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Repainting Metal Phones Help

Started by Kenton K, February 13, 2013, 12:52:30 AM

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Kenton K

     
      I recently acquired a WE 337 candlestick. The last owner did a terrible paint job.
     I have striped most of the paint off and disassembled it. The original paint is partially sanded.  How should I go about repainting it? Should I use sandpaper, sandblast, or beadblast to remove the paint? How should I repaint it? Enamel, rust-o-lium, powder coat, etc? I have heard of hardening/curing some paints in the oven.

      What should I do, or should I even do it. Is it worth it for a WE 337?
      I am totally clueless on this topic so any help is appreciated.

Thanks!!

Greg G.

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

sebbel

Paint doesn't take well to most metal. Remember not to skip the primer. I find a self etching works best particularly on brass. 
Seb.

Kenton K

Thanks for the link to the other discussion on painting. Weird how i couldn't find it in the first place. I did end up priming, baking, painting, and baking based on the other discussions posts. And sorry for the blurry picture. I was in a rush. :)

And I also realized it wasn't a 337 candlestick (which doesn't exist) but a 51al.

Thanks!

Partyline4

Quote from: Kenton K on February 27, 2013, 12:59:51 AM
Thanks for the link to the other discussion on painting. Weird how i couldn't find it in the first place. I did end up priming, baking, painting, and baking based on the other discussions posts. And sorry for the blurry picture. I was in a rush. :)

And I also realized it wasn't a 337 candlestick (which doesn't exist) but a 51al.

Thanks!

Sorry to kick this old thread, but I'd love to hear more about your process of baking the primer and paint, as well as which brands you used? I've got a W.E. 20AL that has been stripped, and I want to repaint it.


TelePlay

#5
Quote from: Partyline4 on January 28, 2018, 08:42:00 PM
Sorry to kick this old thread, but I'd love to hear more about your process of baking the primer and paint, as well as which brands you used? I've got a W.E. 20AL that has been stripped, and I want to repaint it.

I thought others would chime in by now. Generically, the process is remove the old paint a feather and paint that does not come off and feather in scratch or dings in the metal surface (they will show up after painting). Use whatever you finds works best to get the surface smooth.

I thinks most members end up with 400 grit sandpaper to leave enough roughness for the first coat of paint to grab the metal. After going over a piece with 400 grit, I put on vinyl exam gloves and wipe the metal down with a rag filled with acetone to get rid of surface oils (from hands and other sources). After that, I never touch the surface to be painted with bare hands.

The piece then goes into my "spray booth" which is nothing more than a large cardboard box, about 20" by 20" with the back/bottom cut out and the opening covered with a good furnace filter. I put a box fan behind the filter blowing air free of dust into the box and keeping dust from getting into the box from the front. I put a clip light on the front to illuminate the item being painted.

I put a turn table in the box so I can rotate the item as I spray it. After the item is on the turn table, I turn on the fan and use a hair dryer on high cool heat to blow out, to mobilize any dust that may be inside the box on the filter, the box corners, on the turn table and the item.



After that, it's ready to paint. What paint you use is your choice. I use Rustoleum Automotive Gloss Black with the matching primer. O've had good luck with it so keep using it. The final finish is not real gloss so I think it is similar to the finish originally put on black phones, a semi gloss so as to not show fingerprints.

What I do, and it's only my way - others may do it differently, is spray the item with primer and immediately, while it is wet, spray on a light coat of the black final paint. This seems to let the primer grab the metal but creates a surface that has some of the paint that will be put on as the first coat.

(1)  I let the item sit in the box with the fan on for at least an hour, maybe 2 with rotation every half hour or so to get a dry coat. I open my convection oven, blow out the inside with my hair dryer and then carefully move the painted item from the turn table to the oven (don't touch the painted surface, it is soft and will mark).

I heat the item for one hour at 100-110 degrees to remove any remaining solvents.

I then crank up the oven to 300° F and bake it for one hour. I let it fully cool in the oven (a couple of hours) before removing the item.

Using vinyl gloves to keep hand oil off of the surface (acetone will remove the paint a this point), I carefully go over the fresh paint with 600 grit dry sandpaper being careful of sharp edges which sand through to metal quickly. After sanding, I remove any dust with a soft, clean cotton cloth and place it back on the turntable, blow the item clean with the hairdryer and spray on the first coat of final color.

I then repeat everything from (1) above. I put on a total of 3 coats of the final color paint. When spraying each coat, I cover the item with an even coat, complete coat but not enough to cause sagging or runs. Once the third coat has cooled, I put a thin coat of Renaissance Wax on the metal - it gets rid of that fresh paint feeling and protects the finish.



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Others have their own methods developed by trial and error, doing different things with different paints to get the same results. I like my method in that if I feather an original paint residue and sand out scratches and dings, the final finish is very good, semi-gloss. I've only done black so have no suggestions for colored paint.

One thing I am going to do next time I paint is after cleaning the metal with acetone, I am going to apply Ospho 605 Metal Treatment which I discovered and have been told by those who use it that it produces a bare metal surface that improves the quality of the final paint/powder coat work.

I am going to try what Pourme did and see what hammered paint looks like on a toaster. Toasters pot metal is inferior to 302 and D1 pot metal which means it has a lot more pits and poor areas that can't be sanded smooth. I think the hammered paint will cover up these flaws. The housing was stripped two years ago and was just waiting for a new method. Pourme said the hammered paint worked well when baked at 300° F for an hour.

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Hey, just the way I do it. I'd be interested in advice on how to improve my technique or hear about techniques others use.