Have a hamilton monty dial i wish to clean have been told that it is possible for red minute markers to be partially or totally removed if cleaned could someone advise me if this is correct, I would say this topic has been covered before but I could not find mention of it
I was either going to soak it or perhaps put it in an ultrasonic cleaner for a couple of minutes but do not want to learn the hard way and damage the dial

Hi Jeff,

Hamilton dials are pretty tough when it comes to cleaning them. I have ruined other dials but never a Hamilton. But I guess it all depends on how you clean it. I have never put mine in an ultrasonic cleaner so I can not answer that. I use Comet bathroom cleaner on my dials. I soak them in it for about 10 minutes and then rinse it off. If it needs it a little more I may do it again for about 5 minutes. Some people use Denture cleansers the type you put the tablet in a glass of water. I have never tried anything stronger than the Comet which can be very corrosive to the metal backing on the dials if you leave the dial in too long.

Hopefully you will get some other replies.

Harry

Of course, we’re assuming you’re not talking about a Hamilton melamine dial. If so, all bets are off.

Regards! Mark

Cleaning dials gets discussed quite often , try this link

https://ihc185.infopop.cc/eve/...rum_scope=1086047761

I agree with Mark on the Melamine dial.

Harry

Is enamel dial is just I saw a hamilton monty dial where the red minute markers were almost disappeared and was told that could happen when cleaning the dial as the red minute markers are not under the clear enamel coating this has left me a bit hesitant to clean this dial any experience in this matter is appreciated

Well I tried to remove a bezel rub extremely gentle with a pencil eraser which succeeded in removing 90% of the bezel rub however I inadvertably rubbed across the 0 of the 20 minute marker slightly removing some of the red from the 0 proving the red is vulnerable and not under the clear enamel hopefully can be seen in photo

Maybe someone with more knowledge on these dials could offer an opinion if I am right or wrong on this issue as I am unsure would be appreciated

I have never had the red fade when I clean my Hamilton dials. However find you a few old crappy Hamilton dials and practice. Start out slowwww ans see what happens.

Harry

I have used the Polident type tablet method on two occasions on Waltham dials that had 3 or 4 hairlines and had the red 10 minute Arabic numbers and was pleased with the results. I suspended them upside down for about an hour. I would advise being very careful when looping something threw the centre hole to suspend them. One of the dials was so thin at this point the enamel actually chipped a very tiny bit when slipping the thin wire I used through. I use plastic covered electrical wire. I have not had the opportunity to try it on an enamel Hamilton dial.
The Waltham dials were 16s & 18S and of 1920 and 1907 vintage. I also wipe the hairlines very gently with a small amount of bleach on a Q-tip as an added attempt to whiten any residue that might not have been removed with the dental cleaner....FWIW....
...Joe...

Thanks to all for your input will try some sort of bathroom cleaner I don't think we get comet over here but something will be similar no doubt

Lin is right Comet works good, polident is fine too.

Even if you have no hairlines, you'd be surprised how much nicer your dials will look after doing this! Clean all that dirt etc off and it'll look like new again. Big difference!

Personally I NEVER let one soak for more than 30 min max.

I too would NOT recommend putting any dial in an ultrasonic cleaner. They use vibration to clean items and if your dial has a loose piece not readily seen you stand the chance of knocking it out. Don't ask me how I know that...LOL

Don't forget all you're doing here is loosening up and removing any dirt/sediment in the cracks. It will not remove the crack, but in some instances make the line almost impossible to see.

There are some dials that will just not clean up.
You'll still see the hairline no matter what you do. Each porcelain dial is different, but this method is certainly worth a try

Thanks fellas comet not available here even through amazon Australia can get polident here though so I'll go with it have cleaned quite a few dials with bathroom cleaners bought here OK but was bit concerned mate said whatever he used supposedly a bathroom cleaner over here affected red numbers only cleaned the dial good though

I too have cleaned a lot of dials with Comet with great results.I have never had it remove any color.The lettering/numerals are under the glaze on an original dial, so it shouldn't wash any of it out.Hairlines won't go away, but doing this makes them almost disappear.I have a 16s Bunn Special with a Gothic style Montgomery dial that has some hairlines that I thought I would have to replace it, but after using Comet on it, it looks so good I no longer have to!

Could you show us the entire dial and perhaps a shot of the backside please ?

regards,
bb

Picture of dial that has partially faint 0 in 20 marker didn't take out of case for pix of back of dial but is enamel soldered hamilton dial other dial to be cleaned is at another residence at the moment is enamel momntgomery earlier model though thanks for help

The 0 had no problems whatsoever until after I removed bezel rub which was removed by 90% photo makes it look worst than it actually is, pencil rubber was white new soft rubber and bezel rub never extended over the 0

I agree with the others, if it is slightly dirty I use polident type tablets and a soft bristle tooth brush to get any crevices on double sunks but not brushing harshly. If the staining is deeper then I use Comet and brush on the liquid with a soft bristle brush. That usually works well but as mentioned before with the horrible melamine dials this process gets tossed since those dials sometimes fall apart just by looking at them.