I recently cleaned up a scruffy 8R obtained from a nice chap on a German fleabay auction! As bought (with original instructions and a copy of Dutch instructions as well - available for the archive if necessary) Ruined threads on burner bell and evidence/smell of attempted running on kero. Scruffy case Dirty burner Case in electrolysis tank Cleaned case Painted case (I asked for Cosmic Blue and this is what the autoshop gave me! As soon as it came out the tin I thought hello thats wrong, it looks like two-tone Capri blue and sure enough, Caspian Blue! ) Fettled burner (Bell rebuilt, citric acid bath, tank polished and new wick) Burner Bell (Copper top-hat made up as that was the only spare material I had, hard soldered in position and threaded M11x1mm) Finished effort closed Finished effort opened I made a backside of the case colour but I don't particularly mind as its going to be a user Going to resist the temptation to light for a couple of weeks now to let the paint harden up as much as my suspense will allow..... Alec.
Nice one Alec, if you want the paint to harden quicker then suspend the case only in the oven on S for an hour or two, it will work a treat! Si
Nice job, Rangie, she looks great. Did you paint the case yourself or did the autoshop do it? Used primer or just the blue paint?
Nice restauration. Also interested in how you painted the case. Have a few restauration projects myself so any input is welcome.
Nothing special but thorough surface preparation is the key. Electrolysis tank, baked in oven for half an hour to make sure it was bone dry, keyed the fresh metal with some scotchbrite and gave it three coats of cellulose from a rattle can inside and out. I did this one outside on a bright warm day but works equally well in a warm workshop. Dampness leads to dullness/bloom. The original finish had no primer and I have had success with this method for elevated temperature use for a number of years. I also prefer to leave the item for a couple of weeks after to get a good hard finish. Has worked for stoves, lamps, manifolds, engines, etc. Mid spray-job (You can see a touch of the heavy pitting on the bottom surface in this picture. I didn't high-build or anything because its going to be a user) Alec.
Hi Alex, you did an amazing job. I know there's probably youtube videos on this, but do have any tips for spray painting (speed, distance away etc?) I've never spray painted anything in my life so I'm just picking runs everywhere! Thanks for showing us what's possible.
@Retsof practice on some scrap first. For this kind of enamel/VHT paint, a few light coats are better than one thick coat. Alec.
