Uh-oh, where'd the brass go?

[jtowens]

Hi, I have some very old window hinges I started polishing. They seem to be solid brass covered in residue, paint, etc. With little effort it all came off - including the brass apparently.

The hinge is now well polished steel(?) and there's no sign of brass. The hardware is circa 1918. Was this just coated somehow? If so, how would I polish them w/o taking off the brass as well? Thanks in adavance,

Jason

[CamaroMike]

What kind of wheel did you use to polish it up? I since its plated I would use a loose buffing wheel with white grease and go over the brass lightly.