[gary rabbitt]

Hi John,

I would recommend you don't power up the sets. Perhaps the ones with a transformer can have power applied, but without tubes present, to test the transformer.

While you could add tubes and power them up, you run the risk of burning something up in case one of the caps has shorted. Would be a shame to kill the transformer.
Bakelite cracks can be glued with crazy glue, then hold the pieces tightly together. Use fresh glue. Any squeezeout can be quickly wiped off before it dries.
That way there is very little to polish off. I would avoid sanding any bakelite on the outer surface, because then you will have to use finer and finer grits to make it smooth. BUT if you sand the gloss coat off, you are into the rougher base material, and then never polishes well.
Think of concrete, and the smooth topcoat, Grind that off, and you're into the lower layers of rocks and concrete, no smoothness there.

Sanding can also be dangerous to breathe the dust, as asbestos is said to be used in some of the filler material in bakelite. Use a mask anytime you sand anything.


Personally, I use Brasso on a medium dulled cabinet. It's not just a wipe on, wipe off procedure. YOu have to cut thru the oxidation to that glossy finish. As you keep polishing, you will start to see the gloss appear. One cabinet can take up to 5 hrs to fully polish. Grilles are the hardest. Getting into every tight corner, you meed to make some special tools from wood sticks and dowels to get into every crease.

Once the set is polished, I use a good paste wax like Johnson's. Let it fully dry, then buff off. The wax seems to make the color deeper and adds some protection to the finish. (Don't use a spray wax with silicones. If the cabinet is ever to be repainted the silicones can cause fisheye problems.)


I have not used them, but there are products out there that are not really a polish, but a coating. GlayZit is one. Some folks like it, I have never used it, so to each their own.

OK, for the cracks I mentioned using super glue. That will hold the pieces in place. I always add some epoxy on the backside of a crack, this helps build up an area where the two sections are joined. Maybe 1/4" on each side of a crack. Use the 24 hour type as it seems stronger, and will flow out smoothly on the backside of the set.

For any missing pieces, I use fiberglass resin. A quart can will last a long time. I have made pieces of missing cabinets. Or rather, make a dam out of tape, and fill it with the resin. You can add the fiberglass cloth if desired on larger areas. Then after it cures around a good half hour or less, you can easily shape the resin flush with the rest of the cabinet. Use files, rasps to ge the shape lined up, then use sandpaper and a block to get the contours flush.
If I can find them I'll post a link to a Truetone I started on, finning in a large missing piece.

EDITED>> Here's the link to the thread about the repair.
http://antiqueradios.com/forums/viewtopi...=boomerang
On fillers, some have used Bondo body filler with success. It might hold up fine. But it is still softer than the resin, and might shrink with time and temperature changes. I will stay with the resin.

You asked about scratches on bakelite, well, if they are deep, it it probably best to leave them alone. You could fill with some lacquer wih a fine brush, then as you polish it will level the lacquer making the scratch less visible.

But think, when someone "polishes out" a scratch, they are not removing the scratch, they are removing the surrounding area around the scratch. So, when the surrounding area is level with the depth of the scratch, the scratch appears to have left. BUt in effect, you have removed a lot of material around the scratch. I would rather polish over the smaller ones and not worry about getting a 100% perfect finish.

Hope this helps.
Gary.