okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?

:okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?
Hi Jim
Yep! I was very impressed with the Brasso on Bakellite as well, makes the old gals look and shine like new! As Far as the wood refinishing goes, I've always taken them completely down with sanding and restaining, with a finish of semi gloss poly, however I've only done the smaller wood cabinet radios, with the big Monsters, that would take quite some time, the only problem with terpentine is it will strip them down fast, but it can cause unsightly blemishes or stains in the wood, even though it would take longer too sand them, at least in my opinion the end results would be much better in the long run, goodluck in what ever you decide.
Mark

You are not supposed to stain most wooden radios. Use colored varnish. If there are mixed woods, the fine woods will take the stain well, but certain hard or soft woods and plywood ends will take the stain very poorly. Pine and walnut will turn zebra, hard woods will not accept stain at all. The edges where the underwood (which is usually either really hard or really soft and sometimes is in layers if plywood) is showing should be covered with a dark colored varnish as was originally used. I'm not sure about how the Majestic you talk about looks, but my Majestic 180 has really dark colored varnish around the edges, as do my other consols, though in different shades. If you were to stain these edges, the radios would look rediculous. The trim around the base of the Philco 60, for instance, should be done in a dark colored varnish. The decorative border between the top and the sides of the Crosley Super 11 is a dark maroonish colored varnish. I found that it was a cross between walnut and jet mahogany. If this surface is stained, it will not accept stain at all. It will look light and plain looking. Colored varnish is used to hide ends of plywood and to blend different types of wood that would not blend with stain. Another advantage of colored varnish is that joints can be filled with wood putty, and the colored varnish will disguise them. You can purchase colored varnishes and polys at hardware stores and wood working stores. You can also make your own shades by mixing oil based paste stains with varnish. The paste stains will greatly slow down hardening of the varnish, so be aware of this. The varnish will lose its tackiness in the normal amount of time, but may dent with the pressure of a finger nail, etc. Once the colored varnish sections have hardened properly (a month, perhaps), they should be gone over with a clear coat of varnish. If you use precolored varnish, however, it should dry in the normal amount of time.

Anyway, don't stain radios unless the wood takes the stain well. Remember that radios were originally made on assembly lines whether at the radio factory or at a cabinet factory. They used quick and cheap methods of assembly, and then used colored varnish to blend everything together and also to get striking designs not otherwise possible with the woods used. I see radios on eBay with stained walnut, which zebra stripes, and the borders of the radio are stained the same color as the rest of the radio instead of in a deep contrasting shade. The radios look boring and rediculous. Also, originally most radios were done in either a semi-gloss or a full gloss. Unless it is for your personal taste, don't refinish a radio in a flat finish. I have seen some radios which look good this way, but if you're going for original, they should be glossy.

Thomas

:You are not supposed to stain most wooden radios. Use colored varnish. If there are mixed woods, the fine woods will take the stain well, but certain hard or soft woods and plywood ends will take the stain very poorly. Pine and walnut will turn zebra, hard woods will not accept stain at all. The edges where the underwood (which is usually either really hard or really soft and sometimes is in layers if plywood) is showing should be covered with a dark colored varnish as was originally used. I'm not sure about how the Majestic you talk about looks, but my Majestic 180 has really dark colored varnish around the edges, as do my other consols, though in different shades. If you were to stain these edges, the radios would look rediculous. The trim around the base of the Philco 60, for instance, should be done in a dark colored varnish. The decorative border between the top and the sides of the Crosley Super 11 is a dark maroonish colored varnish. I found that it was a cross between walnut and jet mahogany. If this surface is stained, it will not accept stain at all. It will look light and plain looking. Colored varnish is used to hide ends of plywood and to blend different types of wood that would not blend with stain. Another advantage of colored varnish is that joints can be filled with wood putty, and the colored varnish will disguise them. You can purchase colored varnishes and polys at hardware stores and wood working stores. You can also make your own shades by mixing oil based paste stains with varnish. The paste stains will greatly slow down hardening of the varnish, so be aware of this. The varnish will lose its tackiness in the normal amount of time, but may dent with the pressure of a finger nail, etc. Once the colored varnish sections have hardened properly (a month, perhaps), they should be gone over with a clear coat of varnish. If you use precolored varnish, however, it should dry in the normal amount of time.
:
:Anyway, don't stain radios unless the wood takes the stain well. Remember that radios were originally made on assembly lines whether at the radio factory or at a cabinet factory. They used quick and cheap methods of assembly, and then used colored varnish to blend everything together and also to get striking designs not otherwise possible with the woods used. I see radios on eBay with stained walnut, which zebra stripes, and the borders of the radio are stained the same color as the rest of the radio instead of in a deep contrasting shade. The radios look boring and rediculous. Also, originally most radios were done in either a semi-gloss or a full gloss. Unless it is for your personal taste, don't refinish a radio in a flat finish. I have seen some radios which look good this way, but if you're going for original, they should be glossy.
:
:Thomas

Thanks for the tips and the history. I will go with varnish and stained varnish. I have to say though that I have had some very good results with stain and shellac on cabinets that I completely stripped. I have no idea what the original finish looked like on the Majestic 70B and 90. They were in very poor condition. It took several days to repair the veneer and stabilize the cabinets in order to work on them at all. Now the Majestic highboy model 92 does have the highlighted edges you mention and I won't strip it off. I also agree with your warning on bland one tone refinishing jobs. I did that to my Philco Jr. and regretted it later. Although it may not be too late to use a darker finish in the inner front panel as was originally. I will look for the oil based stain you mention also. Although I have not used polyurethane in recent years I am opposed to it. I like the look of shellac and varnish. I have tried to repair dents and scratches on floors done in polyurethane with poor results. Polyurethane is a longer chain molecule than varnish. I think I will stick with the varnish.

Yeah, I really don't like poly, either. It is all that is available in most hardware stores in my area, though it comes in satin and gloss with color added. I go to wood working shops for real varnish when I do radio work. I just recently went over the windows in my apartment with some colored poly, though, because it was all that was available and I didn't really care because it's not my place and my landlady is a creap. I liked the results. However, as I said before, I stick to real varnish when working on radios, and I got quite angry at the hardware store manager when he tried to lie to me and tell me that the poly he sold me was all that was available and that everyone uses it and that it's just like varnish, which it isn't.

Keep in mind that you can always apply colored varnish over varnish, so you can color the edges of your Philco at any time. It has a slightly different look when applied directly to wood, as some does soak in just like stain, but it will look almost the same if applied over other varnish.

Thomas

Greetings!

Remember, the most often collected radios (those made between about 1928 and 1950) were almost universally finished in Nitrocellulose lacquer. Lacquer is what is known in the trade as a "spirit varnish". It is composed of a resin dissolved in a solvent. The drying action simply consists of the evaporation of the solvent (unlike a true varnish, which is composed of a gum, a resin and a vehicle, the drying action is then a complex and irreversable polymerization). A spirit varnish is reversable, one can soften and re-flow the original finish with the correct solvent.

Most original lacquer finishes can be restored if the veneer substrate is in decent condition. Toning lacquer (an aerosol spray product like that used originally on these old radios) is readily available at many woodworking sepecialty shops.

I have seen quite a number of rare and desirable sets with EXCELLENT original finishes "improved" by well meaning "restorers" who removed the "darkened, old finish" (actually perfect original blended finishes, dark at the edges and lighter in the middle) and replaced them with light blond or muddy medium walnut open grained satin "Tung Oil" monstrosities.

It has been my experience that most sets which do not require extensive veneer repair do not require stripping. Note that the radio collecting hobby is quickly following its older cousin, phonograph collecting. On phonographs, reasonably well preserved original finishes command a considerable premium in value, whereas refinish jobs of average quality (using the sort of materials available at your local Home Depot or Lowes) are generally saleable only at parts machine prices. Stripping should always ba a last resort.

