once again to clean or not to clean!

[paddywhack]

righto i know theres aaaaaaaaaaalllllllllways a thread about weather or not to clean a peice and normaly im no no leave it be its all good but on this occasion i just dont realy know!! well i got a ground assult badge of off the estand a week or 2 ago(finaly!! go irish post!!) and its pretty funky BUT it looks as if it has been through both world wars and the cold war!!theres alot of patina and i suppose tarnish but im thinking of cleaning it up abit! so what do you guys think? to clean or not to clean that is the question!! and if so what is the best way of doing it?
all advice welcome! cheers!

[Frank Heukemes]

Whatever you have to do if you cannot leave it alone, do not dip it in silver cleaning solution, since the ground assault is a zinker. The finish would get even worse.
Use luke warm water,a mild soap and a soft toothbrush and rub gently. That is as far as I would go.

Cheers, Frank

[paddywhack]

dont worry i had no intention of getting that drastic!!! i was kinda thinking of the warm soapy water as iv clean a irish air corps collar badge from ww2 that was just a lump of sticky cr*p (a collecter mate picked it up out of a box of odds and ends and said buy that its hard to get,which i did for 3 euros not bad! ) and it came out very very nice! how about those silver cleaning cloths?
thanks!

[Frank Heukemes]

Never, ever use a silver cleaning cloth! You will end up with a rubbed away finish or a shiny base metal coming through at best. These cleaning cloths take away from the surface and not just dirt!

Cheers, Frank

[paddywhack]

it was just a thought!! hhmmm i still amint sure weather to clean it or not!!! it is abit of a dilemma!!!!
thanks anyway frank!