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59 Beige 500 progress.

Started by Greg G., August 06, 2009, 05:01:19 AM

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Greg G.

Still have a few things to do to it.  I'm tempted to leave it as is, but this is a learning project and I don't like loose ends.  I'm going to try to fix the gouge on the side of the case, plus the handset has a blemish that appears to have been caused by something caustic that dripped on it, but looks like it can be sanded out fairly easily.  Also going to put a proper line cord on it and a "period correct" dial.  Here's a few before and "so far" pictures:


The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

bingster

I'd call that tremendous progress!  Boy, that was a mess before.  I guarantee you could get a lot of that discoloration out by a thorough scrubbing with a soft scotchbrite pad and a gentle scouring cleanser.  Follow that up with some sort of polish, and it will look brilliant. 

One easy fix you can make is to push the handset cord back in the handset.  You should see the back of the transmitter cup has a "U" shaped bracket that's designed to slip over the narrow part of the thick strain relief.  That's what holds it in place and keeps it from falling out.
= DARRIN =



Greg G.

Quote from: bingster on August 06, 2009, 05:09:06 AM
I'd call that tremendous progress!  Boy, that was a mess before.  I guarantee you could get a lot of that discoloration out by a thorough scrubbing with a soft scotchbrite pad and a gentle scouring cleanser.  Follow that up with some sort of polish, and it will look brilliant. 

One easy fix you can make is to push the handset cord back in the handset.  You should see the back of the transmitter cup has a "U" shaped bracket that's designed to slip over the narrow part of the thick strain relief.  That's what holds it in place and keeps it from falling out.

Thanks for the tip on the handset cord - fixed.  Also thanks again to whomever sent me the handset cord, I apologize that I can't remember who.  The original one was stretched and gnawed by rodents.

Scotchbrite pad, you mean like this one?

The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

bingster

Actually, that's EXACTLY like the one I use.  I use a liberal amount of Bon Ami, but I think any mild cleanser would work the same.  I've had great success at removing discoloration in both white and pink using that method.  You'll need to follow it up with polish, though, because it will put a dull haze on the surface.  I use Brasso, because that's what I have on hand.  If you have some plastic polish, then by all means use that.
= DARRIN =



Dennis Markham

#4
Big improvement.  I remember when you started on this phone you indicated that it was going to your first refurbished phone.  It's coming along very nice.  That handset cord does look familiar.........

Phonesrfun

Great job Brinybay!

Good that you now have it ringing too.
-Bill G

McHeath

Wow, that phone had a hard life!  You've done great work on the cleanup, and I see you retired that Battleship peg from the hook switch plunger to boot.


Dan/Panther

Brinybay;
Th handset cord, is out too far. The indent at the end closest to the handset, is suppost to hold the cord inside the handset via the transmitter elements cup inside . You will see a forked part on the rear of the cup, those forks go around the indent in the cord.
D/P

The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

Greg G.

#8
Quote from: bingster on August 06, 2009, 06:03:16 AM
Actually, that's EXACTLY like the one I use.  I use a liberal amount of Bon Ami, but I think any mild cleanser would work the same.  I've had great success at removing discoloration in both white and pink using that method.  You'll need to follow it up with polish, though, because it will put a dull haze on the surface.  I use Brasso, because that's what I have on hand.  If you have some plastic polish, then by all means use that.

Which side of the scotchbrite pad do you use, green or the sponge?  

The discoloration appears more in the picture than it does looking at it with the naked eye.    At first I thought it was picking up where I tried polishing it, but the same distortion appears in the "before" picture too.

I have Brasso and some other stuff that came with a buffer accessory kit for a standard drill.  I don't have a drill, but I used some of the red stuff called CSF Tripoli and a Ryobi buffer just to try it out.  It worked ok, but I didn't spend a lot of time or elbow grease on it, since I'll be taking it all apart to give the plastics a more thorough cleaning.  
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Greg G.

Quote from: Dennis Markham on August 06, 2009, 07:51:14 AM
Big improvement.  I remember when you started on this phone you indicated that it was going to your first refurbished phone.  It's coming alone very nice.  That handset cord does look familiar.........

Ok, that was you who sent it to me, kinda thought so.  Thanks again!
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Greg G.

Quote from: Dan/Panther on August 06, 2009, 01:06:05 PM
Brinybay;
Th handset cord, is out too far. The indent at the end closest to the handset, is suppost to hold the cord inside the handset via the transmitter elements cup inside . You will see a forked part on the rear of the cup, those forks go around the indent in the cord.
D/P

Not to worry, I fixed it:

The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

bingster

Brinybay, I use the green side.  I know it sounds harsh, but it really works wonders.  I don't think I'd do it with a brand new pad, but once they get a little use to them, they're not as abrasive as new ones, and will be fine.
= DARRIN =



Greg G.

#12
I'm going to quit taking pictures of my phones when I think I'm done with them because the camera highlights flaws that can't be seen just looking at it, like where I sanded the handset to get that blemish out.  I only used 400 grit and didn't graduate up, figured Novus would take care of that, but it didn't, at least not according to the camera, but it looks ok with the naked eye.

Anyway, I think this is about it.  A period correct dial, some sanding and buffing with Novus, a decent line cord and handset cord.  I didn't get the gouge fixed, but filled it with super glue so it's at least smooth.  I also discovered a crack in the base just below the gouge.  If I ever find a junker beige phone with a good cover I may swap it out.  This one was supposed to be a junker project, but now I've invested too much time and effort into it.

I also experimented with printing out a number card from some I found online.  The backs of business cards actually make good card stock for these.  I did a trial print to see where on the paper the printer would print it (upper left in this case) and to see how large it came out.  After a couple more trial prints to get the size right (reduced it to 85%), I carefully taped the business card with blank side up to a standard size piece of scrap paper and used photo mode to print it.  
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
e

Dan

Beautiful. It is nice that you had a soft-centered finger wheel around. Is this one made prior to 6-59 or later?
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

mienaichizu

nice job on that beige phone briny, I also use scotch brite in cleaning plastic phones