::You are not supposed to stain most wooden radios.
Use colored varnish. If there are mixed woods, the fine woods will take the stain well, but certain hard or soft woods and plywood ends will take the stain very poorly. Pine and walnut will turn zebra, hard woods will not accept stain at all. The edges where the underwood (which is usually either really hard or really soft and sometimes is in layers if plywood) is showing should be covered with a dark colored varnish as was originally used. I'm not sure about how the Majestic you talk about looks, but my Majestic 180 has really dark colored varnish around the edges, as do my other consols, though in different shades. If you were to stain these edges, the radios would look rediculous. The trim around the base of the Philco 60, for instance, should be done in a dark colored varnish. The decorative border between the top and the sides of the Crosley Super 11 is a dark maroonish colored varnish. I found that it was a cross between walnut and jet mahogany. If this surface is stained, it will not accept stain at all. It will look light and plain looking. Colored varnish is used to hide ends of plywood and to blend different types of wood that would not blend with stain. Another advantage of colored varnish is that joints can be filled with wood putty, and the colored varnish will disguise them. You can purchase colored varnishes and polys at hardware stores and wood working stores. You can also make your own shades by mixing oil based paste stains with varnish. The paste stains will greatly slow down hardening of the varnish, so be aware of this. The varnish will lose its tackiness in the normal amount of time, but may dent with the pressure of a finger nail, etc. Once the colored varnish sections have hardened properly (a month, perhaps), they should be gone over with a clear coat of varnish. If you use precolored varnish, however, it should dry in the normal amount of time.
::
::Anyway, don't stain radios unless the wood takes the stain well. Remember that radios were originally made on assembly lines whether at the radio factory or at a cabinet factory. They used quick and cheap methods of assembly, and then used colored varnish to blend everything together and also to get striking designs not otherwise possible with the woods used. I see radios on eBay with stained walnut, which zebra stripes, and the borders of the radio are stained the same color as the rest of the radio instead of in a deep contrasting shade. The radios look boring and rediculous. Also, originally most radios were done in either a semi-gloss or a full gloss. Unless it is for your personal taste, don't refinish a radio in a flat finish. I have seen some radios which look good this way, but if you're going for original, they should be glossy.
::
::Thomas
:
:Thanks for the tips and the history. I will go with varnish and stained varnish. I have to say though that I have had some very good results with stain and shellac on cabinets that I completely stripped. I have no idea what the original finish looked like on the Majestic 70B and 90. They were in very poor condition. It took several days to repair the veneer and stabilize the cabinets in order to work on them at all. Now the Majestic highboy model 92 does have the highlighted edges you mention and I won't strip it off. I also agree with your warning on bland one tone refinishing jobs. I did that to my Philco Jr. and regretted it later. Although it may not be too late to use a darker finish in the inner front panel as was originally. I will look for the oil based stain you mention also. Although I have not used polyurethane in recent years I am opposed to it. I like the look of shellac and varnish. I have tried to repair dents and scratches on floors done in polyurethane with poor results. Polyurethane is a longer chain molecule than varnish. I think I will stick with the varnish.

:Greetings!
:
:Remember, the most often collected radios (those made between about 1928 and 1950) were almost universally finished in Nitrocellulose lacquer. Lacquer is what is known in the trade as a "spirit varnish". It is composed of a resin dissolved in a solvent. The drying action simply consists of the evaporation of the solvent (unlike a true varnish, which is composed of a gum, a resin and a vehicle, the drying action is then a complex and irreversable polymerization). A spirit varnish is reversable, one can soften and re-flow the original finish with the correct solvent.
:
:Most original lacquer finishes can be restored if the veneer substrate is in decent condition. Toning lacquer (an aerosol spray product like that used originally on these old radios) is readily available at many woodworking sepecialty shops.
:
:I have seen quite a number of rare and desirable sets with EXCELLENT original finishes "improved" by well meaning "restorers" who removed the "darkened, old finish" (actually perfect original blended finishes, dark at the edges and lighter in the middle) and replaced them with light blond or muddy medium walnut open grained satin "Tung Oil" monstrosities.
:
:It has been my experience that most sets which do not require extensive veneer repair do not require stripping. Note that the radio collecting hobby is quickly following its older cousin, phonograph collecting. On phonographs, reasonably well preserved original finishes command a considerable premium in value, whereas refinish jobs of average quality (using the sort of materials available at your local Home Depot or Lowes) are generally saleable only at parts machine prices. Stripping should always ba a last resort.

Bob, thanks for the input. I don't think I made the distinction between what needs to be stripped and what finish I think can be recovered. Although ultimately that may be determined by the restorer's competence or taste. Here is an example. I have a Crosley 66T3 that I am restoring. The finish I believe is laquer. It has blemishes, scratches but the wood grain, tone is still visible. I am thinking of a light sanding maybe just enough to take off the marred layer that hides the cabinets true finish. This is the process I am unfamiliar with because I have usually stripped off the original finish with (in the old days methylene chloride and wax) now Citristrip. You make good points refering to phonograph collecting and the value based on finishes. I think there must be a difference between the aging characteristics of laquer and varnish. Some of the sets I stripped off completely. I did so because the finish had turned nearly black. I have seen this on more then radios and furniture.
When I purchased my now 103 year old house the staircase had the same near black varnish? It practically hid the grain. I stripped it off and finished it with a sanding sealer with no regrets as now I can see the wood grain, tone. I can say the same for my Majestic 90b and a similar Philco 111 but to respect the original finish I simply don't know how to get it back to where it was. If a piece is waxed as them I use a conditioner but it doesn't work on finishes with dryers as you mention. Anyways thanks for the history. If you have a set that has a blackened finish how can it be conditioned to make it lighter or have more aesthetic value without stripping it off? also thanks for your response to the fuse topic I posted. I think I have a case where a 35z3 did open as you mention.

:
:::You are not supposed to stain most wooden radios.
:Use colored varnish. If there are mixed woods, the fine woods will take the stain well, but certain hard or soft woods and plywood ends will take the stain very poorly. Pine and walnut will turn zebra, hard woods will not accept stain at all. The edges where the underwood (which is usually either really hard or really soft and sometimes is in layers if plywood) is showing should be covered with a dark colored varnish as was originally used. I'm not sure about how the Majestic you talk about looks, but my Majestic 180 has really dark colored varnish around the edges, as do my other consols, though in different shades. If you were to stain these edges, the radios would look rediculous. The trim around the base of the Philco 60, for instance, should be done in a dark colored varnish. The decorative border between the top and the sides of the Crosley Super 11 is a dark maroonish colored varnish. I found that it was a cross between walnut and jet mahogany. If this surface is stained, it will not accept stain at all. It will look light and plain looking. Colored varnish is used to hide ends of plywood and to blend different types of wood that would not blend with stain. Another advantage of colored varnish is that joints can be filled with wood putty, and the colored varnish will disguise them. You can purchase colored varnishes and polys at hardware stores and wood working stores. You can also make your own shades by mixing oil based paste stains with varnish. The paste stains will greatly slow down hardening of the varnish, so be aware of this. The varnish will lose its tackiness in the normal amount of time, but may dent with the pressure of a finger nail, etc. Once the colored varnish sections have hardened properly (a month, perhaps), they should be gone over with a clear coat of varnish. If you use precolored varnish, however, it should dry in the normal amount of time.
:::
:::Anyway, don't stain radios unless the wood takes the stain well. Remember that radios were originally made on assembly lines whether at the radio factory or at a cabinet factory. They used quick and cheap methods of assembly, and then used colored varnish to blend everything together and also to get striking designs not otherwise possible with the woods used. I see radios on eBay with stained walnut, which zebra stripes, and the borders of the radio are stained the same color as the rest of the radio instead of in a deep contrasting shade. The radios look boring and rediculous. Also, originally most radios were done in either a semi-gloss or a full gloss. Unless it is for your personal taste, don't refinish a radio in a flat finish. I have seen some radios which look good this way, but if you're going for original, they should be glossy.
:::
:::Thomas
::
::Thanks for the tips and the history. I will go with varnish and stained varnish. I have to say though that I have had some very good results with stain and shellac on cabinets that I completely stripped. I have no idea what the original finish looked like on the Majestic 70B and 90. They were in very poor condition. It took several days to repair the veneer and stabilize the cabinets in order to work on them at all. Now the Majestic highboy model 92 does have the highlighted edges you mention and I won't strip it off. I also agree with your warning on bland one tone refinishing jobs. I did that to my Philco Jr. and regretted it later. Although it may not be too late to use a darker finish in the inner front panel as was originally. I will look for the oil based stain you mention also. Although I have not used polyurethane in recent years I am opposed to it. I like the look of shellac and varnish. I have tried to repair dents and scratches on floors done in polyurethane with poor results. Polyurethane is a longer chain molecule than varnish. I think I will stick with the varnish.

That was a pretty good article Bob wrote. I would assume that they used a fast drying finish for assembly work, as regular varnish is not suitable for speedy work. Bob, are you sure that they used nitrocellulose based products. Perhaps this is different than nitrocelluloid, which is what was used for the old extremely flammable motion picture film and the non-safety home recording discs. I assume that cellulose is different than celluloid. I do not hear about radios exploding, and I have seen my share of radios with cigarette burns.

As for darkening finish, keep in mind that even the finishes used on radios do darken with time, though usually only to a yellow-orange. Also, some colored finishes on radios were intentionally somewhat opaque, as they were to hide things like the end of plywood, as I have mentioned before (if not ordinary plywood, at least the layers of veneer and such). If one suspects the finish to be darkened by something other than the original tones added to it, you can use a good grade of furniture soap. This can really brighten up a finish. I have used a foam product in an aersol can, but I don't recall the name at the moment, and the can is from the 1970s (still works). At any rate, it says on the can that it is for fine furniture, and it does wonders for stripping old wax and dirt from the varnish without ruining the varnish. The residue removed is often brown, which says something about the darkening of the piece.

As for refinishing sets, it is a bad idea to refinish a set that is in good condition, but I strongly encourage everyone to rebuild cabinets of those beat up sets that look atrocious (veneer missing, cabinet broken in places, heavily water damaged, etc.). It can be a real treat restoring such sets, because when you take pictures (before restoration) and show them to people, they will be stunned at your fine results. You will also be rejuvenating an otherwise worthless set. Of course there are sets that are extremely rare that may or may not be reduced in value by a refinishing job even if they were originally in horrible shape. I do not know of any, though. Taking beat up sets and making masterpieces out of them can also be a means of obtaining an otherwise unaffordable radio, though if the chassis of such a set is terribly rusted, and you are required to polish and replate the entire thing (along with replacing useless parts), you may pay more in the long run for the set than you would for one in good condition. Still, it is great to keep as many of the old radios around as possible.

Thomas

Thomas:

Nitrocellulose, also known as Pyroxlyn, is essentially the same material as that highly inflammable moving picture film. Pyroxlyn lacquer is made by dissolving nireocellulose in Bananna Oil and Acetone. While film is extremely flammable, as is the thread from lacquer recording discs, when attatched to a suitable substrate (which tends to act as a heat sink) pyroxlyn is not particularly inflammable. (when was the last time that you heard of a Blue Amberol cylinder bursting in to flame?)

:That was a pretty good article Bob wrote. I would assume that they used a fast drying finish for assembly work, as regular varnish is not suitable for speedy work. Bob, are you sure that they used nitrocellulose based products. Perhaps this is different than nitrocelluloid, which is what was used for the old extremely flammable motion picture film and the non-safety home recording discs. I assume that cellulose is different than celluloid. I do not hear about radios exploding, and I have seen my share of radios with cigarette burns.
:
:As for darkening finish, keep in mind that even the finishes used on radios do darken with time, though usually only to a yellow-orange. Also, some colored finishes on radios were intentionally somewhat opaque, as they were to hide things like the end of plywood, as I have mentioned before (if not ordinary plywood, at least the layers of veneer and such). If one suspects the finish to be darkened by something other than the original tones added to it, you can use a good grade of furniture soap. This can really brighten up a finish. I have used a foam product in an aersol can, but I don't recall the name at the moment, and the can is from the 1970s (still works). At any rate, it says on the can that it is for fine furniture, and it does wonders for stripping old wax and dirt from the varnish without ruining the varnish. The residue removed is often brown, which says something about the darkening of the piece.
:
:As for refinishing sets, it is a bad idea to refinish a set that is in good condition, but I strongly encourage everyone to rebuild cabinets of those beat up sets that look atrocious (veneer missing, cabinet broken in places, heavily water damaged, etc.). It can be a real treat restoring such sets, because when you take pictures (before restoration) and show them to people, they will be stunned at your fine results. You will also be rejuvenating an otherwise worthless set. Of course there are sets that are extremely rare that may or may not be reduced in value by a refinishing job even if they were originally in horrible shape. I do not know of any, though. Taking beat up sets and making masterpieces out of them can also be a means of obtaining an otherwise unaffordable radio, though if the chassis of such a set is terribly rusted, and you are required to polish and replate the entire thing (along with replacing useless parts), you may pay more in the long run for the set than you would for one in good condition. Still, it is great to keep as many of the old radios around as possible.
:
:Thomas

Got it. Very interesting.

Thomas

thanks for the informative post.
i want to try to dissolve the lacquer finish with the lacquer thinner and reapply on the radio.
i only have access to two types of thiners: cellulose thinner and synthetic thinner. (i assume i will need the cellulose for the job)
i have few questions:
1. what is the proper way to apply the lacquer thinner? (robbing w/ soft coth or steel wool etc.)

2.some of the wood parts are stained. do i run the risk of removing the stain as well as the the lacquer?
thanks
ps.

Bob, lacquer thinner will not work well for what you have in mind. The reason is because it dries before the old lacquer has time to dissolve. Even if you managed to dissolve it with thinner and rubbed it with a cloth or steel wool, it would work about the same way as paint stripper, which would probably remove the stain along with it.

::okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?
:Hi Jim
: Yep! I was very impressed with the Brasso on Bakellite as well, makes the old gals look and shine like new! As Far as the wood refinishing goes, I've always taken them completely down with sanding and restaining, with a finish of semi gloss poly, however I've only done the smaller wood cabinet radios, with the big Monsters, that would take quite some time, the only problem with terpentine is it will strip them down fast, but it can cause unsightly blemishes or stains in the wood, even though it would take longer too sand them, at least in my opinion the end results would be much better in the long run, goodluck in what ever you decide.
:Mark
:thanks I will heed your warning on using terpentine. I bought some 220 sand paper to try out also.

:::okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?
::Hi Jim
:: Yep! I was very impressed with the Brasso on Bakellite as well, makes the old gals look and shine like new! As Far as the wood refinishing goes, I've always taken them completely down with sanding and restaining, with a finish of semi gloss poly, however I've only done the smaller wood cabinet radios, with the big Monsters, that would take quite some time, the only problem with terpentine is it will strip them down fast, but it can cause unsightly blemishes or stains in the wood, even though it would take longer too sand them, at least in my opinion the end results would be much better in the long run, goodluck in what ever you decide.
::Mark
::thanks I will heed your warning on using terpentine. I bought some 220 sand paper to try out also.

hi i use laquer and mix minwax stain with it to get the right shade it dries very fast and laquer is forgiving if you goof up its easy to sand it off and try again i use an airbrush for the small detail shading.i also use refinish scrapers a lot these are just a flat hard piece of steel which you run over a file to get a staight edge then run across something hard at an angle to get a small lip on the edge if you have a set with a bad cracked finish these will strip it in a short time with a little elbow grease you can get them at most hardware stores i usually cut them down to about an inch or so wide as they come in 4 inch and the old sets are usually warped enough something that wide won't set flush on them.butch

All,
There may be instances where Stain-n-Varnish is acceptable to me, but if its too dark, varnish remover is in order. I use only oil based stains. Wood grains can be opened with a fine water mist or wiped on, and after drying, applied oil base stains are darker. If not dark enough, additional coats can be applied. If a lighter tone is desired after first application of stain, or some areas to be highlighted, lacquer thinner with #320 sand paper or steel wool or fine wire brush is appropriate. Unique tones can be created mixing oil based stains with clear varnish. I've used lacquer thinner and a fine wire brush to clean old stain and varnish from stripped wood, in order to effectively apply a new oil based stain. This method may not be acceptable in some cases, depending on the laminate or veneer. I've had success with urethane/polyurethane types, but only sprayed. I never ever use them with a brush. Whether or not you are a true purist, will dictate what methods are appropriate.
marv

:okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?

Just a note about cabinet scrapers: I've used them. Be careful! They can do a lot of damage if not carefully used or if they slip, but they do work well.

Thomas

Does anyone have a method for recreating the effect on the upper left & right sides of the Zenith 10S-130 at this website?

http://www.oldradiozone.com/Z_10S130.html

I have a Zenith 10S-135 and an Airline 62-103 whose cabinets were both in very poor shape when I got them. During the refinishing process, the black & gold (yellow?) swirl effect on both cabinets came right off, so I assume it was probably painted on. I'd like to make both look original, but I don't know how the original cabinet finishers did the job.

Thanks,
Jeff

I am sure that if someone took the time they could artistically duplicate the effect using colored varnish and a paint brush. You can mottle the colored varnish to get a very interesting swirling effect. However, another idea I had is to either obtain veneer of the same type or to get the pattern of the original photographic finish off of someone else's radio. If someone would be kind enough to do this and then either sell or donate to everyone a high quality scan, then what anyone with that radio could do is print it out on ordinary paper. I have a feeling that desk jet inks may fade over time, though it's worth a try. Laser inks are not as likely to fade. Print out a copy of the photo finish and then give it a couple of coats of varnish for water proofing purposes. Then glue it to the radio properly. After the glue has dried, varnish in the normal manner. I haven't tried it, but I bet it'd be just as good as the original paper photographic finishes. With the originals, you could see the half tone dots, so the graininess of some printers is not at all likely to be worse.

Thomas

Also, if you're looking to keep your radio somewhat original looking, and would rather not just paste on an interesting piece of real veneer, you could make a computer scan of an interesting piece of veneer. It may or may not turn out nice. If it turns out nice, though you won't necessarily have the original pattern, you'll at least have an attractive photo finish. I'm not an extreme fan of photo finishes, but when it comes to keeping a radio original, they're usually a must. It is also rather difficult to come across detailed veneer, unless it's specifically bird's eye maple or burled whatever (many woods get burly). Search your wood stores, though, and you might come up with something interesting. Once you scan a copy of your interesting piece of veneer, you can also play around with it using various graphic programs (change tint, contrast, as well as paint it up using the various paint tools).

Thomas

Thomas, I have been using computer printouts for 15 years to restore or reproduce various items related to old radios. Good results are usually possible with laser and inkjet printers on various types of paper and clear transparencies. Laser print is almost the same as hot glue, so just about anything works well with them. Most of the time glossy paper that is water and fade resistant give good results with my inkjet printer. One failure that I recall was on a black meter dial. It was on glossy paper that was not fade resistant, and even though it was sealed, the ink disappeared in a few months. However, different brands of ink with different printers give different results on different paper, so it is a matter of learning how to use your particular printer.

One project that I did required a wood grain print, and although it was not used to replace an original photographic finish as you suggest, the result would have been about the same. To show you how crazy my thinking can be, I have even painted paper with various colors before running it through a laser printer. This was back before color printers were available for us common folk. A 300 dpi laser printer will just barely get by on most work, so any resolution above that can only be better. Almost all my work was sealed or glossed over with some type of clear coating, depending on the situation.

When gluing paper to an item, you almost have to stay away from compound curves, such as the upper corners of the Zenith 10S-130. Simple curves, however, are not usually a problem.

There is one other idea that should not be overlooked when trying to replace a photographic finish, and that is contact paper. There are about a zillion different choices to pick from, so somewhere out there is something that should match up fairly well. I haven’t used it myself, but recommended it to a friend and it worked pretty good. Of course, it just looks like contact paper until the finish matches that of the cabinet. However, lacquer would probably eat it up since it is made out of vinyl, so something else would have to be used over it.

:okay, I was so impressed with the bakelite and Brasso clean up I learned in an email chain that I decided to pose this question regarding wood refinishing. I like big floor models and console set radios. Despite there weight and size I managed to aquire several monsters like the Majestic 92 and General Electric model 71. I mention these because they had and have respectively a dark brown- black finish that hides the wood grain. The staircase in my house had this aged varnish as well. What I do in a case like this is completely strip off the finish with a citris based stripper. Then after a few days of drying , sanding , staining, ect- (the process that takes at week or longer) I put on a clear coat. I have a few wood models though that the finish is not bad enough to strip off and I plan on using terpentine and a 000 steel wool to clean it up. Any better ideas?
HI: Bob was leading you down the right path. I professionally refinish at least one wood cabinet radio weekly and find that lacquer finishes are vastly superior to any varnish applicaiton. You can use nitrocellulose (made from cotton fibre), acrylic, or catalyzed lacquer with excellent results. All high end furniture including pianos are lacquer finished.
Lacquer is fast dry and not subject to dust like varnish and produces a much harder finish. You can also choose to use a water white lacquer which has no color whatsoever and it lets all of the wood grain detail show through. A multitude of toners, glazes, sealers, etc. are available and are all lacquer compatible. You MUST be skilled at spraying if you choose to use lacquers but the end product really is professional. Good luck.

Can you brush on lacquer with good results (and a fine brush)? I guess it dries too quickly for the brush lines to settle out, or not?

Thomas

:Can you brush on lacquer with good results (and a fine brush)? I guess it dries too quickly for the brush lines to settle out, or not?

Thomas, many years ago I learned auto paint and body work from an old master who used to paint cars with a brush. The final coat of lacquer can be wet sanded out through 600 grit, then buffed with compound to a mirror like finish. For this kind of finish, the final results are the same as a spray gun. It's just a lot more work. However, a retarder can be added to lacquer to slow the drying process and allow it to flow out better.

Swell.

:Can you brush on lacquer with good results (and a fine brush)? I guess it dries too quickly for the brush lines to settle out, or not?
:
:Thomas

:Can you brush on lacquer with good results (and a fine brush)? I guess it dries too quickly for the brush lines to settle out, or not?
:
:Thomas

Thomas: I want to go on record as NOT recommending you apply lacquer by brushing for several reasons.
1. Lacquer should be preceded with several applications of lacquer based vinyl sanding sealer which would also have to be brush applied.
2. A "wet" spray application of lacquer should be about 2 mils thick (.002) and very uniform. This would be next to impossible by brushing.
3. Lacquers are actually not applied in "coats" because each application actually dissolves the previous application so that it fuses into one total "coat". Brushing would also dissolve the previous coat and would cause application problems.

You can purchase an import quality spray gun for less than 30 bucks which will serve admirably providing you don't plan to make a living with it. You will need a source of compressed air and some practice. Tom.

I’ve never had a problem brushing lacquer, Tom. Like you, I recommend that it be sprayed, but it works about the same as Cellulose Acetate Butyrate dope for aircraft, which has about the same properties and is often applied with a brush during buildup. Brushing reduces the number of coats almost by half, and at the same time it reduces waste. Clear dope is used to fill the grain of the fabric, much the same as a primer sealer is used to fill the grain of wood. Clear dope is used for filling mostly because it is cheaper and better for this purpose than pigmented dope, whereas most primer sealer is cheaper and easier to sand than lacquer. However, clear lacquer can be used as a wood filler. My Zenith console was finished without a sealer or any other kind of filler, and still looks just as nice today as when it was done in 1985.

When brushing either product, don’t play around in it. Just slop it on fast and don’t worry about pretty. Between applications, change the brush stroke direction. The solids move or “shrink” while drying and have a way of smoothing out while blending with the previous application. Of course, spraying is smoother, but this stuff is about the same thing as fingernail polish, which is not usually applied with a spray gun.

For the benefit of anyone who is not familiar with lacquer, it can be an ideal way of learning to use a spray gun. It dries fast and is fairly easy to sand afterwards, so goof ups can be smoothed out and covered up with another application. If you don’t like what you see, keep on doing it until you do. It’s a matter of what you run out of first. Time, money or patience. I just wish that shellac was as forgiving as lacquer, since that is mostly what I have been using in recent years to duplicate the finish on older radio cabinets.

I think I brushed on lacquer on a project I had back in high school shop class. I remember that the stuff smelled really good (not annoying like varnish), and it dried really fast. In between coats, I'd buff the surface with steel wool. We had alternating class schedules (M-W-F for some classes, and T-Th for others). The finish was rock hard dry by the next class time, so I'm pretty sure it was lacquer. Varnish is usually tacky two days later (not really tacky, but it's somewhat soft and is not easily sanded quite yet).

Thomas

That’s probably what it was Thomas. Our shop class used it too, and called it banana oil, and that is what had the good smell However, banana oil (amyl acetate) is added to lacquer to retard the drying time, which can turn spraying lacquer into brushing lacquer, and at the same time, it reduces blushing when the humidity is high. Banana oil is either used in the place of, or lessens the amount of thinner, and is much less volatile than a typical lacquer thinner, which is mostly acetone.

You are right about it being rock hard when dry. That’s why lacquer can be buffed to a high gloss. The harder a substance is, the brighter it will be when polished. For example, the glass of a mirror, or the luster of a diamond. However, lacquer is not as hard as some of the urethanes that are mixed with a catalyst.

Lacquer has an advantage over many coatings because almost all the solvents work out of it in about 6 months, whereas spar varnish, synthetic enamel, shellac, etc., may take many years. Actually, synthetic enamel never completely dries on an automobile unless it is baked at a high enough temperature to melt the tires off it and burn the upholstery out of it. So much for the typical Earl Scheib bake job. Manufacturers such as Ford baked enamel at a high temperature on just the sheet metal though, which gave a fairly high gloss. In contrast, GM used lacquer and dried it with just enough heat to completely get rid of the solvents. They both held up about the same, so lacquer is not necessarily better under some circumstances. What all this means is that we can work with lacquer at home and still get very good results without baking. However, when lacquer air dries, it continuously shrinks, and imperfections can begin to show. This is why some lacquer finishes must be buffed after about 6 months.

On the other hand, shellac cannot even be cured in the hot sun, and takes many years to completely dry. If it was originally applied rather thick, it will crack instead of shrink. Even though the cracks can be very small, they prevent you from seeing through the finish, and this is the reason why it begins to look almost black. However, old shellac can be rejuvenated to eliminate these cracks and bring back the finish. By the same token, lacquer can crack over time if it was applied on a hot day or if the humidity is too high, and it can also be rejuvenated to bring back the finish.

I have heard that if a lacquer finish has not been waxed, it can sometimes be re-flowed with acetone or a similar product. If the finish has been waxed, though, disaster will result.

Incidently, my 1951 Chevrolet (the only car I've ever owned) was painted with lacquer originally. That is strong stuff, though it tends to crackle eventually.

I have one positive thing to say about a finish retaining some of its original solvents. I wish that varnish and polyurathane retained their oils longer. New varnish and poly (less than 2 or 3 years old) can have water spilled on it with no problems. Once varnish gets old, it turns white from moisture, and is easily dissolved with mositure. I'm not sure about poly, as it hasn't been on the market long enough. Lacquer, which loses a lot of its solvents in a rather short time, though, is not at all problematic with moisture if kept glossy, so I guess retaining solvents isn't always necessary. When used on wood, however, which expands and contracts, it develops hairline cracks which allow water to absorb in.

I guess in the end it is just not a good idea to spill things onto an object which you like unless the object happens to be a well painted desk lamp which hasn't been bounced around much.

Thomas

Wax can be a problem when repairing just about any finish. A wax and grease remover is a given during preparation, but if the wax contained silicone, then all bets are off. If that stuff gets anywhere near the finish, a heavy duty paint stripper may not even get rid of it. A drop or two of fisheye remover in the spray gun will probably get you by, but if you are using a shake 'n' shoot spray bomb, you don’t have that option.

On the subject of moisture and also of a finish drying out, my experience with old radio cabinets has been limited to either shellac or lacquer. My dad began servicing radios in 1943, and I remember seeing him use olive oil to remove a white water ring on the top of a console radio. I never forgot it and now use it on just about any old cabinet that still has a reasonable amount of finish on it. In a few cases, it has even convinced me to leave an old original finish alone instead of redoing it.

Olive oil works equally well with shellac or lacquer if it has a dried out appearance, although it may take a few applications over a period of as many days to do its best. This is especially true if a stubborn water ring is deeply embedded in the finish. New and old surface scratches are hidden immediately, and stay that way for months or longer. As a test several years ago, I treated ½ of a cabinet and let it set out in the garage for several months. At the end of this time, the difference was still like daylight and dark. I have not made any tests to see what would happen with water spills, but it stands to reason that a surface treated with olive oil may be less susceptible to it.

Olive oil in the bottle will become rancid over time, and stink to high heaven. However, I have never had this happen on a treated surface, including the inside of old battery sets with the lids closed. To keep olive oil fresh, store it in the refrigerator. It turns white and solidifies, but reverts back to an oil at room temperature.

I have to try the olive oil. It sounds like a great idea. Though Liquid Gold is not at all recommended for "waxing" finished surfaces, I have found that it is superb at getting out white water marks as well. One day when I was about 12, a friend of my brother's came over to go swimming. He later decided to play our organ (49 tube Lowery) with his swimming trunks still on. WOW! Big white spot! I freaked out because I thought my mother was going to die. I put Liquid Gold on it, though, and it was saved. Later I wiped off the excess and waxed the bench. It still looks pretty good to-day.

Liquid Gold, however, should usually be reserved for those oiled wood pieces of the 1960s and 1970s which have not been varnished (such as superb Pioneer stereos). I think that it may actually lift varnish off of wood if it is used in excess. It is like when people soak their wood with Pledge.

Thomas

I suppose there are a lot of different things that can liven up a dry finish or remove water stains. I don’t remember for certain who gave this tip in the newspaper years ago, but I think it was Dear Abby. She said to use mayonnaise on a water spot. Out of curiosity, I tried Miracle Whip on a small area on a dried out finish and it worked pretty good.

I’ve never thought about people soaking wood with Pledge, but can see where it could be a disaster, especially on the delicate scroll work of a plywood speaker grille. Pledge contains soap and water, and an excess amount could separate the glued laminations, not to mention what it would do if the finish is shellac. The soap and water in Pledge is mainly there to prevent a wax buildup, but it also does a certain amount of cleaning. This is why I use it to clean out the inside of a dirty radio cabinet.

Pledge can be used generously as a cleaner if it is wiped with a paper towel before it has a chance to soak in very much. Just don’t get carried away and try to clean out a filthy cabinet in one application. After each application except the last one, the paper towel will be dirty. When the paper towel comes away clean, then the inside of the radio cabinet is also clean. Most of my radios are shown in contests, and cleanliness is one of the first things a good judge will look for.

For paper towels, use Viva. Don’t even try anything else. They are as soft as a dusting cloth, absorb more, and tough enough to squeeze out and use again. I often use them instead of rags, and have even squeezed thinned paint through them when a strainer was not available.

Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.

Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.

Thomas

:Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.
:
:Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.
:
:Thomas

Thomas,Bob P. and Tom S. nailed this one,they did and still do use nitro laq.Plus there are alot of little tricks that they did.You can still buy the Pravail spray cans to mix your own paint I think.If you're new to spraying,practice on a sheet of glass first until you cover good without runs.That's the best beginner trick I've ever seen.Most fine guitars,etc use nitro but it may be alittle to soft of a laq(they expand alot)you can search Les Paul,etc to learn about it.I hate to admit it but Home Depot was selling a hard nitro laq but I never tried it.Parks was the brand name.Never use Pledge on anything and don't put salad dressing on your cabinet.Charlie

::Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.
::
::Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.
::
::Thomas
:
:Thomas,Bob P. and Tom S. nailed this one,they did and still do use nitro laq.Plus there are alot of little tricks that they did.You can still buy the Pravail spray cans to mix your own paint I think.If you're new to spraying,practice on a sheet of glass first until you cover good without runs.That's the best beginner trick I've ever seen.Most fine guitars,etc use nitro but it may be alittle to soft of a laq(they expand alot)you can search Les Paul,etc to learn about it.I hate to admit it but Home Depot was selling a hard nitro laq but I never tried it.Parks was the brand name.Never use Pledge on anything and don't put salad dressing on your cabinet.Charlie

Hi Charlie: One more chapter to the book on lacquer.
I have been finishing with lacquer products for some 40 years and regard it as the best finish for non-water environments. Unlike varnishes, lacquers dry dust free as a direct consequence of their drying time and do not add an amber color to the base wood. I also use a lot of automotive opaque lacquers (colors) to refinish bakelite radio cabinets with great success.
Lacquers were and still are widely used by furniture manufacturers simply because of their speed of application and drying cycles.

You sound like you use lacquer in your finishing so I will pass on a couple of tips I use in applying lacquer by spray.
1. The substrate (wood on a cabinet) must be perfectly flat as lacquer does NOT FILL ANYTHING. Open grained woods such as mahogany, walnut, etc. must be filled using a good grade of paste wood filler FOLLOWED BY A SEALER to isolate or "seal" the stained surface from the lacquer topcoat.

2. Applying lacquer is all about putting "solids" on the surface, or, applying nice smooth wet uniform coats without sags or runs. Some manufacturers recommend you thin their lacquers with up to 50% thinner in order to reduce the viscosity and render them "sprayable" with common equipment. This much thinner means you are applying less lacquer solids per volume AND it itroduces "blushing" due to the evaporation of the lacquer thinner cooling the surface and condensing moisture.

Remedy: Use only about 5% thinner. Heat up the lacquer to 160 degrees F prior to spraying. This eliminates blush, makes the lacquer flow like glass and reduces the number of "coats" you need to apply. Be careful in that lacquer will boil at about 170 degrees or so depending on its specific gravity. A simple way to heat it is to pour the lacquer into your spray gun cup and then lower the cup into an ordinary kitchen boiler filled with enough water to do the job.
Use a good thermometer and you are in business. DO NOT HEAT AN AEROSOL CAN HOWEVER!!!!

Your final lacquer finish can be rubbed out after 48 hours using pumice stone, rotten stone, and then cigar ashes with mineral oil used as a lubricant/vehicle. Sorry I got carried away with this subject but I hope you can use some of this. Tom S.

::Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.
::
::Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.
::
::Thomas
:
:Thomas,Bob P. and Tom S. nailed this one,they did and still do use nitro laq.Plus there are alot of little tricks that they did.You can still buy the Pravail spray cans to mix your own paint I think.If you're new to spraying,practice on a sheet of glass first until you cover good without runs.That's the best beginner trick I've ever seen.Most fine guitars,etc use nitro but it may be alittle to soft of a laq(they expand alot)you can search Les Paul,etc to learn about it.I hate to admit it but Home Depot was selling a hard nitro laq but I never tried it.Parks was the brand name.Never use Pledge on anything and don't put salad dressing on your cabinet.Charlie

Tom S.I've learned so much from this website through the years(Thanks to the great guys who started it)but I always found the cabinets to be a mystery and accurate info hard to come by.My question is,could I(we)impose on you for the next few days and toss this subject around abit?I know that I have several questions and I'm sure others do too.Second,if so,should a new thread be started so it's not buried at the bottom of this one?Thanks Charlie

:Hi Charlie: One more chapter to the book on lacquer.
:I have been finishing with lacquer products for some 40 years and regard it as the best finish for non-water environments. Unlike varnishes, lacquers dry dust free as a direct consequence of their drying time and do not add an amber color to the base wood. I also use a lot of automotive opaque lacquers (colors) to refinish bakelite radio cabinets with great success.
:Lacquers were and still are widely used by furniture manufacturers simply because of their speed of application and drying cycles.
:
:You sound like you use lacquer in your finishing so I will pass on a couple of tips I use in applying lacquer by spray.
:1. The substrate (wood on a cabinet) must be perfectly flat as lacquer does NOT FILL ANYTHING. Open grained woods such as mahogany, walnut, etc. must be filled using a good grade of paste wood filler FOLLOWED BY A SEALER to isolate or "seal" the stained surface from the lacquer topcoat.
:
:2. Applying lacquer is all about putting "solids" on the surface, or, applying nice smooth wet uniform coats without sags or runs. Some manufacturers recommend you thin their lacquers with up to 50% thinner in order to reduce the viscosity and render them "sprayable" with common equipment. This much thinner means you are applying less lacquer solids per volume AND it itroduces "blushing" due to the evaporation of the lacquer thinner cooling the surface and condensing moisture.
:
:Remedy: Use only about 5% thinner. Heat up the lacquer to 160 degrees F prior to spraying. This eliminates blush, makes the lacquer flow like glass and reduces the number of "coats" you need to apply. Be careful in that lacquer will boil at about 170 degrees or so depending on its specific gravity. A simple way to heat it is to pour the lacquer into your spray gun cup and then lower the cup into an ordinary kitchen boiler filled with enough water to do the job.
:Use a good thermometer and you are in business. DO NOT HEAT AN AEROSOL CAN HOWEVER!!!!
:
:Your final lacquer finish can be rubbed out after 48 hours using pumice stone, rotten stone, and then cigar ashes with mineral oil used as a lubricant/vehicle. Sorry I got carried away with this subject but I hope you can use some of this. Tom S.
:
:
:::Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.
:::
:::Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.
:::
:::Thomas
::
::Thomas,Bob P. and Tom S. nailed this one,they did and still do use nitro laq.Plus there are alot of little tricks that they did.You can still buy the Pravail spray cans to mix your own paint I think.If you're new to spraying,practice on a sheet of glass first until you cover good without runs.That's the best beginner trick I've ever seen.Most fine guitars,etc use nitro but it may be alittle to soft of a laq(they expand alot)you can search Les Paul,etc to learn about it.I hate to admit it but Home Depot was selling a hard nitro laq but I never tried it.Parks was the brand name.Never use Pledge on anything and don't put salad dressing on your cabinet.Charlie

This is all very cool. It's like reading a furniture refinishing book!

Thomas

:Hi Charlie: One more chapter to the book on lacquer.
:I have been finishing with lacquer products for some 40 years and regard it as the best finish for non-water environments. Unlike varnishes, lacquers dry dust free as a direct consequence of their drying time and do not add an amber color to the base wood. I also use a lot of automotive opaque lacquers (colors) to refinish bakelite radio cabinets with great success.
:Lacquers were and still are widely used by furniture manufacturers simply because of their speed of application and drying cycles.
:
:You sound like you use lacquer in your finishing so I will pass on a couple of tips I use in applying lacquer by spray.
:1. The substrate (wood on a cabinet) must be perfectly flat as lacquer does NOT FILL ANYTHING. Open grained woods such as mahogany, walnut, etc. must be filled using a good grade of paste wood filler FOLLOWED BY A SEALER to isolate or "seal" the stained surface from the lacquer topcoat.
:
:2. Applying lacquer is all about putting "solids" on the surface, or, applying nice smooth wet uniform coats without sags or runs. Some manufacturers recommend you thin their lacquers with up to 50% thinner in order to reduce the viscosity and render them "sprayable" with common equipment. This much thinner means you are applying less lacquer solids per volume AND it itroduces "blushing" due to the evaporation of the lacquer thinner cooling the surface and condensing moisture.
:
:Remedy: Use only about 5% thinner. Heat up the lacquer to 160 degrees F prior to spraying. This eliminates blush, makes the lacquer flow like glass and reduces the number of "coats" you need to apply. Be careful in that lacquer will boil at about 170 degrees or so depending on its specific gravity. A simple way to heat it is to pour the lacquer into your spray gun cup and then lower the cup into an ordinary kitchen boiler filled with enough water to do the job.
:Use a good thermometer and you are in business. DO NOT HEAT AN AEROSOL CAN HOWEVER!!!!
:
:Your final lacquer finish can be rubbed out after 48 hours using pumice stone, rotten stone, and then cigar ashes with mineral oil used as a lubricant/vehicle. Sorry I got carried away with this subject but I hope you can use some of this. Tom S.
:
:
:::Amazing! You're like reading a very good book. The mayonnaise idea is pretty strange but cool.
:::
:::Regarding Pledge, I just don't like how it leaves oily residue on wood. However, using it on the inside of a radio sounds like an excellent idea. It'll improve the appearance, hide any dust that can't be worked out of the wood, and will make the radio smell great.
:::
:::Thomas
::
::Thomas,Bob P. and Tom S. nailed this one,they did and still do use nitro laq.Plus there are alot of little tricks that they did.You can still buy the Pravail spray cans to mix your own paint I think.If you're new to spraying,practice on a sheet of glass first until you cover good without runs.That's the best beginner trick I've ever seen.Most fine guitars,etc use nitro but it may be alittle to soft of a laq(they expand alot)you can search Les Paul,etc to learn about it.I hate to admit it but Home Depot was selling a hard nitro laq but I never tried it.Parks was the brand name.Never use Pledge on anything and don't put salad dressing on your cabinet.Charlie

You can still buy Preval sprayers Charlie. I usually keep one or two around for small projects, or when I am too lazy to drag the spray rig out.

The beginner trick with plate glass sounds like a good one. I haven’t heard of that one before. It sure would make it easy to wash off and try again.

About guitars. Both of mine are finished with lacquer. They are about 35 years old now, and I wouldn’t ask for anything better. I haven’t kept track of modern guitars, so have no idea of what is considered best nowadays. However, a few guitarists with fine old guitars claim they prefer the sound of French Polished shellac. I wouldn’t know that either, because my old ear probably couldn’t hear the difference.

I don’t especially care to use Pledge for protection either, nor do I recommend it to anyone, but for me, it does have its advantages. For instance, after I finish building or restoring a radio, it usually just sits on the shelf gathering dust. Therefore I do not mind when the housekeeper uses it while dusting. Pledge is not the best wax protection, but its better than nothing, which would be the case if everything was left entirely up to me. At least it does not build up over time.

Now I am a curious kind of fellow. That is why I tried Miracle Whip on one small part of an old clunker radio cabinet. So being the curious type, I’d like to ask you a question. What kind of a problems did you have when you put salad dressing on your old dried out radio cabinet? For that matter, what kind of problems did you have when you cleaned out the inside of your filthy old radio cabinet with Pledge?

hello all, i would like to know if any of you tried the following on a radio set:

CLEANING,REPAIRING AND RECONDITIONING WOOD FURNITURE Carol Williams USU Extension AgentWayne and Piute Counties

"Reamalgamation is a process in which the damaged finish on wood is dissolved with a solvent for the original finish and then reapplied as the finish. If this process is well done it will
be beautiful. It does not destroy the "patina" of the wood that has come with age, care and use
and is often prized."

actually there was more to the article, with my apologies:

clean the furniture with paint thinner or turpentine. Begin reamalgamation by dipping steel wool or a brush into the appropriate solvent and applying it to
the wood surface. Get the surface wet as quickly as possible before solvent evaporates. Brush
and/or rub and reapply solvent until all defects disappear. Apply more solvent to the finish and
smooth the reamalgamated surface with long light strokes, working with the grain. When the
surface is dry, buff it with 0000 steel wool to remove any rough spots. Apply a good paste wax. It
should look like new.There are some "amalgamators" on the market which are solvents for most finishes. TheMohawk Company has one called "Amalgamator." Formsby's is called "Furniture Refinisher."
There are several other brands available. Polyurethane finishes cannot be reamalgamated.

I have rejuvenated shellac with excellent results using Mohawk Amalgamator, but not according to the label. The directions turned out to be a mess when I tried them. However, I use a spray gun technique with it that will eventually clear up a black finish and show the grain of the wood. It doesn’t look brand new when finished, but on some sets, I do not strive for that look anyhow. Amalgamator has even salvaged a few logos under the finish that would have otherwise been destroyed by some methods.

thanks for your reply, i am a bit confused though: was shellac ever used at the sets dating back to 30s? to be more specific: i am working on a 1936 rca. my understanding is that the set is finished in lacquer. would the "mohawk Amalgamator" work with lacquer? thanks again.
:I have rejuvenated shellac with excellent results using Mohawk Amalgamator, but not according to the label. The directions turned out to be a mess when I tried them. However, I use a spray gun technique with it that will eventually clear up a black finish and show the grain of the wood. It doesn’t look brand new when finished, but on some sets, I do not strive for that look anyhow. Amalgamator has even salvaged a few logos under the finish that would have otherwise been destroyed by some methods.
::I have rejuvenated shellac with excellent results using Mohawk Amalgamator, but not according to the label. The directions turned out to be a mess when I tried them. However, I use a spray gun technique with it that will eventually clear up a black finish and show the grain of the wood. It doesn’t look brand new when finished, but on some sets, I do not strive for that look anyhow. Amalgamator has even salvaged a few logos under the finish that would have otherwise been destroyed by some methods.
:

Shellac was used on most sets of the 1920’s and on some sets during the early 30’s. Your RCA was probably finished in lacquer. I have never used amalgamator on a radio with lacquer because I’ve never had a need to, but maybe other people have. This stuff is not a finish, and should only be used on a finish that is still there and “gone bad”. Lacquer doesn’t usually do that on a radio cabinet, or that has been my experience with it. Either there is enough of the original finish to restore by other means, or there is not. In other words, I have either salvaged some lacquer finishes by touchup work, or removed the remains and applied a new finish.

On the other hand, shellac can “go bad”. It can turn so black that you can’t see through it, and this is the only kind of finish that I have had a use for amalgamator.

thanks for the information. i am trying to avoid refinishing, but i am a bit lost, i guess...not as experienced as you guys, that's for sure! let me ask you then: is there a way to post an image on this board? i would like to share the picture of my radio, and have expert ideas on what would be best to do about it...thanks again.
:Shellac was used on most sets of the 1920’s and on some sets during the early 30’s. Your RCA was probably finished in lacquer. I have never used amalgamator on a radio with lacquer because I’ve never had a need to, but maybe other people have. This stuff is not a finish, and should only be used on a finish that is still there and “gone bad”. Lacquer doesn’t usually do that on a radio cabinet, or that has been my experience with it. Either there is enough of the original finish to restore by other means, or there is not. In other words, I have either salvaged some lacquer finishes by touchup work, or removed the remains and applied a new finish.
:
:On the other hand, shellac can “go bad”. It can turn so black that you can’t see through it, and this is the only kind of finish that I have had a use for amalgamator.
:

I’m not very experienced either Bob, when it comes to posting things on this board. I’ve only been here a short time. However, I don’t believe it is possible to use any kind of html language here. The last post I made at the end of this thread has some URL’s with photos that you can copy and paste in your browser, and that is the only way I know how to display them.

Some servers will allow you web space on their computers so you can do this kind of thing, but they don’t usually tell you about it. You would have to call your server to find out. If not, there are some sites that will let you do this free of charge. I have never used one of these sites, so don’t know the address for one.

thanks billy, i will look into it. appreciate your help.
:I’m not very experienced either Bob, when it comes to posting things on this board. I’ve only been here a short time. However, I don’t believe it is possible to use any kind of html language here. The last post I made at the end of this thread has some URL’s with photos that you can copy and paste in your browser, and that is the only way I know how to display them.
:
:Some servers will allow you web space on their computers so you can do this kind of thing, but they don’t usually tell you about it. You would have to call your server to find out. If not, there are some sites that will let you do this free of charge. I have never used one of these sites, so don’t know the address for one.
:

Billy,for some reason I have to click on every post to read these threads and I'd skipped alot of yours.I ran across the glass trick on a auto paint website and used it with my son to help him learn(woodshop)and it worked pretty good,actually we didn't have a plate of glass and used the side of the gallon paint thinner can.I think the point is that when you can spray something as slick as glass then you can move over to your project.

I ran across the Preval unit spraying waterbase clear on a Fender type neck and it worked pretty good for me but I wasn't sure how oil base or lacquer would affect it.I'd seen the French Polish on tables and such but wasn't aware it was used on guitars,don't violins use shellac?Maybe it's related to that.I've never used lacquer on wood before but I have 2 projects that I want to try it on,a Gibson solid body and the top of a AK#85 I think it is,so for the past few years(I'm real slow getting to things)I've been trying to learn as much as I can before I tackle these.

I don't have alot of radios,maybe 5-10,and I've only redone 2 of those.Those were tabletop types of low value but I thought they turned out pretty good.I stripped both and just removed the clear finish only so not to disturb the patina using a white scrubby pad and used the Watco Danish Oil Stain,Dark and Black Walnut,and used the Watco clear satin wax on one and dark paste wax on the other which had a tight grain,I believe the wood was walnut on that one.

I usually use oderless paint thinner to clean old cabinets because I might redo them later and I'm not sure what is in pledge and stuff like that.I haven't tried salad dressing but I tried katchup to polish brass.It was ok I guess but I thought brass cleaner worked better.I would be afraid that eggs used in salad dressing might spoil would be my main reason I guess.

I got a air compressor a couple of years ago,I use it at work alot,and wondered,what would be a good spray gun for small projects?

:You can still buy Preval sprayers Charlie. I usually keep one or two around for small projects, or when I am too lazy to drag the spray rig out.
:
:The beginner trick with plate glass sounds like a good one. I haven’t heard of that one before. It sure would make it easy to wash off and try again.
:
:About guitars. Both of mine are finished with lacquer. They are about 35 years old now, and I wouldn’t ask for anything better. I haven’t kept track of modern guitars, so have no idea of what is considered best nowadays. However, a few guitarists with fine old guitars claim they prefer the sound of French Polished shellac. I wouldn’t know that either, because my old ear probably couldn’t hear the difference.
:
:I don’t especially care to use Pledge for protection either, nor do I recommend it to anyone, but for me, it does have its advantages. For instance, after I finish building or restoring a radio, it usually just sits on the shelf gathering dust. Therefore I do not mind when the housekeeper uses it while dusting. Pledge is not the best wax protection, but its better than nothing, which would be the case if everything was left entirely up to me. At least it does not build up over time.
:
:Now I am a curious kind of fellow. That is why I tried Miracle Whip on one small part of an old clunker radio cabinet. So being the curious type, I’d like to ask you a question. What kind of a problems did you have when you put salad dressing on your old dried out radio cabinet? For that matter, what kind of problems did you have when you cleaned out the inside of your filthy old radio cabinet with Pledge?
:

Yeah Charlie, I’m having problems clicking on some of the posts too. I think we have worn this thread somewhat bare, and should probably begin a new one if we continue.

I’ve never had a problem painting glass. My biggest problem with glass has always been trying to keep paint off of glass.

About guitars and Old World French Polish. This is probably not something you would want to do, but there is a web site that can tell you a lot of details about it. I don’t care for some of the techniques they use, but this is an art and everyone has their own way to doing things. These people had the same problem that I had while learning , and no amount of reading will teach you how. I use a similar method on some of my radios of the 1920’s.
http://www.milburnguitars.com/frenchpolish.html

I talk a lot about radios, but don’t usually give advice. However, there is one piece of advice that I have given to many people that are learning to restore radios. You have redone the finish on two of your radios. If you are proud of what you did, then to hell with what anyone else thinks about it. It’s your radio and you can do anything you want to with it. If you are not proud of what you did, then you will learn to do better.

I can’t really tell you what kind of spray gun to use for small projects. I have used Binks equipment since 1955, including pot guns and heated pot guns, but have learned to use their regular hand held gun for most small projects. They make guns that are smaller, but all their equipment is expensive, and I have not been able to justify that expense for no more than I would use it. I bought a cheap imitation of a small one several years ago, but threw that thing away.

I have a 2hp portable compressor at home where I do most of my radio work, and it is more than enough to take care of a spray gun. But like I said in an earlier post, I often use a Preval for small projects, especially anything that would be a little too clumsy to use a Binks. But then, I have been using point and shoot spray bombs since they first became available, and can usually do a pretty good job with them too.

Yeah Charlie, I’m having problems clicking on some of the posts too. I think we have worn this thread somewhat bare, and should probably begin a new one if we continue.

I’ve never had a problem painting glass. My biggest problem with glass has always been trying to keep paint off of glass.

About guitars and Old World French Polish. This is probably not something you would want to do, but there is a web site that can tell you a lot of details about it. I don’t care for some of the techniques they use, but this is an art and everyone has their own way to doing things. These people had the same problem that I had while learning , and no amount of reading will teach you how. I use a similar method on some of my radios of the 1920’s.

http://www.milburnguitars.com/frenchpolish.html

I talk a lot about radios, but don’t usually give advice. However, there is one piece of advice that I have given to many people that are learning to restore radios. You have redone the finish on two of your radios. If you are proud of what you did, then to hell with what anyone else thinks about it. It’s your radio and you can do anything you want to with it. If you are not proud of what you did, then you will learn to do better.

I can’t really tell you what kind of spray gun to use for small projects. I have used Binks equipment since 1955, including pot guns and heated pot guns, but have learned to use their regular hand held gun for most small projects. They make guns that are smaller, but all their equipment is expensive, and I have not been able to justify that expense for no more than I would use it. I bought a cheap imitation of a small one several years ago, but threw that thing away.

I have a 2hp portable compressor at home where I do most of my radio work, and it is more than enough to take care of a spray gun. But like I said in an earlier post, I often use a Preval for small projects, especially anything that would be a little too clumsy to use a Binks. But then, I have been using point and shoot spray bombs since they first became available, and can usually do a pretty good job with them too.

Billy,I do interior finish work on large houses here around Dallas,mostly giant custom showers and tilework,and the painters use alot of lacquer on cabinets.They do alot of dry brushing to accent the wood and I've been watching him trying to pick up a few tips.I helped him do a large slate shower at his house and he offered to loan me a HVLP gun,I think he called it,when I get ready to start my projects again.I just got a low mile 1978 Mark V so it may be awhile yet.

I was thinking today about the dear abby type tips and wondered if they might be using the oil in the salad dressing cause the last one that I heard used a walnut to hide a scratch in wood.Anyway,I don't always have walnuts around.

:Yeah Charlie, I’m having problems clicking on some of the posts too. I think we have worn this thread somewhat bare, and should probably begin a new one if we continue.
:
:I’ve never had a problem painting glass. My biggest problem with glass has always been trying to keep paint off of glass.
:
:About guitars and Old World French Polish. This is probably not something you would want to do, but there is a web site that can tell you a lot of details about it. I don’t care for some of the techniques they use, but this is an art and everyone has their own way to doing things. These people had the same problem that I had while learning , and no amount of reading will teach you how. I use a similar method on some of my radios of the 1920’s.
:
:http://www.milburnguitars.com/frenchpolish.html
:
:I talk a lot about radios, but don’t usually give advice. However, there is one piece of advice that I have given to many people that are learning to restore radios. You have redone the finish on two of your radios. If you are proud of what you did, then to hell with what anyone else thinks about it. It’s your radio and you can do anything you want to with it. If you are not proud of what you did, then you will learn to do better.
:
:I can’t really tell you what kind of spray gun to use for small projects. I have used Binks equipment since 1955, including pot guns and heated pot guns, but have learned to use their regular hand held gun for most small projects. They make guns that are smaller, but all their equipment is expensive, and I have not been able to justify that expense for no more than I would use it. I bought a cheap imitation of a small one several years ago, but threw that thing away.
:
:I have a 2hp portable compressor at home where I do most of my radio work, and it is more than enough to take care of a spray gun. But like I said in an earlier post, I often use a Preval for small projects, especially anything that would be a little too clumsy to use a Binks. But then, I have been using point and shoot spray bombs since they first became available, and can usually do a pretty good job with them too.
:

A note about walnuts and salad dressing and Pledge. The reason why they hide nicks and scratches is because the oils in all of the above optically reconnect the finish with the wood. When you scratch a finished piece or when the finish starts to raise from the wood, the white spots you see are when the light hits the back side of the finish and is reflected back to you. When the finish is connected to the wood, the light penetrates through to the wood. Also, the back side of the finish is not optically clear, especially when damaged, and so unless it is right up against the wood, the image seen through it will be blurry.

