How to clean and polish my Yoyos

Yo-Yo Mods and Maintenance
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Hi. Does anybody knows a good way to clean and polish the aluminium of my yoyos?
Especially the matte Aluminium on my Yoyorecreations (Valkyrie in green)?
I only know Monkeyfinger Buff. But I can´t get information, whether I can use it on matte finishes too.
Got the Valkyrie used and want to have it better looking.
Thanks for any reply.

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Have you looked here: Useful modification & maintenance guides - Axles,Clean, repair, tune, fix yoyos

Edit: Added KiLbUcK’s cleaning description to the sticky topic.

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Standard Cleaning and Polishing

  1. Wipe down your anodized aluminum surface with a damp sponge to remove general surface dirt. This will not eliminate stains or scratches, but will help to prevent dust and dirt buildup. Dry the aluminum with a towel to prevent water spotting.

  2. Spray the anodized aluminum with a high pressure rinse. Do this using a pressure washer filled with water or a spray nozzle on a hose. The pressure washer will give you much greater power.

  3. Squeeze one or two drops of mild dishwashing detergent into a cup of water. Apply the soapy water to an abrasive sponge and scrub the aluminum vigorously. Anodized aluminum requires an abrasive touch with a gentle cleaning solution, as many harsh cleaning products will react with the aluminum.

  4. Rinse the anodized aluminum surface with clean water and then dry it with towels. If this method fails to thoroughly clean the aluminum, proceed to the next section. Otherwise, proceed to Section 3.

De-anodizing Your Aluminum

  1. Put on a pair of rubber gloves and goggles. Fill a shallow pan with water and about a tablespoon of drain cleaner for each gallon of water used. Drain cleaner contains sodium hydroxide, which reacts chemically to remove the effects of anodizing. This allows you to achieve a more thorough clean, and to brighten the aluminum. The pan allows you to soak objects like wheels, R.C. car parts and cookware.

  2. Mix the drain cleaner in the water and then lay your anodized aluminum surface in the pan. Move it around every few minutes to expose all sides to the chemicals. It should only take a few minutes for each side to fully de-anodize. You will know you are finished when you see a smooth, even color across the entire surface. If you cannot lay the object in a pan, liberally apply the drain cleaner to the aluminum surface with an abrasive sponge and scrub until you achieve an even color.

  3. Remove the aluminum surface from the pan, rinse it thoroughly with clean water, and dry it.

Polishing Your Aluminum

  1. Sand your aluminum surface using 800-grit sandpaper. Use a firm touch and continue sanding until the aluminum appears perfectly smooth. Sand it by hand with or without a sanding block, or use an electric sander if you know how to properly use one of these devices.

  2. Attach a buffing pad to a hand buffing machine and turn it on. Slowly move the buffing pad in circular motions along the entire aluminum surface, and then wipe the aluminum with a soft cloth.

  3. Apply a commercial aluminum polish or anodized aluminum polish to the aluminum surface. This is your final polish. Squeeze a dollop of the polish onto a soft cloth and and rub it in circular motions across the surface. If you de-anodized the aluminum, use a standard aluminum polish, not an anodized aluminum polish.

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I used to own the Valkryie in green, i know excatly what your talking about.

If it gets really dirty, take a soft wash cloth or old sock, and remove the axle and bearing, and use a mild dish soap and warm water. Lightly scrub. Yo do not need much soap. A drop or two is fine. Then rinse the cloth and “rinse” the yoyo with the wet cloth. Use reverse osmosis or good bottled water. Tap water is not the best but will work if no other alternatives. Let air dry.

After that, I did use BUFF. Its totally fine and I loved it. I use it for all my throws. Keeps them supple and happy. No worries bro.

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I believe raw Aluminum definitely needs polishing from tarnish over time, but I don’t think anodized aluminum really needs that much care and maintenance?

I got some Buff in a Monkeyfinger purchase at some point (or from random bonus items in a purchase), but I’ve never used it. I am curious if anyone has done this?

Applying the BUFF is easy. Simply grab a clean cloth and follow the steps below:

  1. Ensure that your yo-yo is clean and dry.
  2. Wrap the clean cloth around your index finger and gently dab it into the BUFF. A little goes a long way!
  3. Gently wipe the BUFF across the entire surface of the yo-yo. Be sure not to miss a spot and keep the BUFF as even as possible.
  4. [Optional] For the best results, allow the BUFF to dry for 30-60 minutes.
  5. Using a different part of the clean cloth, gently rub the entire surface to remove any excess BUFF and to polish the yo-yo.
  6. Enjoy your shiny throw!

Note: the BUFF will not fill in, cover, or repair dings and scratches on the surface of a yo-yo.

Dylan K had a pretty favorable review of it, and tried both raw and anodized.

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I finally got around to trying the Monkeyfinger Buff on an Advance Scout that @rockstar traded with me… it definitely works! There was a bit of tarnish on it and this stuff cleans it right up.

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Half of the yo-yo has buff applied (and very quickly not like I used a lot of elbow grease) and half does not, in the above photos.

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Love black yoyos, they look so clean. That stuff works pretty well too from the looks of it

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It does look like it cleans up nicely. But tarnish isn’t really the right word I don’t think. More like a grime build up I assume.

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I was looking for any kind of dark buildup on the white paper towel as I rubbed it down (and I didn’t do much rubbing), but I wasn’t seeing any, at least not enough to be noticeable.

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In the bottom pic, is the bottom half of the yoyo not cleaned and the top half is? Like a before and after? It looks like that but I’m not certain.

Edit -Ack. Never mind. I didn’t see your text at the bottom of the pics. :slight_smile:

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Hm…

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I’m completely surprised…wow! I’m gonna get some and use on all my throws…especially the ones that are tarnished!
Thank you so much codinghorror…gonna clean-all my throws as soon as I can pick-up some monkey buff…that is…:+1:t3:

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