I am retired and go to marine swap meets, craigslist and other sources to buy parts for my own Sailboat restoration (see photo of our current boat, a 1959 Newporter 40 ketch) the parts I don't need I sell on eBay. After owning many boats I have also ended up with a lot of gear that I am begrudgingly getting rid of, it's hard to let an item go that I may need someday, and the vintage gear is getting harder to come by. I specialize in vintage bronze boat hardware and I carefully clean off as much old paint/varnish/bedding compound without disturbing the original patina, only when the original finish is too far gone do I polish them down to bright metal, but I don't lacquer them after, that way they can develop some patina. I clean off the grime and give the parts a light polish with a soft yellow muslin fabric wheel on an industrial bench buffer and use as little rubbing compound as I can to clean them up, without removing the patina.