Restoring a tin cup


 
Arun L.

Arun L.

TVWBB All-Star
I have a tin cup from the Gilroy Garlic Festival. It has some rust marks on the inside.

It also smells a little funny. Not entirely like rust. But there is some non-food odor.

What's the best that I can do to get rid of the rust marks, and remove the odor as much as possible?

I've tried scrubbing it with a brush, and it's helped remove a little of the rust marks. I've also tried Bar Keeper's Friend. That didn't seem to do much.

I see a used 2012 cup on eBay that looks to be in good condition. But it's $15. And I also want to know how I can prevent something from getting rust, in case I get another one. That one on eBay also has a Budweiser logo on it, whereas mine as a Coors logo on it. Not that I care much for either brewery, but I just want the same brewery on the cup if possible, so that if I get another one, it will feel like I have the same one as my current one. I don't want to look at it and visibly know it's different. ;)

Also, I can probably wait until the next time I go to the Gilroy Garlic Festival, whenever that may be, and purchase a tin mug then.

I also see they have some coffee mugs and wine glasses. But I don't drink much coffee / tea, and usually not at home. And the logos on the wine glasses aren't anything interesting.

Plus, I drink more beer than coffee/tea/wine, so there's a greater chance of me using a beer mug.
 
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1)Get a small bag of play sand (as it's finer; it's still abrasive but not as much as "beach" sand). Keep rubbing and rubbing and rubbing it with the sand. Dip it in, empty it, repeat. Can't damage it (scratch-wise) any more than it is now.

For getting rid of the odours, found this: http://www.housecleaningcentral.com/en/cleaning-tips/odor-removal/removing-odors.html

Then when you do wash it, make very sure it's completely dry (in a toaster oven for 30 min or so for example) before step 2:

2) Just guessing here but maybe use beef fat (hard kind not soft) and smear and polish it. It's safe for consumption as opposed to any kind of lubricating oil (3 in 1 for example). Then just admire it.
 
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If I can find it, I have a tin cup from Tin Cup Pass restaurant from 1978, would be interesting to try to restore, cause it was a great night.
 
Len Dennis said:
I've got a funny feeling that he wants to clean it up for display purposes ;)
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No, I don't care about the outside as much. It's the inside. I'll take a pic of the inside and upload it.

Also, I'm not sure what to think of the slight aroma, even though I don't think it's affected the taste of the beer, yet.
 
I got an estimate from one restoration company:

+++++++++++++

Rough estimate $125.00 to $150.00
The outside markings would be lost in the process.
Outside of the cup would be polished before silver plating.
Inside of the cup would have a satin finish.

++++++++++++++++++

Not only that, but they'd lose the markings on the outside. That kills it for me.

Let me see if I can find a few other restoration companies and what they say.

I did get a new tin mug when I went to this year's festival. But I want one that has the Coors logo, just because it's on the old one.

The Gilroy Chamber switched to Budweiser at some point, so that's what's on the new mug.

So I either want my old one restored because it says Coors, or I want to find an old one that says Coors but is in good condition.
 
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Is that a galvanized coating, Arun?

In all my years of polishing car parts, it takes a combination of elbow grease and some sort of metal cleaner / polish to remove surface rust. Granted, I prefer applying said products via machine whenever possible.

Some of my car detailing friends have mounted a buffing ball on the end of a drill with good success. Not sure if it removed rust, but with a little metal cleaner / polish product, the rust should come off unless it is embedded below the surface.

To keep your cup in good condition, apply a metal polish periodically with a foam rubber applicator, or a clean microfiber cloth, and remove the residue with another clean microfiber cloth.
 
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Clint said:
I got a jar of this but haven't tried it yet:

https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000ICYC4U/tvwb-20
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Rusty James said:
Is that a galvanized coating, Arun?

In all my years of polishing car parts, it takes a combination of elbow grease and some sort of metal cleaner / polish to remove surface rust. Granted, I prefer applying said products via machine whenever possible.

Some of my car detailing friends have mounted a buffing ball on the end of a drill with good success. Not sure if it removed rust, but with a little metal cleaner / polish product, the rust should come off unless it is embedded below the surface.

To keep your cup in good condition, apply a metal polish periodically with a foam rubber applicator, or a clean microfiber cloth, and remove the residue with another clean microfiber cloth.
Click to expand...

Bob H. said:
Try some Flitz metal polish, they have a sample size available. Flitz.com
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Just saw these responses.

I'm not sure what type of coating it is.

I tried Locite petroleum jelly rust remover. It didn't do anything. The same petroleum jelly did help a shot glass I had.

I have been emailing metal fabricators and antique restorers. Many of them are saying it needs to be replated.

I took it to one in person today. He also said replating. Since I want to preserve the outside markings, I'll have to find a sign specialist to create them after it's replated. The antique store guy from today said it's a tin mug without any tin left.

After trying a few cleaners and then the petroleum jelly, I think I've tried enough DIY options.

Thanks though.

The microfiber cloth (or I've also had 0000 stainless steel recommended) is a good suggestion once I can get it looking good again.
 
Just buy the used one on ebay. Replating and repainting the logo? Does this thing have enormous sentimental value or something? Was it from the very first Gilroy Garlic Festival? Save the money you'd spend on plating and painting and go buy yourself a nice pewter mug.
 
JayHeyl said:
Just buy the used one on ebay. Replating and repainting the logo? Does this thing have enormous sentimental value or something? Was it from the very first Gilroy Garlic Festival? Save the money you'd spend on plating and painting and go buy yourself a nice pewter mug.
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I've had wishlist searches in eBay for years. I never get results for a used mug with the Coors logo.

In fact, most search results I've gotten over the years have been for their wine glasses, not their tin mugs.

They changed sponsorships 8 years ago to Budweiser.

If I'm going to get a replacement mug, I just want that Coors logo to also be there, since it's representative of that era of when I bought it.

A used mug on eBay doesn't have to be from that same year, but I'd want it to be within that same several years.

I took it to a silversmith shop and they can replate it. The guy told me there's no tin left on the mug.

However, I have to find a way to get both the Coors logo, and the garlic logo on there.

I'd want that Gilroy Garlic Festival logo recreated too, as that logo changes a little ever year.

I got one estimate for painting the logo, but it's more than I'd want to spend.

I'm seeing if I can find something I'm more comfortable with.

It wasn't from the first Gilroy Garlic Festival, that was in 1979. But it was from one of the first few years I attended, so I want a mug with the logos from those first few years I attended.

If I can't find a more affordable way to recreate the logos, then I'll just have to leave it as is and not do anything.
 
Wow, after having wishlist searches email me result updates for years, I just manually searched and I found one with the Coors logo from 2003 (close in year to the one I have).

I'll have to ask for details about the condition (odor, etc.).

I haven't given up on trying to re-do my mug, because I like looking at the different logos. But it has to be within a cost I'm ok with, for re-doing the logos.
 
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