It does work
Coke does work to clean some things - it is mildly acidic and easy to clean up. I think it is 'phosphoric acid' (listed right in the ingredients btw) that does the work. For brass, any old Navy sailor can tell you the best way to clean intricate brass fittings is to soak them in "bug juice" (cheap kool aid). To this day it is not considered odd to walk by a fire station on a ship and see the brass nozzles soaking in a bucket of red or purple liquid! In the case of the kool aid I think it is citric acid that does the work. Another thing that can be used to clean some metals is muriatic acid, which you buy in the swimming pool chemical section. I've used muriatic acid to descale jacket water coolers from diesel engines - it works much better than the citric acid that many shipyards will try to use. Muriatic is pretty strong though, so don't try it on anything with a nice finish. As to what it does to your stomach - the acidity of your stomach fluids is much stronger than either coke or kool aid - that steak that wouldn't dissolve in the coke definitely breaks down in your stomach! - AndyS
