UBB.threads Forums Uniform & Accessories Medals & Badges of the Third Reich Forum Clean and Restore or not

I have a question for the experts here. Should I clean and restore a set of medals all belonging to one man? One of the long service ribbons on one of the medal bars has faded badly. I thought about removeing the faded ribbon and turning over the unfaded side is facing out but in a delemma whether or not I should do it. The grouping will never be for sale as they were a gift to me by the son(ww2 vet himself)The grouping is mainly WW1 with a cpl WW2 medals. I have already posted a pic of the grouping along with the minatures that go with the grouping in the minatures section

doesn't sound like there is any need to disturb this grouping ACTUALLY HAD A LOOK AT THE FRAME to confirm .IMO let it be very nice grouping

regards PAUL

Greetings Funkgefreiter Schmidt,
This question and it's practice has been discussed with Pros and Cons for a long time. Some say don't and some say do. Paulbear's advice on this one is what you need to follow.
However, I think a lot of some areas of cleaning is up to the individual collector. Sometimes when you clean an item,such as a Badge for instance,the light cleaning with a non-abrasive polish or whatever can reveal a nice surprise. I bought a common Silver Tank Badge about two months ago and it had a lot of crud from years of being stored away. I washed it with warm water, a mild detergent using a soft bristle toothbrush. I then thourghly dried it with a hair dryer on low heat. After that I lightly applied Semi-Chrome and buffed it out with a soft lint-free cotton cloth. To my pleasant surprise and joy the cleaning revealed a nice little Daisy under the front side inboard of the track. That increased its value immediately. But, keep in mind it's always a gamble. You can either bring out the best in a certain piece or you may end up worsening the condition of the piece. On your very nice grouping, follow Paulbears advice and leave as is.

Link to the awards in question.
http://daggers.infopop.cc/eve/forums?a=tpc&s=42090573&f...570080584#9570080584

Minimal cleaning is usually the best action. Soft cloth, soap and water, soft brush, dry throughly, all as mentioned above.

--dj--Joe

I can see lightly cleaning a pinback medal or badge but when it is connected to a ribbon is another thing. Ribbons can become very fragile over time and even simple light cleaning can cause it to fall apart. So I think I will just err on the side of caution and leave the display as I received it. Maybe just a light dusting with a soft brush to remove surface dust and leave the patina that only time can produce. That way there is no doubt that these medals have always been together.

A very wise choice. And Yes, you are dead on about ribbons. Those are best to leave alone just as they are. In the early days of my collecting I found that out from the school of hard knocks. I'm to ashamed to talk about the ribbons I trashed.