UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Powered By Google Custom Search Vintage Radio and TV Service Data

Go Back   UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum > General Vintage Technology > Cabinet and Chassis Restoration and Refinishing

Notices

Cabinet and Chassis Restoration and Refinishing For help with cabinet or chassis restoration (non-electrical), please leave a message here.

Closed Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 20th Apr 2015, 2:02 pm   #21
yesnaby
Octode
 
yesnaby's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Newport, Gwent, UK.
Posts: 1,623
Default Re: Cloudy perspex

Hello,

Lots of good things came from Blackburn ... Mullard valves, Alfred Wainwright ....

Michael
yesnaby is offline  
Old 21st Apr 2015, 12:24 pm   #22
k_yller
Pentode
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, UK.
Posts: 129
Default Re: Cloudy perspex

Quote:
Originally Posted by kalee20 View Post
Perspex is acrylic sheet - Perspex is just the trade name (ICI). So, same stuff basically.
But polycarbonate is quite different, and I believe is immune light. It is used for vehicle lamp clusters on modern cars, and it seems to survive pretty well. So, use with confidence!
Perspex is common name used for all transparent plastics.
Polycarbonate - yes its immune to the effects of degradation of sun.
Acrylic - degradation on surface only could be polished.
Methylenepolymetakrylan - degradation in whole.
Celluloid - (oldest transparent plastic) based on Nitrocellulose degradation in whole.
Polystyrene - quite resist for sun degradation.

Usually in radio equipment was Polystyrene -injection moulding
k_yller is offline  
Old 22nd Apr 2015, 8:14 pm   #23
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Perspex was a trade mark of ICI, but I have used it to refer to a clear plastic... any clear plastic was referred to as Perspex where I lived in the 80s as ICI was a local firm.

The degradation on my set looks almost like the plastic has 'dried out' and tone cloudy. If it was skin you'd moisturize it, but I guess that won't work

I guess the proof will come when or if I try to polish it. I think I will keep the set low on my 'to do' list as I'm in no hurry to ruin it or incur the cost of getting a new panel made.
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 24th Apr 2015, 8:50 am   #24
G4XWDJim
Octode
 
G4XWDJim's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Littlehampton, West Sussex, UK.
Posts: 1,465
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

I read that someone who had a scratchy celluloid dial washed it thoroughly to degrease it and then sprayed it with clear lacquer. It transformed it apparently into a new looking dial.

Probably worth a try if your material is too far gone to do anything else with.

I can't remember where I read the above but I think it was on this forum.

Jim
G4XWDJim is online now  
Old 24th Apr 2015, 11:26 am   #25
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Thanks Jim

I think whatever I do, I need to do a bit of research first. I think I'll only have one go at whatever I decide to do.
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 24th Apr 2015, 11:59 am   #26
richrussell
Heptode
 
richrussell's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Selby, North Yorkshire, UK.
Posts: 979
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Polycarbonate is still affected by UV - car headlights have a surface coating to reduce the impact, and it's this that tends to yellow and craze.

If it was me, I'd have a go at either making or getting someone else to make a replica - then if that proves too expensive, maybe try a bit of restoration in one corner of the fogged one before deciding whether to attempt the whole piece.
richrussell is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 6:25 am   #27
Billy T
Retired Dormant Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Posts: 631
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Quote:
Originally Posted by richrussell View Post
Polycarbonate is still affected by UV - car headlights have a surface coating to reduce the impact, and it's this that tends to yellow and craze.
There is an excellent product from Germany called 'Autosol Marine Shine' which I used on the yellowed headlamps of Mrs Billy's Mazda car and it cleared them up in just a few minutes.

I was so encouraged that I took some inside and polished the perspex cover for of my elderly Pioneer PL501A turntable, and to my delight it whisked away the ravages of time in a matter of 15-20 minutes or so of gentle polishing via a soft cloth. Best of all, you use hardly any of the contents of the 75ml tube as it doesn't seem to dry out on the workpiece like other polishes appear to do.

They also sell an 'Autosol Metal Polish' specifically for metal so I don't think that one would be suitable for plastics but I found it to be excellent on metal, and my son polished his Tenor saxophone using this polish yet the tube shows no sign of depletion.

If these products have made it down under to both Oz and NZ, then I don't think that the English Channel will be much of a barrier, in fact I recommend that you try www.thepolishingshop.co.uk/ as they are Autosol stockists.

