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Peroxide Treatment Detailed Instructions

Started by Dan, June 07, 2009, 05:46:08 PM

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Greg G.

Quote from: Dan on April 06, 2011, 06:17:49 AM
This is ALWAYS better than sanding

I'm trying hard to prove you're right!
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Dan

Reasons white and Ivory work better with peroxide over sanding

1. Thickness of the shell remains the same.

2. Post whitening only requires a little application of Novus 2 and f 21 turtle wax spray.

3. Mix,  apply and leave it alone--your hands have no fatigue

4. The lettering  (''western electric, bell systems'') details on the handset and housing can also be whitened and stay sharp and clear, something that can't be accomplished with sanding.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

Greg G.

#92
Well here's the AE 80e after 4 treatments.  I tested it, if fully functions except that it has a frequency ringer.  I never used that "sun lamp".  When I looked a little closer, that's not the bulb that the package says.  The package says "Westinghouse", but that bulb is a Penetray infra red lamp.

Anyway, I think this is as far as I'll go with it as far as bleaching the outside.  I haven't done anything with the handset cord, not sure if retro-bright will work with vinyl.  There is also a repair needed to the cover.  There's a crudely drilled hole in the side.  Not sure what for, maybe it was a lamp at one time?  It would make good practice for the resin and hardener I have.  Just need to get some white pigment.

OR - I could offer this phone up for sale or trade as is.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

bingster

You could go the easy way and fill the hole with one of these doo-dads.  You could even paint it white if you wanted:
= DARRIN =



LarryInMichigan

Briny,

Your results look great!  I have a badly discolored white AE80E which wouldn't mind looking like that.  The only success that I have had with bleaching was with a gray vinyl Ericsson Dialog cord which I soaked in Oxiclean all day in the sunshine (on one of the only sunny days here in Michigan).  The results were encouraging.  I suspect that your cord will bleach well.

For the hole, you might want to try something like Bondo.


Larry

Greg G.

Quote from: bingster on April 12, 2011, 01:54:12 PM
You could go the easy way and fill the hole with one of these doo-dads.  You could even paint it white if you wanted:

If they fit, that may be the route I'll go.  Using the resin and hardener would mean some sanding involved.  Not that I mind a little, especially on a flat surface, just that it would probably expose an even whiter surface area around the hole. 
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Greg G.

Quote from: LarryInMichigan on April 12, 2011, 03:44:43 PM
Briny,

Your results look great!  I have a badly discolored white AE80E which wouldn't mind looking like that.  The only success that I have had with bleaching was with a gray vinyl Ericsson Dialog cord which I soaked in Oxiclean all day in the sunshine (on one of the only sunny days here in Michigan).  The results were encouraging.  I suspect that your cord will bleach well.

For the hole, you might want to try something like Bondo.


Larry

I clean everything in a bath of Oxiclean before I touch them, but I don't leave them in the sun.  I'm thinking of using the retrobright mix, except leave out the corn starch, which just acts as a thickener, but follow the usual steps (under a light for 6 hrs).
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

LarryInMichigan

I just left the gray vinyl cord in a clear plastic container full of Oxiclean and water covered with plastic wrap on my driveway in the sun for the day.  I tried doing the same with a discolored light yellow GPO 746 shell, but with no success.


Larry

GG



Those "doodads" also come in black plastic and in white plastic.  The original surface is a rough texture but it can be sanded and then buffed to be perfectly smooth, at which point it blends into the appearance of the housing better than a metal "doodad" would. 

Dan

Great results Briny. The vinyl worked a little bit for me at 40% , but I switched the cord eventually.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

Greg G.

Here's the before/after of the AE 80.  It's still a shade darker than the original white, but after 4 treatments, this is as far as I want to go.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Greg G.

#101
Quote from: GG on April 13, 2011, 06:18:44 AM


Those "doodads" also come in black plastic and in white plastic.  The original surface is a rough texture but it can be sanded and then buffed to be perfectly smooth, at which point it blends into the appearance of the housing better than a metal "doodad" would.  

They're not as easy to find as one would think, either.  Holmes Depot didn't have them, but I found something that worked at Ace Hardware.  The hole was 1/2", but the smallest white plug they had was 5/8", so I just made the hole a little bigger.  Digging through my stash of boxed up phones, I realized I have 3 white AE 80s, so I'll probably take this one to the show and see if I can sell it.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

GG


Finding anything at Home Despot is difficult-to-impossible; I get those at OSH (Orchard Supply Hardware), where they are easy to find. 

That looks like a good repair there.  Not as good as if it never had a hole, but certainly acceptable for everyday use.

Your almost-yellow 80 came out great! 

Has anyone done the experiment to find out if these retrobright treatments depend on light or on heat to catalyze the reaction?   (NOTE: IF it turns out to be heat that does the trick, use a heat lamp at a reasonable distance, do not put in the oven unless someone with chem expertise provides detailed assurances that this will not be a fire/explosion hazard!)

Dan

I have done them both with a light (60 watt) or heat source and without and the light improves the process considerably.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

GLadstone

#104
Hi Everyone,

As I was researching the various "cleaning" methods shared on this forum, I came across this topic and see that Dan's original photos (on page one) are hosted at Photobucket and are not currently view-able.

I took this as an opportunity to test the newer web browser extensions (for Firefox & Chrome) that are designed to show the original Photobucket images (instead of the 3rd party hosting image).

---

Edit:
Direct links to Browser Extensions:

Firefox:
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/photobucket-fixer/

Chrome:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/photobucket-fixer/ogipgokcopooepeipngiikdkpmcpkaon

End Edit.

---

Wow! What a difference!
Since this is a pinned topic and I'm not sure how long this extension will continue to work, I took a screen shot of the first page and cropped it into four images (adjusting max size to 2000 pixels on the longest side as needed).

Test attachments below:

Image 1
1st message: http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1146.msg14349#msg14349

Image 2
Reply #1: http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1146.msg14362#msg14362

Image 3
Reply #3: http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1146.msg14365#msg14365

Image 4
Reply #13: http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1146.msg14439#msg14439


Hopefully this will allow everyone to continue to benefit from the information shared in this topic.

Take care,
GLadstone