I want to personal thank you for taking the time to talk and make video with you post on TH-cam about Bakelite Repair. Interesting fact about me, my father, work at a local plastic factory in my home town. At that time, he was the youngest employee at the factory. Paid was piece work. There were many rejects made by the older employees. But my father some how learned how to make good pieces and had the highest rate of molded Bakelite product. So he was earning more money then the other employees. In fact they were worry that the company might lower the piece work price paid. When he learn of this, being around twenty years old. he left the Bakelite plastic factory. He wasn't married, and yet to settle down and learn a trade.
+Robert Mattison Robert - I really appreciate you sharing your Father’s trade and how meticulous he was while performing his job. Bakelite repairs as far I'm concerned are nearly impossible to make without showing the repaired area(s). I wish I had the knowledge and skills of your Father, but I'm limited by a few years of experience while enjoying this wonderful hobby. Thanks again for sharing this story and following my channel. Best, Don
As I noted, it’s not a great idea to sand bakelite without the proper PPE, so with that in mind, depending on the cabinet condition, I would start with 400 grit sandpaper and use a primer made for plastic then after curing use 400, 800, 1200 then 2000 using a wet sanding process. Best, Don
put a steel plate behind the repair and glue it with araldite, then glue the pieces together, if a piece is missing use aluminium mesh with bondo to fill the gap.i can give you the details sand with 120grit dry paper to give the correct shape than sand with wet 400 grit. go to a auto paint shop(here where i live product and paint names may differ because i am european from portugal). bring the radio with you and ask the guy at the shop to make you a quarter of a liter of matching paint from the colour of th radio. ask either full gloss or satin as you desire. ask for acrylic paint 2 components (paint+hardener) paint the radio fully. i have repaired a few and i guarantee you cannot tell the difference unless you are so experienced that you know bakelite usually hasnt got a uniform colour. auto paint is very very hard to scratch or chip. if it becomes dull you can polish it. the repair is perfect unless you have a radio like a philco tropic or other models wich have painted logos...then they will disappear...
Painting is definitely the only option at times. Hope things go well for you. A Radiola I rebuilt some time back at: Radiola 61-8 th-cam.com/play/PLjLu4V-71S1IZexdcF85gW1O4MEdFW26Q.html Best, Don
This is a very interesting subject Don. Finding a virtual substitute for Bakelite has continued to elude me for well over a decade despite my numerous experiments. I've tried using paints mixed with various resins, along with chalks, powder paints, ground plastics, ground dark coloured glass ...I've even tried coffee granules. I either get the colour shade extremely close with a dull-like lustre, or I get the lustre just right but the colour shading is not right. The frustrating thing is, I know Bakelite can be spectacularly replicated: I've seen it done - mainly on old Bakelite telephones of various colours raging from Post Office red, leaf green, ivory, white, along with black, brown, and various wood replicas like walnut, Indian rosewood, and Peruvian mahogany. Those people who have the ability to spectacularly replicate Bakelite will not, under any circumstances, divulge their technique to anyone. Information I have managed to glean is very scant but I will gladly share it with you for what it is worth. It appears they use powders used by jewelry makers, and they use resins that are used by boat, and yatch, manufacturers, and restorers. Since boat manufacturers are none-existent here in Sheffield, I lost interest in finding out how to find ways of replicating Bakelite some four years ago. I would be immensely grateful if some like you would help me rekindle my interest in this subject. Best 73s Phil.
+SteelCity321PB +Bart Zuidgeest Phil - I've never had any luck hiding cracks or making repairs in Bakelite myself without painting, which doesn't look good unless you have one of those ivory, pure black, etc. Bart suggested a clear liquid resin and the use of a RAL Color Chart to select the matching pigment. I'm playing with some wax Fill Sticks and a Polycrylic water based clear right now. Look for a new video soon. I sent Bart a message inquiring on a source for the resin and pigment. Thanks again for watching and sharing your experiences. Best, Don
I did find some details about how to repair cracks or chips on a Catalin cabinet, they use marine epoxy and colours. But Catalin is semi transparent sort of like milky stained glass, and the fellow that uses this process has never used in on Bakelite. I wanted to know if it would work with white Bakelite or Urea plastic as it is not completely opaque like Bakelite, so I may conduct some experiments with ground up switch plate covers and epoxy glue just to see what happens.
