Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Re: New Kaboom/MAAS for stainless steel reeds?

[EGS1217@xxxxxxx]

Jim Crutchfield writes:
 
"But on second thought, do we really want to use /any/ polish or  
heavy-duty cleanser on harmonica reeds? All that stuff is at least an  
irritant and maybe toxic; and it's bound to leave some residue for you  
to suck into your mouth. Over time I'd imagine you'd get a fairly  
appreciable dose in the mucous membranes. Isn't a good cleaning with  
alcohol enough?"
 
At the risk of sounding endlessly repetitious...'All that stuff is' NOT 'an 
 irritant and maybe toxic'...that's the specific reason I DO use MAAS 
....and why  Fjm himself (our listowner) mentioned what a terrific product it was 
here long  before Winslow brought up his use of it.
 
 It was developed by an American housewife precisely to be  NON-irritating, 
FAR less toxic AND less 'heavy-duty' than other  silver/metal cleaners on 
the market, and has long been promoted for polishing up  other wind 
instruments (saxophones/trumpets to be precise) due to her own  problems with the 
metal cleaners on the market at the time.
 
 
I've gone into detail before and thought I made it clear here again with my 
 last post - After polishing with the MAAS I wipe down any surface my mouth 
and  hands are going to be touching when playing, with 91% isopropyl 
alcohol. And  then the harmonica is buffed again with a dry cloth. If I don't have 
the rubbing  alcohol handy I've substituted Clorox' Anywhere hard surface 
spray instead (I  dip a cloth into some poured into a dish for that last 
wipe-down), which is safe  to use on home cutting boards, baby high chair 
surfaces and around our  pets.
 
So I do wish you would not scare people off until you do actual research  
into this specific polish, Jim.  MAAS does not leave any residue to be  
'sucked into one's mouth'. And no, over time one does not get a 'fairly  
appreciable dose in the mucous membranes'. I've been using this product on my  
harmonicas for 5 years now, have extremely sensitive skin, can't so much as eat  
an orange or a strawberry without mouth irritation and have had absolutely 
no  problems whatsoever with my harmonica polishing regimen. I'd never 
suggest use  to other players of anything I hadn't tried out myself and found to 
be an  amazing product with no harmful effects at all.
 
Perhaps Simichrome  - the polish you suggested might cause such  irritation 
and problems, but MAAS does not, which is why it's THE polish of  choice. 
But just to be completely safe and sure, I've long made a  point of telling 
anyone who plans to use it that I personally do an extra wipe  down with the 
91% alcohol afterwards before playing any instrument. 
 
FTR, some people are allergic to or can't use alcohol for other reasons  
(such as being recovering alcoholics) and don't wish to use it in any form on  
their instruments and so cannot follow your advice about 'a good cleaning 
with  alcohol' being a sufficient cleanser.
 
Out of all the metal polishes on the market MAAS is the one made for  
jewelry and delicate antiques...which leaves brass reed plates and  silverplate 
mouthpieces as well as metal covers (including the undersides)  highly 
polished and spotless. Removes rust without major scrubbing or use  of tools which 
can harm the instrument and will stave off future  rust while leaving brass 
specifically with a very soft  feel... the precise reason I use it on my 
Super 64's and Seydel Deluxe  Chromatics. So I can have a much smoother 
surface on my chromatic  mouthpieces (making them far easier to play) without the 
worry of ingesting  anything remotely harmful. 
 
Specifically too, I keep reminding everyone here that just a 'tiny  dab' of 
the polish goes very far...one polishes it in and then buffs it off.  
Michael had brought up Jason Ricci's method specifically - his use of Kaboom,  
which formula has been recently changed.
 
To me and quite a few other people I gather (since this is one of several  
such ongoing discussions on Slidemeister), a beautifully polished 
mouthpiece,  cover plate and reed plates makes for a better playing harmonica and 
leaves  a silky smooth surface which permits the chrom to go a lot  longer 
between major cleaning sessions...allowing for mere wipe-downs with a  damp cloth 
after playing, and giving it less of an attractant to dust. I covered  this 
issue the first time I ever mentioned trying out MAAS, since I'm pretty  
fanatical about not ingesting or being exposed to any toxic chemicals.  I'm 
also specifically talking about chromatics, not acrylic bodied  diatonics, 
which are far easier to clean than chromatics. 
Ymmv.
 
Elizabeth