I live in an apartment which is clean, spacious and in good shape. A lot of the cabinets, counters, etc. though, are obviously from the 50’s (when the place was built). One of the original features are the handles on the kitchen cupboards. They are copper and kind of a swirly design. The only way I know they are copper is that one handle has literally been polished from constant use. The others are covered in decades of grime. I’d like to clean them because they are really quite lovely. Is there any kind of household chemical/method I can use to clean and polish them? I don’t want to have to buy some expensive cleaner, since I’m only going to be cleaning about 6 handles.
Get a can of** Brasso**. Shouldn’t cost more than a couple bucks and works like a charm. Not only copper, but just about any metal.
Brasso’s the ticket.
Spackle them in ketchup, let “soak” overnight. Wipe clean in the morning.
You’re my dog?? 
Equal amounts of flour and salt made into a paste with vinegar. Smear it on, let it sit, wipe it off.
If it’s not too much trouble, remove the handles.
Then use the Brasso with an old toothbrush. Gets into the crevises.
Wipe clean with a dry cloth or paper tower/napkin.
Thanks for the suggestions. I think I will go with the Brasso, since I found out I can get it in a little 2oz. container. I was afraid I’d have to buy a gallon of some stinky solvent. 
I’ve also seen Martha Stewart recommend a paste of lemon juice and salt (the ketchup thing works, but can leave a pinkish tinge to the metal).
I have seen this work really well for silver. I don’t know if it would work for for copper. Any chemistry PhD’s out there care to comment?
What I have done is use a plate of zinc in a pyrex baking dish, lots of Arm & hammer powder, and pour in boiling hot water. Immerse the parts to be cleaned, making sure that they are in good electrical contact with the zinc plate. Just watch the tarnish fall off, and little bubles come up from the part. No scrubing. Worked great on my Mom’s formal tea set that had intricately carved handles that were an otherwise 100% unadulterated bitch to polish/scrub. Better living through chemistry… 
Ok, ok, you’re going to ask me just exactly where you can get a zinc plate. Fair enough. All I know is that my Mom bought this “miracle no scrub” polishing kit with som Arm & hammer powder and the plate in a K-Mart like store, and they were being advertised by a Ronco-like company at the time.
If you chemistry PhD’s are still reading this, would any other metals work as well? Any other sources of electrolyte? What about galvanized steel sheet metal, which is coated with Zinc (common heating & ventilation duct metal)?
On anohter tack: Diet Coke is a well tried, non solvent based solution for brass and copper that has been the secret weapon of countless military personnel in their quest for blindingly shiny buttons. Regular coke will work as well in a pinch, but will require finishing with a damp cloth to remove the sticky sugar build-up. This will require a bit of elbow grease, and likely an old tooth brush.
Old tooth brushes should never be thrown away…
The silver cleaning method works just as well with an aluminium pan or even aluminium foil. Add baking soda, salt and boiling water. A special “kit” is not needed.
Ah. Zinc plates are a popular etching medium for printmaking, and can be found through printmaking supply companies. Some art stores will carry them as well (I carry several, but they are quite large…)