how to clean old oil residue from vintage brass oilcan

Purple Power is great stuff, i use it at work interchangeably with Simple Green.
Purple Power is a bit better at breaking up oil than Simple Green in my experience.

i like mineral spirits, lacquer thinner, MEK, and carburetor cleaner if you wanna go the chemical route
 
I used ether on mine. I've been using ether for years to remove oil and/or grease from parts. It evaporates and leaves no residue.
 
I would try soaking it in MEK. Mainly because I have some.
 
All of the "color" detergents (Simple Green, Purple Power) use one form or another of butyl cellosolve, 2-ethoxyethanol, ethylene glycol monomethyl ether, call them what you will, they are all the same family of detergents that work on grease as well as ionic matter like soils. I like buying my cellosolve in the blue cans of non-fuming oven cleaner (NOT the yellow can- unless I need a caustic). This stuff takes old oil film off better than stoddard solvent. I always use it for my final clean on engine blocks, cylinder heads, transmissions, and the like. It works great and isn't a nasty chemical with a long incompatibility list. Worth considering.
 
great to know, thanks. I used mineral spirits, which worked pretty well. I wrote to Super Clean, since I have the stuff, and they answered (!) saying I should dilute it down as far as 1:8 and then work up in strength.
 
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