I'm reviving this year and a half old topic to report on my dial cleaning experiment.

Recently I purchased a ca. 1927 South Bend 227. The case was trashed, as was the metal Montgomery dial. But the movement was very nice, and the price was very right, so I thought I'd grab it and try an experiment.

Directly below is what the dial looked like when I received it. All of the guidance suggests that metal dials should be cleaned with soap and water and nothing else. I gave that a shot, but it didn't phase the darn thing. So, given its already-trashed condition, I decided that it was worth a shot to give it short, intermittent baths in the Comet Bathroom Cleanser. As you can see in the next post, this treatment yielded mixed results . . .

THE GOOD: As you can see, the treatment significantly improved the color and removed a significant amount of the dirt. Nothing to be done about the bezel wear on the edges

THE BAD: The Comet removed some of the paint on the outside part of the Montgomery numerals, most particularly at 43-46 and 58-59.

Still, I think I'd rather have the latter version than the former.

If anyone is interested in what the back of the dial looks like, see the next post . . .

Dial Back: