To clean cymbals, you want to make sure you don’t damage the metal. There are a few different ways to clean cymbals, depending on the type of cymbal being cleaned.
You might even be asking yourself “why bother?” That’s a great question - many types of cymbals really don’t seem to need it (especially older ones that have a “dirty” finish). And some drummers are positive that you should never clean your cymbals. However, if you leave these cymbals in storage too long - even just in your practice space - you’ll be surprised at how much of a funky grime can collect on them. I used to feel the same way myself, but as I was getting rid of some old cymbals recently, I had no idea just how musty some of them had become. Luckily, we’ll cover a few different ways to do so below!
When you’re done reading, you will be familiar with:
- Don’t Confuse “Cleaning” with “Polishing”
- Figure Out What Kind of Finish is on Your Cymbal
- Cleaning Cymbals with a Traditional Finish
- Cleaning Cymbals with a Brilliant Finish
- Don’t Overdo It!
- FAQ
Don’t Confuse “Cleaning” with “Polishing”
“Cleaning” and “polishing” are two different things. If you want your cymbals to look their best and stay in top shape, you might want to do both, but you also might be able to get by with just cleaning them (or, as many drummers do, you can do neither).
For the most basic clean, simply wipe your cymbals down with a microfiber cloth. If possible, this can (and should) be done after every use to remove dust and fingerprints. To keep your cymbal pristine when transporting it, try to only handle it only on the edges.
For a deeper clean, you can use soap and actual cymbal cleaners. But first, you need to make sure that your cymbals can handle it - only use cleaners on brilliant finish cymbals.
Figure Out What Kind of Finish is on Your Cymbal
Different types of finish require different cleaners to not damage the cymbal. There’s two main camps that cymbals can fall under - a “brilliant” finish, and a “traditional” finish.
A cymbal with a “brilliant” finish looks like a shiny mirror - it’s reflective. A “traditional” finish has a sandy, more opaque look. Some cymbals even have both, such as the Zildjian K Custom Hybrid cymbals.
Cleaning Cymbals with a Traditional Finish
For traditional finish cymbals, stick with a basic clean. Don’t use any cymbal cleaners!
Start with the maintenance method of simply rubbing down your cymbals with a microfiber cloth mentioned above. Extra dirt can be cleaned off the same way with the addition of mild soap and water, but make sure to dry off the cymbal as quickly as possible! Otherwise, the metal in the cymbal could otherwise oxidize and cause rust.
This may require some elbow grease to get heavy dirt and dust stains out.
Cleaning Cymbals with a Brilliant Finish
Brilliant Finish cymbals are more resilient - they can handle a bit harsher of cleaners, and you might find they need cleaning more, as it’s easier to spot fingerprints. Maybe you don’t care about that now, but what if you want to sell your cymbals soon?
Several cleaning polishes will do the trick, including Zildjian’s “Brilliant Finish Cymbal Cleaning Polish,” “Groove Juice Cymbal Cleaner,” or “Sabian Safe and Sound Cymbal Cleaner.” Here’s a step-by-step guide to using any of these products.
- First, lay out large paper towels (or actual towels) on which to work. We want to clean the bottom of the cymbal first, so lay the cymbal upside down on these towels.
- Next, dot the cymbal with small splotches of cleaner in circles, making a point to avoid all logos.
- Rub the cleaner into the cymbal in a spiraling fashion, applying pressure as you go, and focus on the edges where fingerprints are bound to collect.
- That said - “go easy on the logos!” You don’t want to remove them, which can happen if you rub too hard on them.
- Some knowledgeable minds in the field even think you should avoid getting any cleaner on the logos at all.
- Wipe down the excess cleaner that hasn’t dissipated and dispersed.
- Wait 10-15 seconds for the cleaner to dry.
- Now, wipe off all of the cleaner with fresh paper towels. You can use a rag, but make sure you don’t get grease that’s rubbed off back onto the cymbal.
- Lastly, repeat the process for the top of the cymbal.
Don’t Overdo It!
Just a reminder - a dirty cymbal is better than a weird-sounding, logo-free cymbal (assuming aesthetics are important to you). Or, another you can accidentally turn a cymbal with a cool sandy feel into the Statue of Liberty green.
Using chemicals, like cutting hair, is always best to undershoot than overshoot. Only, even that’s a bad analogy, because hair grows back. If you overdo it on the cymbal cleaning, you might ruin the cymbal - if you “under-do” it, you can simply repeat the cleaning process!
FAQ
So, what’s the difference between cleaning a cymbal and polishing it?
Many of these cymbal cleaners also polish the cymbal (but using mild soap and water with traditional finish cymbals does not polish the cymbal). You probably don’t ever need to polish the cymbal outside of these cleaners - this can actually make things worse, by tarnishing it with a bad polish, or trapping dirt and debris to the cymbal if it’s not cleaned first.
I’ve heard you can use Barkeeper’s Friend / Windex / Other DIY materials..?
These can work. But they’re a bit riskier, especially since they might react poorly to your cymbal depending on the ratio of the alloys in it (which can be hard to determine). Legit cymbal cleaners are still pretty cheap (roughly $15-20 USD), so it’s probably best to stick with those!
Do I even need to clean my cymbals?
Honestly, no. Although, if you want to, you should definitely do it right!
