Hi, I'm trying to find someone who can recover a few candlestick cover plates with suede. Anyone on the forum know of someone? Any help is truly appreciated. Thank you, Bill
There is this topic
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=4033.0
but I don't know if Dennis is still providing this service. Send him a PM to see if he still does this work.
And there is this related topic which deals with that restoration
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=5424.0
It's not that hard to do once you get the right weight (thickness) material in the color you want. Getting the holes in the right place takes a bit of planning but, then, if you can find an expert, like dencins, to help you, it's easier for you.
There is a seller on eBay, oldphoneshop that sells the material. Sargeguy may know who it is. I think he sells off ebay so you may get a better price that way. Here is a link to an auction:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/200879571029
Picture attached.
I have bought material from Hobby Lobby and used a sharpened piece of copper tubing to cut the holes and done a good job with those.
Benny
Quote from: HarrySmith on January 04, 2018, 01:04:38 PM
There is a seller on eBay, oldphoneshop that sells the material. Sargeguy may know who it is. I think he sells off ebay so you may get a better price that way. Here is a link to an auction:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/200879571029
Picture attached.
That's from Old Phone Shop--owned by Mark Treutelaar, here in Southeastern Wisconsin (Franklin, near Milwaukee). A very reputable business as far as I'm concerned--I buy far more from them than I do OldPhoneWorks (no offense Matt, the shipping is cheaper and faster when you live a few miles away ;D ).
www.oldphoneshop.com
Yes, definitely go to Dennis, if he's still recovering suede.
Found this old topic dealing with recovering 302 and 500 leather foot pads
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=822.0
but in this one particular this reply
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=822.msg65217#msg65217
Dennis (dencins) did a nice job of explaining leather thickness since it is sold by weight, in ounces. That part of the above link includes the following, copied here for reference:
"This comes 2 oz to 3 oz thick. An oz in leather roughly translates to 1/64" so this suede is 2/64" to 3/64" thick. In decimal that translates to 0.030" to 0.047". WECo used 2 oz to 2 1/2 oz leather which was 0.030" to 0.040" so it is possible (and likely) that some of the suede will be difficult if not impossible to assemble. I measure the suede with calipers to find the thickness within the piece that works."
Now, this does refer to 302 and 500 feet, which need a thinner leather so to be tucked under and into the metal feet so I don't know if a thicker or heavier suede was used for the large base plates for D1s and candlesticks. They have a retainer ring to hold the leather in place and I would think if the leather was too thick, getting the ring to stay in place would become an issue.
The price of real leather has increased over the past 5-6 years so I am sure the prices stated in the above links have increased. I am fortunate in that Tandy has a store on the south side of Milwaukee and have found that going into the store and "feeling" the leather and looking at it was best, mail order you never know what will show up. Here are all of the stores in the US and Canada and the Tandy web site link. There may be other sources for real leather, I just never looked with a Tandy in my back yard.
https://www.tandyleather.com/en/
I have just gone to thrift stores looking for suede or leather garments. I've found that skirts offer the largest pieces which are great for candlestick bottom covers and you can pick and choose your thickness. You may get some raised eyebrows though when shopping in the ladies section.
Thank you to all who have replied. :)
Did anyone find out if Dennis is still doing them?
Quote from: HarrySmith on January 05, 2018, 01:14:12 PM
Did anyone find out if Dennis is still doing them?
I sent a PM to Dennis yesterday but no reply. I just checked his profile and he hasn't logged on since March 10th of 2017. I don't have an email address so can't ask that way. This is his last post dated July 2016
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=16554.msg171302#msg171302
in which he said "I will be recovering foot pads and base plates once we are settled in our new place."
Dennis' direct email is: dph8745@comcast.net. I just exchanged emails with him a couple of weeks ago. He said he just checks his email periodically, which may explain his delay in answering. He is recovering from what sounds like a serious bout of cancer. He said he recovered some 302 feet recently, albeit slower than he did in the past. He may be willing to recover the base plate when you are able to communicate with him.
Chuck
Dennis replied to my PM today saying that he has recovered from his health issues enough to start recovering foot pads and base plates.
Yes, I received an email from Dennis with his address and instructions. Thanks again for all of your help.
Thanks Craig, I thought you had a great idea. My wife went to Goodwill in Auburn CA today & found a full length brown leather skirt for me. The waist is too small for me ;-) so I guess I will use it for phone feet & bottoms. There is a lot of material for recovering phone parts in a long skirt. My wife did a great job shopping for me. women's shopping skills are good for more than just spending lots of money ;-) only $8.00 for the skirt.
Looks good on you. Great buy!
I guess this is what they call "skirting the issue". Great idea, and you won't run out of material for quite a while!
Quote from: WEBellSystemChristian on January 04, 2018, 06:30:45 PM
That's from Old Phone Shop--owned by Mark Treutelaar, here in Southeastern Wisconsin (Franklin, near Milwaukee). A very reputable business as far as I'm concerned--I buy far more from them than I do OldPhoneWorks (no offense Matt, the shipping is cheaper and faster when you live a few miles away ;D ).
www.oldphoneshop.com
Yes, definitely go to Dennis, if he's still recovering suede.
None taken.
We would love to do more business with you, our shipping calculator and be wonky at time. Just shoot me a PM or email me for a better quote on shipping. I would be happy to help.
-MM
Do you apply an adhesive to the base when recovering it? I have a Western Electric 20AL on the way, and i would also like to recover the base...
Quote from: Partyline4 on January 28, 2018, 08:53:58 PM
Do you apply an adhesive to the base when recovering it? I have a Western Electric 20AL on the way, and i would also like to recover the base...
No, the material is stretched tight and held in place by the inner metal snap ring. I suppose you could glue it but no need to in that the ring hold the material; very well.
The 50AL is round but is the same as this oval D1 base.
The red arrow points to the break in the snap ring which hold the material in place. Keep in mind, if the material is thicker, the snap ring diameter gets small and it may not be able to get the two ends to meet. The ring ends fit tightly together putting force on the base inner ring to hold the material in place and to hold the snap ring in place over time.
In the right image, you can see how well the leather has molded itself to the base due to the retention ring.
You will see what I mean by that once you get yours and work on replacing the material, be it felt, leather or suede.
Quote from: TelePlay on January 28, 2018, 09:25:24 PM
The 50AL is round but is the same as this oval D1 base.
The red arrow points to the break in the snap ring which hold the material in place. Keep in mind, if the material is thicker, the snap ring diameter gets small and it may not be able to get the two ends to meet. The ring ends fit tightly together putting force on the base inner ring to hold the material in place and to hold the snap ring in place over time.
In the right image, you can see how well the leather has molded itself to the base due to the retention ring.
You will see what I mean by that once you get yours and work on replacing the material, be it felt, leather or suede.
Ok, great. How about making the holes in the material? I've heard of using sharpened copper pipe.
I picked up one of these from Lowe's I place it on the exact spot I want the hole and tap it with a small hammer. They come in several sizes and I get good results.
Quote from: Partyline4 on January 29, 2018, 09:45:17 AM
Ok, great. How about making the holes in the material? I've heard of using sharpened copper pipe.
Once the material is on, I use a 1.5" piece of brass tubing in a power drill with the end sharpened with a file and then emery cloth to make it a sharp cutting edge. I place the plate with the material against a piece of wood and drill a hole through the screw hole. If using leather or suede, it is quite easy. If using felt, the edge has to be very sharp and drill speed is important not to catch the felt and make a mess. If using felt, try a few test holes on scrap to see what I mean.
Copper tubing could work except the wall thickness makes it more difficult to sharpen. Hardware stores carry foot long pieces of brass and copper and maybe steel tubing in different diameters.
This also works for putting holes in belts if one has over indulged during the holidays.
For making the holes in a cloth or felt bottom (not suede or leather), I simply use a paper clip heated with a blow torch or on the stovetop. It very rapidly burns an even hole in the material, and the burned outline prevents fraying that punching a hole in it would do.
Quote from: TelePlay on January 29, 2018, 10:26:49 AM
Once the material is on, I use a 1.5" piece of brass tubing in a power drill with the end sharpened with a file and then emery cloth to make it a sharp cutting edge. I place the plate with the material against a piece of wood and drill a hole through the screw hole. If using leather or suede, it is quite easy. If using felt, the edge has to be very sharp and drill speed is important not to catch the felt and make a mess. If using felt, try a few test holes on scrap to see what I mean.
Copper tubing could work except the wall thickness makes it more difficult to sharpen. Hardware stores carry foot long pieces of brass and copper and maybe steel tubing in different diameters.
This also works for putting holes in belts if one has over indulged during the holidays.
Nice!
I think I will use that tip come Thanksgiving next go round!
Quote from: HarrySmith on January 04, 2018, 01:04:38 PM
There is a seller on eBay, oldphoneshop that sells the material. Sargeguy may know who it is. I think he sells off ebay so you may get a better price that way. Here is a link to an auction:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/200879571029
Picture attached.
Bought a piece today to recover my candlestick....Will see how it does...
For those looking for an economical source of suede for covering feet and bases, I stumbled on this site. I purchased a 9 sq/ft piece of pigskin suede for $23 including shipping. The color I chose from the website 'swatches' was much lighter than I anticipated so I spent $8 for dark brown suede dye. After applying the dye and working with a stiff brush the results were pretty good. The supplier states the product as 2oz. in weight which puts it in the ballpark of original spec, bonus is that its easy to work with. Hoping someone finds this info useful.
https://www.avetcoinc.com/product/premium-garment-pig-suedes-2-oz/ (https://www.avetcoinc.com/product/premium-garment-pig-suedes-2-oz/)