm
