Here's the heart stamped on the back of the brass hinge. Each hinge has this.

The latching mech. can be purchased.

To date them; brass body is pre war, steel body during and post war.

The stamp on the hinge is a mfg. mark.

You can use a brass polish, barkeepers friend, automotive polishing compound or compose your own from comet, or jewelers rouge.

Have fun, it's worth it.

SW= Stanley Works. The symbol goes by "sweet heart". Was used on hardware and tools.
Those hinges are plated, so polish them lightly. You could send everything out to be re-plated, but the cost is a factor, and from the few times I've had the replating done, the bright (garish) brass doesn't look appropriate next to old woodwork that still bears the marks of character it took so long to gain.
Check everything with a magnet to verify that it's plated steel; if by chance it's brass/bronze, polish away! Fine steel wool and windex with ammonia gets off the tarnish pretty well, and a fine. soft wire wheel brush with a light touch gives a brushed brass effect. A hard felt polishing wheel and jeweler's rouge gives a final mirror finish. To give a satin brass effect, very lightly steel wool after the rouge wheel. That satin effect looks well in an old house IMO.
Casey

This post was edited by sombreuil_mongrel on Tue, Jun 24, 14 at 8:34

I have the same HW (Stanley works sweetheart logo) and went through the same process. Casey is spot on. I decided to just keep the existing patina on all the HW and not replate. It was an improvement over the painted HW and the patina just adds character. I re-plated a couple of specific pieces on my swinging door in the kitchen with and antique brass finish and it's not the same as the patina on the old HW.

For the mortise locks, you can remove the one screw holding the case together and clean an lube the inside. The mechanism is pretty simple and goes together easily once cleaned. All of my locks were stick with paint and gunk and cleaning helped a lot. Be careful with stripper on the HW. As Casey mentioned they are just plated and some strippers can affect the finish. I removed my paint with the boiling method. Lots of posts here on how to do that.

Diane

"To date them; brass body is pre war, steel body during and post war."

Which war?

I cleaned my hardware up in a "rock tumbler/brass cleaner". I've sent a lot of car parts out for replating and the cost isn't outrageous. You need to find a plater however.

I have the same hardware from my barn & house. 1832. I boiled them in water for 1hr..then lightly wire brushed them.

I got these off an old door.It says November 1889.Not sure if it indicates the age of the hinge itself.

Put some vinegar with water when boiling. The paint will come off much easier.

Thanks..I tried the vinegar in water...worked great!