I decided to clean & polish the cabinet while watching the Blackhawk games over the weekend.
First up I remove the faceplate, backplate and vent screen. All were held on by clips that came out fairly easily.
I thought it was rusty at first, but it's actually some sort of red flocking.
Here's a "before" shot of the cabinet.
First, I used Brasso. That got it clean.
Then I used Novus #2, but the surface is just too rough to get a nice uniform shine.
I'd heard that wet sanding with progressively finer grits can produce really nice results. I just happen to have some up to 3000 so I gave it a try.
Great way to work out frustration during the games
It's still pretty dull after sanding, but very, very smooth. Ever finer grits I'm sure would work great, but I don't have any on hand. Instead, I went back to the Novus #2. Remove it with short, sharp jabs and a clean cloth. Just like waxing a car.
Finally I used Simichrome metal polish until I got a nice shine. I still have work to do on the nooks and crannies and the grill. While I had all the supplies out, I went over a Motorola 9T1 too.