cleaning and displaying

[polar wolf]

Hi everyone, I've got a few questions about cleaning and displaying of my slowly growing collection. I have a couple of flags that are very dirty with what feels like oil on them. I don't want to be to harsh on them as I don't want to damage the stamping on them. The eagle again is very dirty with the same oily covering. It is aluminium so again I don't want to damage the stamping on it with degreasers. The porcelain signs have rust staining on them along with rusty edges where the porcelain has chipped. Should I use a rust killer/stain remover on them or would this damage the porcelain? The vehicle number plates are easy enough to wash but they too have surface rust. I am concerned that if I use a rust converter it may cause the stamps to smudge or the numbers to smear as they appear to be a little porous. I like patina on things to show it's history so I don't want crisp clean flags or shinny belt buckles. Thanks for taking the time to read this and I look forward to hearing from everyone.
Cheers

[Mark in Cleveland, Tn.]

TOSS EVERY RELIC YOU POSTED INTO THE TRASH CAN, AS ALL ARE VERY BAD FAKES,

[polar wolf]

I thought that they were, that's why they were cheap. Thanks.

[rlimike]

What Mark said