# How to polish a Sterling Silver money clip?



## RileyM (Dec 30, 2012)

A year or two ago I bought my father a Harrods sterling silver money clip. It's looking a bit worse for wear at the moment being quite scratched up. He's away at the moment so I thought I'd polish it up for him whilst he's gone.

I've never polished silver before and I'm really not sure where to start. I'd like to buff out the scratches, but obviously don't want to lose too much of the metal. I'm assuming a normal polish doesn't get rid of scratched, so what could my best way of doing this be?

Thanks


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## Gozer (Oct 21, 2012)

There's no real way to get scratches out of silver, but a good polish will make them less noticeable. Depending on how bad they are you'd probably have to take it to a silversmith to get it completely scratch-free.


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## Tony A.H (Aug 2, 2009)

hi

one of my few Hobbies is making Jewelry.. I've been working with Silver lately (due to the high cost of Gold). 
anyways, I assume you don't have an Electric Hand Piece "some call it Dermel" and some silicon, Rubber Wheels, grinding stones of different Grits, Polishing Paste......etc ?.

your best bet is to get yourself a capecod polishing cloth
http://www.bedbathhome.com/mm5/graphics/00000001/CapeCod-PolishingCloth001_350x350.jpg

it takes a while to buff out the scratches. so you just have to be Patient . I've seen some people using it on Watch cases and got great result.

best of luck.

Cheers
Tony


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## RileyM (Dec 30, 2012)

Thanks for the response. Unfortunately I had beeb able to respond

I have seen the Cape Cod polishing cloths on a few websites before, I hadn't realised it was a well thought of method of cleaning. I shall purchase a few packs when I am back home. I might try them on a watch case also. I don't have any electric cleaning tools so I think this would be my best option.


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## Tony A.H (Aug 2, 2009)

you're Most Welcome.
and Hope The Cloth will do the Trick for you.


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## tony20009 (Sep 25, 2013)

Scratches: have a jeweler buff them out

General polishing: assign that task to the housekeeper or just start using the thing, the tarnish will go away soon enough. I don't advise using the liquids into which you dip the item because most all of them work by stripping away a very thin layer of the metal. I've tried polishing silver with the pastes and if there aren't too many decorative "cuts" and designs in which the paste will lodge, it's not such a bother. If there are a ton of such affectations on the item, it's an item I ask the housekeeper to deal with. I know she'll keep at it until all the paste is gone; I won't.


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## Skippy4000 (Jan 1, 2012)

I second the cape cod. I use it on anything metal. ANYTHING


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## Tony A.H (Aug 2, 2009)

tony20009 said:


> Scratches: have a jeweler buff them out
> 
> I don't advise using the liquids into which you dip the item because most all of them work by stripping away a very thin layer of the metal.


it's contrary.!

using a Liquid will Only Remove the Oxidation/Tarnish off the Surface. where by jeweler will remove a Layer of the Metal if he or she were to buff it .


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## Rips (Sep 10, 2013)

Mate, just use the smoothest wet and dry possible to remove the scratches, then Silvo polish.
If you really go overboard you would still only lose 2c worth of metal, soft hands are better than spinning machines on silver flat surfaces.


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## Norm S (Nov 24, 2013)

Toothpaste works really well for me. All my tiffanys crap i use toothpaste and a soft microfibre. None of that gritty or whitening stuff mind you. Just plain old white toothpaste.


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## franco60 (Jul 23, 2013)

Don't polish it! Stop! This thread's pretty old so I'm probably too late, but your Dad's scuffs, character marks and natural wear and patina should never be polished off in my opinion. Once polished off, you can never go back. I've purchased vintage belt buckles with dead men's initials to get a 70 yr old patina. If you want a new looking money clip, just go buy one. 

If you did polish it, don't sweat it, enjoy it, but if you ever have the option I'd personally never polish anything. Clean with a little Dawn dish washing liquid (very mild, leaves no residue and works on about anything) and keep patina going.


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## hobefabu (Apr 18, 2009)

Tony A.H said:


> hi
> 
> one of my few Hobbies is making Jewelry.. I've been working with Silver lately (due to the high cost of Gold).
> anyways, I assume you don't have an Electric Hand Piece "some call it Dermel" and some silicon, Rubber Wheels, grinding stones of different Grits, Polishing Paste......etc ?.
> ...


Cape Cod Cloth is the way to go.


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## Cannonball (Apr 14, 2013)

A money clip... if it's used a lot it will stay polished. Heheh. But I have a silver sax that needs a good polish at times (and I need to practice A LOT more). I use a silver polishing cloth like this ...
http://www.amazon.com/Polishing-Cloth-Silver-Metals-Largest/dp/B000FIS5U4

I'm not a fan of the cape cod wipes as they leave too much residue.


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