WE 5302 Housing repair question, what's best for that?

[RotoTech99]

Good Morning Forum:

I have a question regarding a WE 5302 housing I was going to use an acetone weld on, but the repair didn't work as planned...

Is the plastic material for the 5302 different than the 302's plastic, and if so what's the solvent, epoxy, etc that would give the best results, please? I've got a cracked corner on a 5302 she'll I've tried the acetone repair on, and it didn't work.

I've wondered if PVC pipe dope applied sparingly would work, but as always I thought I would ask first because I want to repair the corner crack, and not end up with "plastic goo" instead.

If the forum can help with my question, I'd really be thankful as this is my first experience with a cracked 5302 she'll. I've only encountered with 302 housings, and it has me puzzled.

Thank you,
RotoTech99

[FABphones]

I don't know what your result was (could you add photos), but hope this helps a bit:

The Acetone Weld in my experience has to be done with a firmer (yet cautious) touch than I would ideally like.

Below, a G3 handset which had snapped into two pieces. These two parts are quite 'chunky' so applying Acetone with a brush did nothing to melt the ABS with a view to forming a bond. Several times I applied the Acetone with the same result - a melt, but not enough to bond. Finally, with nothing to lose as the handset was of no use anyway, each broken end was dipped simultaneously into a small container of Acetone, then both parts pressed together quickly - but not too firmly. I left it to cure overnight, after which it was on to the sanding and polishing stages. Photos below show before and after. The bond is strong and whilst not totally invisible, the handset is useable and the bond only spotted when looking for it.

For filling small areas I took shavings from inside the handset to make a 'putty'. On this project I had to work from the outside of the piece. For a housing you have the luxury of working from the inside whilst keeping a careful watch on the outside. You are also able to take more shavings if needed. I would have liked more but once the two parts were together I couldn't get any.

Acetone will only dissolve the ABS into a putty once. More attempts to soften the same shavings won't work, so you need to work fast.

All parts of the ABS need to be clean and dry.

Another thing to bare in mind is unless a vacuum chamber is used there will always be small air bubbles. Also, colours often separate a little, causing lighter streaks to show.

Let us know how you get on with your repair. 

[RotoTech99]

Hello, I finally went to my JB Weld for  the repair... I filled the crack area and coated the crack area inside the housing with it.

I set it aside to dry, and put a thin layer of super glue on it after sanding  it down on both sides once it was dry.

I do that to make the weld harder once it dries.

Then I touched it up with a paint pen.

I also notched the baseplate at the corners, and adjusted that inwards so the shell fits better..

This housing is kind of odd in the sense that when you fit it to drop it into place you  have to tilt it a bit before it drops into place. It's very slightly bowed out on all 4 sides, but not so much to cause issues.

RotoTech99

[SUnset2]

You need a stronger solvent than acetone to solvent weld ABS.  A company I used to work for used Methyl Ethyl Ketone (MEK) to solvent weld ABS.  Be aware that it is very toxic, and must be used under a fume hood, though outdoors might work (with a fan to draw the fumes away from you ).

[Jack Ryan]

The question of the material from which the 5302 is made has not been resolved.

I believe the 5302 was supplied between 1955 and the very early 1960s. During that time, the 500 was soft plastic (Tenite) - I would assume that the 5302 would also be soft plastic. Would WE change to ABS at end of life.

From the comments, this 5302 had the corners of the base place modified so that the case fit properly - that suggests that the case is Tenite.

Later posts spoke of an ABS handset - is this on a 5302 or is it unrelated? If it was on a 5302 and it is ABS, is it original to the phone?

Thanks
Jack

[FABphones]

The question of the material from which the 5302 is made has not been resolved...
... Later posts spoke of an ABS handset - is this on a 5302 or is it unrelated? If it was on a 5302 and it is ABS, is it original to the phone...

The G3 is unrelated, given as a example of Acetone Weld results with an explanation how the ABS Acetone weld was performed, an Acetone repair having been mentioned by the o.p. This repair is a nice example which bonded well, with photos to show.

If I recall correctly, the 5302 purpose was to use existing 302 components, offering the customer a more modern 500 look whilst using up stock parts. Mention has been made on other threads of the pre-existing 302 base needing to be bent slightly in order to fit the newer 5302 shell.

Re confirmation of ABS, I do not own a 5302 so can only take from info given via here or other. If anyone has a 5302 and is willing to carefully test it to confirm ABS (or not) that would help. Perhaps the o.p. could test his 5302 to confirm either way. If I had one I would do it.

——-

I did a search and found all sorts of 5302 info on here, inc the mention of ABS shells. For ABS confirmation I guess you would need to ask the authors in the threads directly re their source.

For those who have not read them, here are the links:

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=23232

From item 2, paragraph 5:
'...many colors started upgrading to ABS as early as 1958'.
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=16603.msg171752#msg171752

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1155.45

http://www.paul-f.com/we5302.htm

[RotoTech99]

Dear Forum:

Hi, thanks for the replies regarding my topic, I'm finding them informative and useful.

To answer a couple questions I saw about the origins of my 5302 shell, I didn't get a complete 5302, I got the complete upper housing less the switch hook. It came from Mary K. at Phoneco, Inc.

When I received it, the corner crack was preexisting, it wasn't a large crack. My guess is it was dropped on that corner, and the housing is slightly bigger than original size.  I'm guessing it's a 1958 one based on the date stamp on the 5M dial.

I initially used 100% acetone to try bonding the crack, but that didn't pan out. So then I used JB Weld and filled in the crack, along with an over coating of it in the crack area.

I figured there was too much "tension" to join it edge to edge, so filling the crack in seemed more sensible to me.

Phoneco told me they'll send another housing without the crack which I gladly accepted; They said it was a goof on their part.

I notched the 302 baseplate I used to complete my 5302, so now the housing fits; I have to tilt it slightly at the front to drop the baseplate into the housing, but it fits well now.

I also brushed super glue over the JB Weld once sanded to a smooth finish so it would hold up better, then carefully applied black paint pen over it. You can barely tell a difference, so I'm pretty happy.

Perhaps the only slight remaining thing is little white dots of paint that was around the cradle and number ring.

RotoTech99

[Jack Ryan]

Thanks guys. I don't see anything definitive so I'll have to wait until someone tests some 5302s.

This statement:

The 500 replaced the Dreyfuss-designed Western Electric Model 300 series


From here http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=23232 and its source really needs to be corrected. I realise many don't see it as important but if something is known, why say something else?

Jack