Wow, never heard of epoxy paste, yes, many time I have used epoxy, but this seems very cool and you can stain it, as you said..... awesome Don, thanks 4 the info.
+saturn5tony Glad this helped. I've used it a few times to rebuild corners, etc. seems to work well and it has a good 20 minute working time. Best, Don
I'm repairing an RCA 56X with Bondo, as you suggested, but I'm getting to the point where I need to make small touch up filling for low spots and pin holes. Is there another putty/filler that would work better for that? It's hard to mix small amounts of Bondo, and hard to be precise for tiny holes and depressions.
+rotolactor I would stick with Bondo instead of mixing products. I used the TimberMate water based wood filler on a Bakelite case, but I know longer have it and can’t say if the repair held up over time. Pin holes possibly super glue, but I’m not sure how the top coat will adhere to it. Keep me posted on your progress. I’m always learning from others. Best, Don
One product that the auto body shops use for this is called glazing and spot putty, you can find it in most auto parts stores in a sort of overgrown tooth paste style tube. I've used it before for filling in things like you mentioned, or rust pits in a radio chassis I intend to repaint
Hey Don, You manage to find the most interesting products to help with your restorations! Until watching your videos I had no idea a lot of this stuff even existed like that compressed chalk you're using on this one or that versimold you used a few weeks ago. I await each new video eagerly, wondering what you'll show to us next. Take care, Gary.
+Rebel9668 Thank you Gary. I stumble across some of these on my own and other times I research topics looking at solutions others have used. I'm not sure how much more is in the tank, but I'll continue to share things as I run across them. I appreciate you following my channel. Best, Don
Never tried. Using particles (Bakelite sanding dust, which are toxic) from the existing Bakelite material with clear epoxy, then sanding and buffing to match the surrounding finish is the best way, but again Bakelite can have cancer causing ingredients so I don’t recommend… without the proper PPE, etc. Best, Don
I think you started off well gluing the pieces together with a backing covering the holes, but I would have used the thinner transparent plastic from later in the video to prevent the added thickness from interfering with the inside of the radio. Then I would use a liquid resin used for casting to fill the holes. These casting resins start as almost as transparent as glass and there are many pigments to create virtually any (non transparent) color you want. If your have a RAL color chart you could match from that and order the pigment. Some polishing would be required at the end to smooth the cast. The cracks will never become invisible I think, but that would be the route I would take. (with some sillicone rubber to cast a mould you can also create replacement knobs this way for example). I have not done this myself but seen the results by others. Just thought I mention this method.
+Bart Zuidgeest +SteelCity321PB Hi Bart - I appreciate the feedback and additional information. Can you recommend a supplier for the casting resin and pigments. Thanks again for watching and sharing your recommendations. Best, Don
+RestoreOldRadios Sorry I can not recommend a supplier. As I said I have never had to do this route myself. and if I had, my local supplier would not be of much use to you as we are in different countries.
I had a x knock my bakealite radio off a dresser ,the radio was perfect was,i was lucky it glue back in place ,that was 35 years ago i sill unhappy about it .i wish you the best of luck on yours
With the very dark (almost black) bakelite that British telephones used to be made from, I've had success with CA gel. The lustre is just right when polished up. Of course that only works with black. The CA itself isn't strong enough long term so I ended up fixing the back with fiberglass/epoxy mix.
+RestoreOldRadios Hi Don, with the black, I didn't have to use any pigment (that's why it will only work with black)...the crack is still visible under very strong 'point source' light (a flashlight or similar, not sunlight) but the sheen was just right. Martin
+Dennis Hill Hi Dennis - I've heard of people using it in the past with a clear coat. I've also read where folks had it crack over time. I know Polyurethane can be used and it really makes the Bakelite pop. I may go that route if I'm able to somewhat hide the cracks and other... I'm not optimistic on my repairs, i.e., trying to hide the... without painting the cabinet. Have you used toner lacquers on Bakelite in the past? Best, Don
Don: Good video clip. I'm working on a bakelite with a crack and am hoping this process will work. I would prefer not to paint the cabinet as well. Thanks for sharing. Armand
+Armand Corpolongo +Bart Zuidgeest +SteelCity321PB Armand - I've never had any luck repairing Bakelite to the point it looks great. Bart suggested a clear liquid resin, the use of a RAL Color Chart to match the required pigment. I was telling Phil that I'm playing around with wax Fill a Sticks with Polycrylic water based clear. Hope to have a video published soon to share my results. I may also give Bart's method a try if I can justify the cost. Best, Don
+Billy “stormlight” Steen Thank you Billy. I'm not confident this process will provide the results I'm looking to achieve, but as I noted, you can't fail if you don't try. Best, Don
I decided this is not useful for me and is not actually what the title suggests. It is not a repair p[rocess. It is just glue and coloring. I need to fill a gap and chalk dust (Are you listening, John MacEnroe?) will not form anything resembling bakelite. It's just a coloring.
+yrulooknatme Thank you. Results along with the epoxy is useable. Probably not the best filler/pigment, but cost effective. Thanks for watching. Best, Don
I have a feeling I will learn something here about filling in a gap in a bakelite piece, but OMG it SURE IS SLOW!!!! Next video, write a script for your talk, and be concise. Don't just talk slowly rambling around about anything and everything. It will put us all to sleep.
I want to personal thank you for taking the time to talk and make video with you post on TH-cam about Bakelite Repair.
Interesting fact about me, my father, work at a local plastic factory in my home town. At that time, he was the youngest employee at the factory. Paid was piece work. There were many rejects made by the older employees. But my father some how learned how to make good pieces and had the highest rate of molded Bakelite product. So he was earning more money then the other employees. In fact they were worry that the company might lower the piece work price paid. When he learn of this, being around twenty years old. he left the Bakelite plastic factory. He wasn't married, and yet to settle down and learn a trade.
+Robert Mattison Robert - I really appreciate you sharing your Father’s trade and how meticulous he was while performing his job. Bakelite repairs as far I'm concerned are nearly impossible to make without showing the repaired area(s). I wish I had the knowledge and skills of your Father, but I'm limited by a few years of experience while enjoying this wonderful hobby. Thanks again for sharing this story and following my channel. Best, Don
Good video! I learned a lot. I do not know if I missed it but what would I use to scuff up bake lite before primer and paint after repairs are made?
As I noted, it’s not a great idea to sand bakelite without the proper PPE, so with that in mind, depending on the cabinet condition, I would start with 400 grit sandpaper and use a primer made for plastic then after curing use 400, 800, 1200 then 2000 using a wet sanding process. Best, Don
put a steel plate behind the repair and glue it with araldite, then glue the pieces together, if a piece is missing use aluminium mesh with bondo to fill the gap.i can give you the details
sand with 120grit dry paper to give the correct shape than sand with wet 400 grit. go to a auto paint shop(here where i live product and paint names may differ because i am european from portugal). bring the radio with you and ask the guy at the shop to make you a quarter of a liter of matching paint from the colour of th radio. ask either full gloss or satin as you desire. ask for acrylic paint 2 components (paint+hardener) paint the radio fully. i have repaired a few and i guarantee you cannot tell the difference unless you are so experienced that you know bakelite usually hasnt got a uniform colour. auto paint is very very hard to scratch or chip. if it becomes dull you can polish it. the repair is perfect unless you have a radio like a philco tropic or other models wich have painted logos...then they will disappear...
Have you ever thought of having a cup of coffee before beginning? Great info with valuable info.
Eric - I should have deleted the video and never posted it as I was recovering from a sickness. Coffee is good. LOL Best, Don
I know you probably wouldn't paint it but my Philco 48-464 cabinet is at a place where I think its my only choice. Thanks for the info.
Painting is definitely the only option at times. Hope things go well for you. A Radiola I rebuilt some time back at:
Radiola 61-8
th-cam.com/play/PLjLu4V-71S1IZexdcF85gW1O4MEdFW26Q.html
Best,
Don
Very cool, looking forward as always to the finale project!
+Vintage Electronics Geek Thank you Jack, much appreciated. Best, Don
This is a very interesting subject Don. Finding a virtual substitute for Bakelite has continued to elude me for well over a decade despite my numerous experiments. I've tried using paints mixed with various resins, along with chalks, powder paints, ground plastics, ground dark coloured glass ...I've even tried coffee granules. I either get the colour shade extremely close with a dull-like lustre, or I get the lustre just right but the colour shading is not right.
