Cleaning up old Opera Glasses: Brass and MOP

[Chasseur]

My wife and I are big opera fans. She's wanted a set of opera glasses for some time, so I picked up a vinage set for her. I'd like to clean them up a little before I give them to her for her birthday.

There is some discoloration to the brass as you can see in the pictures. What is the best way to clean this?

Secondly, the old leather case is in pretty good condition. Any advice for re-conditioning the leather?

Thanks!

 

[dhermann1]

While we're on the subject, is there a way to reattach leatherette that has come off a pair of brass opera glasses? The leatherette is all off, but still intact.

 

[Warbaby]

I've restored quite a few old opera glasses over the years - here's what I do:

If you want to clean the lenses well, you're going to have to dismantle them. It's easy - just remember how it all goes back together. Remove the screw in the center that attaches the focusing wheel. The two halves will slip apart. Unscrew the eyepieces and objective lens mounts. Once you have the lenses out, plain ol' windex wil usually do the trick.

Yours were probably gold plated and the dull brass is where the gold has worn away. You can buff up the brass with a jewelers rouge cloth and it will be almost as shiny as the gold. The jewelers cloth will also perk up the m.o.p. The white ones are best for that because they won't leave a red residue in the seams.

Wipe any dust out of the inside of the tubes and put it all back together.

As for the loose leather on other opera glasses - it was originally put on with a water-soluable hide glue and I find it still works best for gluing it back on because of the slow dry time and the easy clean-up. Wipe any glue residue off the metal with a wet cloth. You might need to keep the surface damp for a few minutes to soften the glue. Do the same with the back side of the leather, being careful not to tear or crack it. When the leather is damp it usually becomes a bit more flexible - and fragile. While the leather is still damp, wipe a thin coat of hide glue on both the metal barrel and the inside of the leather. Slip the leather in place and work it down smoothly with your fingers, wiping it over with a damp cloth to remove any sqeeze-out. Wrap wax paper around the leather, then wrap ribbon or a thin strip of cloth tightly around the wax paper to hold it all in place. Let it dry overnight. Remove the tape and wax paper and wipe the surface again with a damp cloth to remove any excess glue. Let it sit until it's thoroughly dry. Rub in some Meltonian shoe cream, let dry well, and buff. There y'go.

Prolly more explanation than you actually need, but I can't help getting a bit pedantic sometimes...

 

[Chasseur]

Warbaby,

Thanks a bunch for you help. I'll give it a try and post results soon.

Any advice on re-conditioning that leather case? How about some old Lexoil?

 

[Dr Doran]

Chasseur, might you repost the photos of those opera glasses? I have never seen them, and they are no longer up. I have a pair of mother of pearl and brass opera glasses as well. I'd like to compare mine to yours. I also have bakelite ones.

 

[Hamilton_Honey]

Prolly more explanation than you actually need, but I can't help getting a bit pedantic sometimes...

Not at all! Thank you for all the detail - I think this information will come in very handy with a number of repairs I'd like to make to things besides just opera glasses. I am always pleasantly amazed at the wealth of information available in the Lounge and how willing everyone is to share and help.