Cheers

Billy

Last edited by Billy T; 26th Jun 2015 at 6:32 am.
Billy T is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 6:59 am   #28
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Thanks Billy. I will investigate.
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 10:04 am   #29
camtechman
Nonode
 
camtechman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Milton Keynes, Bucks. UK.
Posts: 2,552
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Autosol is a mainstay of my workbench....good stuff it is (as Yoda would say)
__________________
When I die, please don't let my Wife sell my collection for the amount I told her I paid for it!
camtechman is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 10:05 am   #30
paulsherwin
Moderator
 
paulsherwin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,783
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Autosol make a range of cutting compounds with varying levels of coarseness, and they have a generally good reputation. Car accessory shops like Halfords sell the metal and chrome polishes. The full Autosol range is available via Amazon or eBay.
paulsherwin is online now  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 11:13 am   #31
Stockden
Heptode
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, UK.
Posts: 647
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Quote:
Originally Posted by camtechman View Post
Autosol is a mainstay of my workbench
For many years it was also the mainstay of trainees at Sandhurst (and, no doubt, other military training establishments) because of its ability to remove fouling from the working parts of Self Loading Rifles. I can't comment on its effectiveness on perspex but it was certainly very good at removing high temperature baked carbon from steel (or so I am told... ).

Hugh
Stockden is online now  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 4:07 pm   #32
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

I will have a crack at getting the marine polish. I think the perpex on the set is far gone enough to experiment and, if that fails, look at sorting a new one being made in the future.

Some time ago I got some "Greygate" polish. Not sure if that would be any good... one to try if the marine stuff doesn't work perhaps.
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 5:17 pm   #33
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

I should have done this before my last post, but I have found the autosol marine stuff and it is described as 'highly abrasive', is that what is required?
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 5:26 pm   #34
paulsherwin
Moderator
 
paulsherwin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,783
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

All cutting compounds have different levels of abrasiveness. If you need to remove a lot of material, you should start with a more abrasive compound and finish with increasingly fine compounds. In extreme cases you would start with wet and dry paper before moving on to cutting pastes.

The best approach is to experiment with a bit of scrap plastic.
paulsherwin is online now  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 7:17 pm   #35
Junk Box Nick
Octode
 
Junk Box Nick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: West Midlands, UK.
Posts: 1,571
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Last time I did something like this I used wet and dry paper to start. I started with a grade or two down from the very finest and worked up to the finest and then after that used a cutting paste.

It is quite worrying to the uninitiated when you start working with the wet and dry because it makes the finish look look a whole lot worse but as you work up it gets better and then the cutting paste brings up the shine.

The chain store shed that sells bicycles, etc., usually stocks a good range of the finer wet and dry papers.
Junk Box Nick is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 7:23 pm   #36
paulsherwin
Moderator
 
paulsherwin's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Oxford, UK
Posts: 27,783
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Good old Poundland sell packs of wet'n'dry, though I can't vouch for the quality. They also sell metal polish and car scratch remover, both of which are cutting compounds.
paulsherwin is online now  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 7:28 pm   #37
Junk Box Nick
Octode
 
Junk Box Nick's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: West Midlands, UK.
Posts: 1,571
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Don't know about Poundland, Paul, but I specifically looked for the very fine grades which weren't so common. I've just gone in the garage and looked them out. I started with 1500 and finished with 2500.
Junk Box Nick is offline  
Old 26th Jun 2015, 11:29 pm   #38
Martin Bush
Octode
 
Martin Bush's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: Oxfordshire, UK.
Posts: 1,906
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

I got some of the wet/dry from poundland in Oxford (RIP soon...) for another task and, on this occasion, I think paying a bit extra is the way to go.
Martin Bush is offline  
Old 27th Jun 2015, 9:10 pm   #39
Oldcodger
Nonode
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: West Midlands, UK.
Posts: 2,181
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Quote:
Originally Posted by paulsherwin View Post
Good old Poundland sell packs of wet'n'dry, though I can't vouch for the quality. They also sell metal polish and car scratch remover, both of which are cutting compounds.
Also keep an eye on Aldi . I got one pack (KRATZER-EX) to try on scratches on car. It also worked a treat on house numbers after some light wet and dry .
Oldcodger is offline  
Old 29th Jun 2015, 2:33 am   #40
Billy T
Retired Dormant Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Auckland, New Zealand
Posts: 631
Default Re: Cloudy Perspex

Quote:
Originally Posted by Martin Bush View Post
I should have done this before my last post, but I have found the autosol marine stuff and it is described as 'highly abrasive', is that what is required?
Don't worry about scratching, you could polish your baby's bottom with this stuff and do no harm. I was cautious at first myself, having tried various polishes on perspex and other plastics with results ranging from useless, through miserable, to tragic. That was why I tried it on the headlamps, which I figured it couldn't make any worse, then when I saw the results, I was off like a shot to get started on the turntable cover.

Shelf life is excellent as well, I have one tube that is several years old now and it is still good as gold

Cheers

Billy
Billy T is offline  
Closed Thread

Thread Tools



All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:08 am.


All information and advice on this forum is subject to the WARNING AND DISCLAIMER located at https://www.vintage-radio.net/rules.html.
Failure to heed this warning may result in death or serious injury to yourself and/or others.


Powered by vBulletin®
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2002 - 2023, Paul Stenning.