The frustrating thing is, I know Bakelite can be spectacularly replicated: I've seen it done - mainly on old Bakelite telephones of various colours raging from Post Office red, leaf green, ivory, white, along with black, brown, and various wood replicas like walnut, Indian rosewood, and Peruvian mahogany. Those people who have the ability to spectacularly replicate Bakelite will not, under any circumstances, divulge their technique to anyone. Information I have managed to glean is very scant but I will gladly share it with you for what it is worth. It appears they use powders used by jewelry makers, and they use resins that are used by boat, and yatch, manufacturers, and restorers. Since boat manufacturers are none-existent here in Sheffield, I lost interest in finding out how to find ways of replicating Bakelite some four years ago. I would be immensely grateful if some like you would help me rekindle my interest in this subject.
Best 73s Phil.
+SteelCity321PB +Bart Zuidgeest Phil - I've never had any luck hiding cracks or making repairs in Bakelite myself without painting, which doesn't look good unless you have one of those ivory, pure black, etc. Bart suggested a clear liquid resin and the use of a RAL Color Chart to select the matching pigment. I'm playing with some wax Fill Sticks and a Polycrylic water based clear right now. Look for a new video soon. I sent Bart a message inquiring on a source for the resin and pigment. Thanks again for watching and sharing your experiences. Best, Don
I did find some details about how to repair cracks or chips on a Catalin cabinet, they use marine epoxy and colours. But Catalin is semi transparent sort of like milky stained glass, and the fellow that uses this process has never used in on Bakelite. I wanted to know if it would work with white Bakelite or Urea plastic as it is not completely opaque like Bakelite, so I may conduct some experiments with ground up switch plate covers and epoxy glue just to see what happens.
Wow, never heard of epoxy paste, yes, many time I have used epoxy, but this seems very cool and you can stain it, as you said..... awesome Don, thanks 4 the info.
+saturn5tony Glad this helped. I've used it a few times to rebuild corners, etc. seems to work well and it has a good 20 minute working time. Best, Don
I'm repairing an RCA 56X with Bondo, as you suggested, but I'm getting to the point where I need to make small touch up filling for low spots and pin holes. Is there another putty/filler that would work better for that? It's hard to mix small amounts of Bondo, and hard to be precise for tiny holes and depressions.
+rotolactor I would stick with Bondo instead of mixing products. I used the TimberMate water based wood filler on a Bakelite case, but I know longer have it and can’t say if the repair held up over time. Pin holes possibly super glue, but I’m not sure how the top coat will adhere to it. Keep me posted on your progress. I’m always learning from others. Best, Don
One product that the auto body shops use for this is called glazing and spot putty, you can find it in most auto parts stores in a sort of overgrown tooth paste style tube. I've used it before for filling in things like you mentioned, or rust pits in a radio chassis I intend to repaint
Hey Don, You manage to find the most interesting products to help with your restorations! Until watching your videos I had no idea a lot of this stuff even existed like that compressed chalk you're using on this one or that versimold you used a few weeks ago. I await each new video eagerly, wondering what you'll show to us next. Take care, Gary.
+Rebel9668 Thank you Gary. I stumble across some of these on my own and other times I research topics looking at solutions others have used. I'm not sure how much more is in the tank, but I'll continue to share things as I run across them. I appreciate you following my channel. Best, Don
Do you fix AK Bakelite mags?
Never tried. Using particles (Bakelite sanding dust, which are toxic) from the existing Bakelite material with clear epoxy, then sanding and buffing to match the surrounding finish is the best way, but again Bakelite can have cancer causing ingredients so I don’t recommend… without the proper PPE, etc. Best, Don
I think you started off well gluing the pieces together with a backing covering the holes, but I would have used the thinner transparent plastic from later in the video to prevent the added thickness from interfering with the inside of the radio. Then I would use a liquid resin used for casting to fill the holes. These casting resins start as almost as transparent as glass and there are many pigments to create virtually any (non transparent) color you want. If your have a RAL color chart you could match from that and order the pigment. Some polishing would be required at the end to smooth the cast. The cracks will never become invisible I think, but that would be the route I would take. (with some sillicone rubber to cast a mould you can also create replacement knobs this way for example). I have not done this myself but seen the results by others. Just thought I mention this method.
