Posted by John Swensen on July 18, 2000 at 14:35:54:
In Reply to: Re: Remove lacquer posted by Joseph Felton on July 18, 2000 at 13:28:44:
It all depends on the type of lacquer. Old, cellulose-type lacquers can often be removed with boiling water. I can remember taking lacquer off a copper tea kettle by boiling it in an aqueous solution of baking soda (recommended by the manufacturer).
Modern, epoxy-type lacquers, often baked on, are far more resitant to heat, and have been known to survive brief exposure to soldering temperatures. Acrylic lacquers are somewhere in between cellulose and epoxy-type lacquers in durability.
The solvents in Brasso are probably something like naptha or mineral spirits, which do very little harm to most dried finishes, even old lacquer. The abrasives would wear away the lacquer, but might act faster on brass than on tough, modern lacquer, leaving a very uneven surface. Good old paint stripper (primarily methylene chloride, a known carcinogen) is probably the best way to strip modern lacquer off a horn (best done outside, wearing adequate skin and eye protection).
People might want to remove lacquer from a horn because the old lacquer is flaking off and looks terrible, besides leaving flakes of lacquer on clothing. There are some who believe that lacquer changes the sound of the tuba, so they remove it from the bell. Some people may like the look of brown, oxidized brass; others may like polishing.