A way to show this would be to place a piece of etched glass over a flat surface with the etching facing down. Then wet the etching with either water or oil. Notice the difference in clarity.

A more permanent method of repairing optical problems in the finish would be to go about it in a different way--reconnect the finish in a more permanent manner. To do this you may want to either re-soften the finish using its original solvent (if possible), or use one of the finish re-flow products available. You may also try working some clear varnish (or other finish product) into the scratch or damaged area. Then allow this to dry. Buff to a gloss. I suggest varnish, as it will not likely soften the surrounding finish. Lacquer is much more volatile, and may upset the surrounding finish.

Doing this will permanently reconnect the finish with the wood. When you oil wood using Pledge or salad dressing or some other oil (walnut), the oils will eventually soak into the wood and pull away from the finish, and the scratch will reappear. Oils on the finish also tend to assist in further lifting the finish.

As always, experiment and see which methods you like best. There are situations where oiling the finish may be preferred to rubbing varnish into the finish. It is also good to note that waxing a finish to remove scratches is on par to oiling the finish. Thus the removal of scratches with wax may be no more permanent than with oils.

Thomas

I see you are in the Dallas area, so I gotta ask. Are you a member of Vintage Radio & Phonograph Society? I am from the Houston area, but have been a member of the Dallas club for about 20 years. I don’t get out and around much anymore, but occasionally make their annual convention.

Small world isn't it,no I'm not member but I'll look into it.I need to get out more myself.

:I see you are in the Dallas area, so I gotta ask. Are you a member of Vintage Radio & Phonograph Society? I am from the Houston area, but have been a member of the Dallas club for about 20 years. I don’t get out and around much anymore, but occasionally make their annual convention.
:

VRPS is a very active club. Their annual event can easily have more than 1000 radios up for bid in their auctions. I always participate in the Old Equipment Contest when I attend. My last entry in Dallas was an 8 tube superheterodyne built from a construction article that was featured in the 1924 issue of QST, and originally built by an amateur operator. The cabinet is constructed entirely out of brass, so I didn’t have to bother with a wood finish like we have been discussing in this thread.

Here is a scan of the photo on the front cover of the magazine:
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/QSTcover.jpg?BC_1XKDB3efkkef4

This is a photo of the radio when displayed in the Houston contest:
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/Contest.jpg?BC_1XKDBRPmCYi_n

This scan from the magazine shows the inside compartments:
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/QSTinside.jpg?BC_1XKDBPsfLvBhb

Here is an inside photo of my set:
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/inside.jpg?BC_1XKDBCcEobrI4

The original design of this radio gave terrible performance, so I modified the circuit and layout. I elected to use brass tube sockets, even though I have some in stock that are exactly like the originals.

The original set did not label any of the controls and looked kinda blah, so I took the liberty of doing some engraving. These next two shots are examples:
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/Engrave.jpg?BC_1XKDBP1sr3wpR
http://us.f2.yahoofs.com/bc/41fe4ecb_77bd/bc/Engrave2.jpg?BC_1XKDBfMpnwgvb

If you are interested in knowing more about VRPS, check out their site at:
http://www.vrps.org/

Get to know a few of the fellows in Dallas and you will probably find at least one of them who can lead you to someone who can help you with just about any kind of radio problem.

Just for the heck of it, here is the club in Houston:
http://www.hvra.org/

You don’t have to participate to become a member of either of these clubs. Just pay the dues. They both publish a monthly newsletter, which can sometimes be helpful with radio repair, etc.

Well Spit, Charlie. I just discovered that most of the URL’s in the previous post may not work with your browser. So if you can’t get to them, copy and paste the ones in this post to your browser.

VRPS is a very active club. Their annual event can easily have more than 1000 radios up for bid in their auctions. I always participate in the Old Equipment Contest when I attend. My last entry in Dallas was an 8 tube superheterodyne built from a construction article that was featured in the 1924 issue of QST, and originally built by an amateur operator. The cabinet is constructed entirely out of brass, so I didn’t have to bother with a wood finish like we have been discussing in this thread.

Here is a scan of the photo on the front cover of the magazine:
http://www.imswebs.com/br/QSTcover.jpg

This is a photo of the radio when displayed in the Houston contest:
http://www.imswebs.com/br/Contest.jpg

This scan from the magazine shows the inside compartments:
http://www.imswebs.com/br/QSTinside.jpg

Here is an inside photo of my set:
http://www.imswebs.com/br/inside.jpg

The original design of this radio gave terrible performance, so I modified the circuit and layout. I elected to use brass tube sockets, even though I have some in stock that are exactly like the originals.

The original set did not label any of the controls and looked kinda blah, so I took the liberty of doing some engraving. These next two shots are examples:
http://www.imswebs.com/br/Engrave2.jpg
http://www.imswebs.com/br/Engrave.jpg

If you are interested in knowing more about VRPS, check out their site at:
http://www.vrps.org/

Get to know a few of the fellows in Dallas and you will probably find at least one of them who can lead you to someone who can help you with just about any kind of radio problem.

Just for the heck of it, here is the club in Houston:
http://www.hvra.org/

You don’t have to participate to become a member of either of these clubs. Just pay the dues. They both publish a monthly newsletter, which can sometimes be helpful with radio repair, etc.

I see you are in the Dallas area, so I gotta ask. Are you a member of Vintage Radio & Phonograph Society? I am from the Houston area, but have been a member of the Dallas club for about 20 years. I don’t get out and around much anymore, but occasionally make their annual convention.

Very beautiful! Your engraving is fabulous. I have one question, though. Besides the amplifier controls over to the right, if this is a superheterodyne, why are there so many controls that look like tuning controls?

Thomas

Thanks for the compliment Thomas. This super has four air core I.F. transformers, each peaked with a tuning condenser. Therefore the I.F peak can be shifted over quite a range. The secondary windings are triple bank wound on a 4” coil form, with the primary windings inside. The original had both on the outside, but the compartments are too small for a coil of this diameter, so I wound them as narrow as possible to keep the ends further away from sides of the compartment.

This must be a rather difficult radio to operate for the novice, but for one who is experienced it must be a delight.

Thomas

Twisting a bunch of knobs at 3:00 in the morning can be a lot of fun, especially if you have a long line of tubes glowing back at you. Peaking the IF’s are done by ear, but tuning is broad down there around 100 KC’s so it ain’t no big deal. Most of the work is getting the stations logged, and once that’s done, the old supers are easier to tune than a 3 dialer.

By the way, one of these things will pull in a station right down to the noise of the atmosphere. It may not sound worth a poot, but you can hear it. This is about the only kind of radios that I mess with anymore.

Well Billy,you are one sharp guy.I had gotten tired of the endless IE,spyware and spyware fix cycle and about 4 months ago I copied my stuff to CD's,did a clean install,switched to Mozilla and have been very happy with the results.I'm not that sharp,so how did you know?

I agree with Thomas,that is beautiful.I can see why you like the older stuff.

:Twisting a bunch of knobs at 3:00 in the morning can be a lot of fun, especially if you have a long line of tubes glowing back at you. Peaking the IF’s are done by ear, but tuning is broad down there around 100 KC’s so it ain’t no big deal. Most of the work is getting the stations logged, and once that’s done, the old supers are easier to tune than a 3 dialer.
:
:By the way, one of these things will pull in a station right down to the noise of the atmosphere. It may not sound worth a poot, but you can hear it. This is about the only kind of radios that I mess with anymore.
:

Congratulations on coming up with a system that you are happy with, Charlie. I didn’t get tired of IE, because I have never used it. When it was forced on win98 users, I modified the operating system and have never had it in my computers. Just because Bill Gates said IE couldn’t be removed, doesn’t mean it’s true. I never install windows updates, anti-virus and spy ware programs, or any of that other stuff, and never have a problem with any of those issues. But then, that’s a whole ‘nother story. I spend too much time building computers and should spend more time building radios.

I didn’t really know that you would have problems with the URLs, but suspected it. I put the images on a web site that I was not familiar with and they worked with my computer. The problem was, I didn’t test them with other computers and browsers until it was too late. I knew better, but just didn’t think to do better. After finding my mistake, I copied them to a proven web site. So actually, I ain’t all that sharp.

Now that we have strayed off subject of radio cabinet refinishing, I imagine that most folks are getting tired of seeing this thread coming to the top of the page. I don’t mind responding to posts in this thread, but if anyone would rather correspond by email about any of the subjects that have been discussed, you are welcome to do so at:

agcat77575-164b@yahoo.com

This is a disposable address that can easily be eliminated if it is abused by spam, so I will reply from my actual address.

On the subject of cabinet refinishing, I am almost ashamed to admit that this is something I hate to do. My main interest is building, designing and restoring radios of the early to mid 20’s, especially superheterodynes. Building or restoring cabinets with finishes are necessary evils that I have to contend with.