hangforum.com - The Archive

Hello all,
I have been browsing the old 'care of the hang' thread on hang-music forum and threads on this forum (please forgive me if I have missed something) and have not yet been able to find concrete information on dealing with rust spots on HangHang. I recently noticed some small rust formation on the Gu side of my hang, it has not affected the sound as yet but I was wondering - who has tried and tested techniques for dealing with this? Has anyone observed F&S in a repair situation dealing with rust? I of course would be delighted to take my Hang down to bern to get this sorted out but time and money are sadly in short supply, and I do not want to let the problem go further!

Any advice?
Thankyou,
Simon.

Hi,

Felix and Sabina told me, that I should use a Scotch sponge. You know? There are two sides on these sponge. One for cleaning for example cookware. You can find different abrasive.

I dont know how much this affect the top surface from the Hang. But I thin rust is the bigger problem and so it is better to remove the rust.
After this I would clean the Hang carefully with water and/or alcohol and dry it. I think it is a good idea to use a little bit Biofa oil after this procedure.

The Scotch recommendation is direct from Sabina, two years ago. Maybe there are better ways. I am also curious , because I have se same problem.

Greetings
Frank

Thanks Frank!
I guess you cannot get better than a direct reccomendation like that. Did you try it? I have been using beeswax polish to clean my hang, do you think that could be a cause? I guess I need to get hold of some Biofa.

Hi,

I think beeswax is not the cause for rust. Sabina told me, that salt could be a problem.
Some people have "rusty hands". There is something in the hand sweat, what can cause the rust problem.
Felix and Sabina told me, that little round rust spots are not a big danger for Hanghang. It is not easy to remove the spots with a Scotch and I feared a little bit, that i damage the top surface, but I trust Sabina. I think she must know what is good for a Hang and what not.

Biofa is only neefull in the case you remove the Hard oil layer. It is not good to use Biofa to often.

Greetings
Frank

Beware! The Scotch-Brite abrasive material comes in various "grits" from course to fine. They are color coded:
http://www.3m.com/us/home_leisure/scotc ... ubber.html

Some are so abrasive they could damage the steel surface of a hand pan (or whatever you deem it ok to call them).

Thanks RP, I guess I will start with the 'delicate duty' sponge and work up
I take it then you did not try it Frank?
I'll let you guys know what happens in a couple of days when I have given it a try.

On my 1st Gen Hang, I removed (or almost removed) some minor rust spots with #0000 ("four ought") steel wool. This is the finest I know of. Use only as much pressure as is necessary.

Beeswax wouldn't cause rust--it would add a protective layer to keep out moisture (which is why people wax cars and other metal objects).

Good luck!

I'm just speculating here, but Beeswax might also add mass to the (tone fields?) and slow down their oscillation rates. A thick buildup might cause problems.

I used steel wool when I got rust... my entire Ding side turned orange after i played outside in a light mist... I was horrified when I took the Hang out of the case the next morning... a couple of the small rust spots were quite severe even after only one night but the steel wool worked a treat, gentle cicular motions, I also used some linseed oil on the wool to help with the removal of the rust.

I was left with some small black dots where the rust had been but i'm happier with that than holes in it.... I use a beeswax furniture polish every now and then to just keep up the water resistance and i've not noticed a difference in sound... more importantly i've got no rust problems either.

Hi RP -
I'm not worried about the beeswax, like Kelly i'm using a beeswax polish designed for furniture from the company aristowax, it's not thick but brings a nice shine to the hang and proofs it for a few days maybe. I dont polish too often, once every month or so, though it's hard to resist the urge to try and keep the hang looking beautiful I also clean with lukewarm water, thoroughly drying the hang afterwards. It's amazing but it does get grimy quite quickly, less so now I am using beeswax.

Thanks for all the advice everyone! I still have not had time to try out the scotch brite pads, certainly will go for that before steel wool.

Both steel wool and scotch brite vary in how coarse or fine they are. With either, I'd start with the finest possible, with very gentle pressure, on the least conspicuous area. Might also be good to find some other rust spot (not on the Hang) to do a bit of testing.