+Bart Zuidgeest +SteelCity321PB Hi Bart - I appreciate the feedback and additional information. Can you recommend a supplier for the casting resin and pigments. Thanks again for watching and sharing your recommendations. Best, Don
+RestoreOldRadios Sorry I can not recommend a supplier. As I said I have never had to do this route myself. and if I had, my local supplier would not be of much use to you as we are in different countries.
Have you tried super glue and cornstarch?
Iam, I have on plastic with success, but not on a Bakelite cabinet. I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks for the recommendation. Best, Don
I remember seeing a video where a piece of donor bakelite cabinet was filed and used as a filler. It worked well.
+jorge hernandez I saw one too. I wonder if there’s an alternative to the bakelite since it has some bad stuff in it? Best, Don
I had a x knock my bakealite radio off a dresser ,the radio was perfect was,i was lucky it glue back in place ,that was 35 years ago i sill unhappy about it .i wish you the best of luck on yours
With the very dark (almost black) bakelite that British telephones used to be made from, I've had success with CA gel. The lustre is just right when polished up. Of course that only works with black. The CA itself isn't strong enough long term so I ended up fixing the back with fiberglass/epoxy mix.
+TheChipmunk2008 Thank you for sharing this. Do you use any pigments with the CA gel or just by itself in the cracks? Best, Don
+RestoreOldRadios Hi Don, with the black, I didn't have to use any pigment (that's why it will only work with black)...the crack is still visible under very strong 'point source' light (a flashlight or similar, not sunlight) but the sheen was just right.
Martin
+TheChipmunk2008 Hi Martin, I appreciate your reply and your recommendations. Best, Don
Will a toner laquer bond to bakelite??
+Dennis Hill Hi Dennis - I've heard of people using it in the past with a clear coat. I've also read where folks had it crack over time. I know Polyurethane can be used and it really makes the Bakelite pop. I may go that route if I'm able to somewhat hide the cracks and other... I'm not optimistic on my repairs, i.e., trying to hide the... without painting the cabinet. Have you used toner lacquers on Bakelite in the past? Best, Don
Don: Good video clip. I'm working on a bakelite with a crack and am hoping this process will work. I would prefer not to paint the cabinet as well. Thanks for sharing. Armand
+Armand Corpolongo +Bart Zuidgeest +SteelCity321PB Armand - I've never had any luck repairing Bakelite to the point it looks great. Bart suggested a clear liquid resin, the use of a RAL Color Chart to match the required pigment. I was telling Phil that I'm playing around with wax Fill a Sticks with Polycrylic water based clear. Hope to have a video published soon to share my results. I may also give Bart's method a try if I can justify the cost. Best, Don
Why not use Bakelite shavings instead?
Some do, but I’ve read bakelite powder may have asbestos in it, so probably not the best option. Best, Don
It's a p[leasure to watch an artisan at work. Thanks for the update
+Billy “stormlight” Steen Thank you Billy. I'm not confident this process will provide the results I'm looking to achieve, but as I noted, you can't fail if you don't try. Best, Don
Hi Don, fingers crossed... :>)
I decided this is not useful for me and is not actually what the title suggests. It is not a repair p[rocess. It is just glue and coloring. I need to fill a gap and chalk dust (Are you listening, John MacEnroe?) will not form anything resembling bakelite. It's just a coloring.
chalk and a file... thats good!
+yrulooknatme Thank you. Results along with the epoxy is useable. Probably not the best filler/pigment, but cost effective. Thanks for watching. Best, Don
I have a feeling I will learn something here about filling in a gap in a bakelite piece, but OMG it SURE IS SLOW!!!! Next video, write a script for your talk, and be concise. Don't just talk slowly rambling around about anything and everything. It will put us all to sleep.
Lance Baker I started to nod off after the first minute from the total lack of enthusiasm in his voice.
Lance Baker never used the fast forward button so much😂
It's pronounced *_Bake-uh-lite,_* not *_Bake-lite_*
th-cam.com/video/hwpzp2Wopjs/w-d-xo.html
>
One of many words I mispronounce. LOL Thanks for your feedback. Best, Don
Engineer
😴😴😴😴😴😴😴😴
Thanks for trying to watch. I was real sick at the time and should have never uploaded this one. This is just one of... Best, Don