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House Miniature Pieces
Cleaning up an antique (rubber tire) ashtray?
I found an amazing 1935 ashtray in my grandmother’s house the other day. The ashtray itself is glass, but is enclosed by a miniature Goodrich rubber tire – these ashtrays used to be pretty common in gas stations and garages. I was thinking about taking some Armor-All or other rubber protectorant to it, but wanted to get some advice before I do anything that might inadvertantly harm this piece. Any advice is greatly appreciated!
You could use the same cleaner that is used on regular car tires, Westley’s “Bleach-White”. It won’t harm the rubber in any way and will remove the accumulated grime etc. I’d advise against the Armor-All. Many times, an antique is destroyed in value by well-meaning attempts to “clean it” so I would first talk to several dealers before attempting any type of cleaning etc.
