[Rockhounds] Cleaning Galena, Help?

[Lawrence Rush]

Kevin: Weathered Galena is difficult to restore. I found half a dozen large 
cubes buried in leaf mold at a collector friend's house this Spring and 
tried my luck....(He had bought a truck-load at one time, dumped it there, 
and these worked their way down below the soil line) First, I tried Bon Ami 
and an old toothbrush for the worst one. You have to be gentle, since the 
ingredients in the scouring powder are harder than Galena. Results: cleaner, 
but not lustrous. Then I used the less strong acids; Phosphoric acid next, 
in medium strength and hot solution. Some good results. Next, I tried 
Sulfamic acid, same way. Better. Finally, I ended up using silver polish to 
try and restore the luster. Even better, not like the original, but a big 
improvement. If you intend to keep your piece in a collection, I would skip 
the Bon Ami.

Good luck.....Larry Rush

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Paintricks at aol.com>
To: <rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2008 11:18 PM
Subject: [Rockhounds] Cleaning Galena, Help?


> Hey everybody.  I have some nice Galena crystals that have an  oxidized
> coating i need off.  It's a dull grey like your tire weights have  after a 
> few
> thousand miles.  This stuff is beautiful underneath.  Any  suggestions?
>  Thanks in advance,
>  Kevin
>
>
>
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