Re-painting bakelite cabinet

[nath1977]

Hi,

I'm in the middle of (slowly) restoring a Marconi T89DA and now it's time to start on the cabinet as it seems someone has had a go at patching up the paint in the past and it's not looking so great.

I've looked around but can't find a basic repainting guide for bakelite cabinets.

The cabinet is currently a nice dark red, with a cream front and matching red knobs. No chips or cracks

Is it as straightforward as rubbing down with wet n dry to achieve a smooth finish then apply spray paint in a number of coats?

What type of paints should be used or avoided?

Thanks in advance!

[Sean Williams]

This is what I normally do,

Firstly wash the cabinet in really hot water - this gets rid of all the sort of stuff that stops paint stripper from working.

Then I either scrape the old paint off (sometimes easy, sometimes not)

If the paint is really stuck on there I normally look at the damaged area, and see if it can be flatted back and filled with primer - if the damage is too bad, I reach for then nitromors.

Once it is all stripped, it is washed again, normal fairy liquid, and scalding hot water - this degreases the cabinet.

Let it dry in a warm place for a day or two.

I use Halfords aerosols - the paint adheres well - couple of coats of primer, flat it back, then 4 or 5 coats of colour, flatted back with 1000 grit wet or dry paper, then buffed to a shine with tcut - the trick is to get good "wet" coats on, the finish will be good and glossy, and require very little polishing.

Good Luck
Sean

[nath1977]

Thanks for this, I've had some trouble though.

Stripped and washed (although not with scalding water, just fairy and cold) then sprayed with primer. Flattened back and all looking good.... then... I came back to it a few days later noticed some primer paint not stuck great. Smoothed off in patches then decided the whole thing wasn't looking too great either. Decided the paint may not have liked the bakelite so tried a plastic type of primer, this had worse results in the the final colour paint made the primer bubble up and lift from the surface. :-(

I've now stripped the whole thing with nitromors, rinsed and left in the shed for another day!

Maybe I hadn't de-greased enough, even though the whole thing had been done in wet n dry. Who knows!?

Used Halfords car paints such as Lada Cream and Vauxhall Maroon - great match to the original. Also went with their grey undercoat. The plastic undercoat was a Rustoleum brand one.

Anyway, some further tips would be useful.

Thanks.

[mark pirate]

Sean is spot on with his method, the important thing is preparation, I use a fine wet & dry paper for final prep, then wash in hot water with washing up liquid, making sure it has been rinsed thoroughly to remove all of the washing up liquid.

I agree with Sean, the cabinet should be left in the warm for a few days to really dry out properly, this may be the reason you had problems.

I have used car aerosol spray to great effect on a few Bakelite sets, I have had no problem with the paint lifting, I always leave the set in the warm for a week before T-cutting the cabinet, this allows the paint to fully harden.

Hope this helps

Mark

[Sean Williams]

ALso make sure you are spraying the paint when it is warm - cold surfaces and cold paint are a real issue - Modern paint is not like Cellulose based products, and can be a little fussy.

Did you give the cans a good shake?

Did you put a heavy coat of primer on, or a couple of light coats? Heavy coats can be problematic in the cold because the solvent will not evaporate properly.

[Nickthedentist]

Originally Posted by Sean Williams

ALso make sure you are spraying the paint when it is warm - cold surfaces and cold paint are a real issue.

And do it in a nice dry environment, not a damp cellar or outside on a misty autumn morning etc.

[Sega radio]

I noticed from spraying car parts and diecast models that sitting the can in warm (not hot) really helps as the warmer the contents the more pressurised the can and the finer the spray.

Do not under any circumstances try the heat the water up with the can in it as if you get the can too hot it will explode and mostly result in a trip to the local A&E.

[Billy T]

Maybe a little OT, but not necessarily so if cleaning/degreasing prior to painting, but how do bakelite cabinets respond to dishwasher cleaning?

I have a couple of very old cabinets that are in a bad state and my usual cleaning method would be a toothbrush, soft cloth and a local product called Spray 'n Wipe that contains Lactic Acid 0.75WW and Salicylic Acid 0.25WW, presumably in a water base. It is claimed to 'cut grease and lift stains' as well as being antibacterial, and it certainly lives up to the first two claims, and would be effective on the latter given the other more commonly known uses for these substances.

However, while this product works like magic on knobs and the like, it is a bit costly for major clean-ups and the spray-mist makes you cough if inhaled to excess, so I was thinking that a dishwasher and dishwasher detergent might do a better and more uniform job on these old cabinets, having noted its efficiency in the family dishwasher, but unfortunately I don't have any old bakelite items that I could risk testing it on.

Has anybody tried using a dishwasher to clean bakelite or catalin cabinets?

Cheers

Billy

[Nickthedentist]

Hi Billy,

I haven't tried it, but as a quick rinse in hot water is enough to destroy the surface of many Bakelite cabinets, leaving them dull and lifeless, I would have thought a dishwasher would spell disaster.

On the other hand, if you mean washing prior to painting, that might be a different story.

Nick.

[Radio_Dave]

Alkalis are one of Bakelites worst enemies and I believe dishwasher tablets are very alkaline.

Bakelite contains a "filler" which is often wood flour. This makes water another significant enemy of bakelite, as the wood filler can swell if left too long in water

Regards
David

[Sean Williams]

Er lets just say I wont do it again.....

[Nickthedentist]

That confirms our suspicions then, Sean

[Billy T]

Originally Posted by Sean Williams

Er lets just say I wont do it again.....

Make that a double! I will stick to my present methods which use a spray on cleaner that contains salycilic acid and lactic acid, with a softish toothbrush for the fiddly bits, followed by a proprietary cream furniture polish which gives a wonderful shine and smells nice too. It lasts for years with just an occasional wipe-over with a soft dry cloth.

Cheers

Billy