Has anyone else had a piece of silver that has what appear to be water spots but they are not removed by a good polish? Is professional polishing the only way to remove these types of spots? Thanks for any information.
Kelly - sometimes they are mineral spots from hard water and may be removed with CAREFUL use of acid. Try some white vinegar on a q-tip and see what result you get. Stronger acids work faster, but carry the danger of damage. If the vinegar does not have any effect, try lightly buffing with a soft cloth and jeweler’s rouge. I use a fine stitched cotton buffing wheel in a drill press turning at 900 RPM (no faster) and jeweler’s rouge to polish out stubborn black spots. The low speed of the buffing wheel is important to prevent friction heating the silver and discoloring it.
Regards,
Uncle Vic
Thanks again Uncle Vic for sharing your knowledge!
Kelly
Best to use a liquid polish as these are more gentle than paste or wadding. I use silvo liquid for these jobs with a soft cloth.
LATE REPLY
Silvo will absolutely damage your silver! It’s so abrasive I listed it under my “Warning” category of Severely Abrasive Polishes: