Can you use toothpaste on a silver plated trombone slide to clean cloudy looking smudges and tarnish?

Answer 1

I think toothpaste will make it even more smudged, try using a computer screen cleaner. This usually helps clean anything really...and if you do clean it with toothpaste, it will make your instrument more sticky as well.


Consider seriously taking this question to your instrument repairman.

It really doesn't matter what your slide looks like. The first consideration should always be how well it works.

Trombone slides have two working parameters: ease of motion and sealing of the bore despite that movement. The former requires that the slide be free of distortion, corrosion, buildups and grime. The latter demands that the socks (the expanded portion at the end of the inner tube) be free from distortion, clean, free of scratches, digs, or other abnormalities that might break the seal formed by the slide lubrication.

Trained instrument repairmen can apply pumice and other measures to repair the surfaces of the slide and allow the slide spray (and cream if you use that on your socks) to form a good seal. Amateurs, including yourself, can cause a lot of damage by doing things to your slide that you don't understand.

Since toothpaste contents are not often revealed, and therefore, the chemical constitution of the material you'd be applying to your slide are beyond making a prediction of their actions, toothpaste would be a thing to avoid. The exception to this is if your repairman recommends one particular brand and instructs you in how to use it.

It is far more likely that any smudges can be washed away with an application of slide spray and a soft, lintless cloth, followed by a proper application of slide spray. Tarnish is a sign that you aren't keeping the slide properly lubricated. It is usually the outcome of long-term exposure of the silver plate to air (or poor-quality plating materials). It does not materially affect the action of the slide.

A final thing to consider, if your repairman tells you that your slide is OK and doesn't need to be treated: The slide's internal tubing is only visible for short periods of time as you play. When most people will see it, the trombone slide will be closed (and locked!) to keep inquisitive youngsters from touching the inner surfaces. So shine up the brass, but leave the slide for professionals.