[ARC5] Touch Up Paint

[Bruce Long]

Hello Everyone.


Here is my experience attempting to "re-finish" black wrinkle paint on a ARC-5 receiver.

First I presumed all it needed was a good cleaning so I scrubbed and scrubbed with various cleaners.  I got the surfaces very clean but the paint still had a dull haze as if it was really dusty.  Under close examination I decided the paint was clean but  the outer surface of the paint was "oxidized"- just as an auto paint guy would claim old car paint was oxidized.  For cars with "oxidized" paint the standard treatment is application of a polish having a mild abrasive to abrade away the damaged surface layer.  I did not have any on hand so I used tooth paste which showed enough improvement to suggest I was on the right path. But I worried about abrasive removing the wrinkles or not working in the valleys in the wrinkles where it would be difficult to apply uniform pressure with the polishing rag.


Next I tried a fast scrubbing with Westley Bleche-Wite.  Please note this stuff has no abrasive, instead it is a rather strong acid- sorry i don't remember what, and the label on the bottle clearly states "DO NOT APPLY TO PAINTED SURFACES"

Ignoring that warning I applied it to a test section of the black wrinkle painted surface and scrubbed quickly for a few seconds with a plastic short- stiff bristle brush doing and used an old tooth brush to get into tight corners.

The Bleche-Wite quickly turned dark black with brushing evidently the surface of the black paint coming off.  I rinsed with a lot of cold water and let it dry.

On the sample spot I did the paint looked almost like new.  The only problem I have is I was experimenting and did small sections one at a time.  For this reason the result is a bit uneven.  I plan to give this another try but this time do the entire surface in one try.

Then I think I will either spray with a clear top coat or maybe put a layer of clear shoe war or other semi-solid wax on top. The shoe wax has the advantage that it can be removed somewhat easily at a later date if necessary.


If you try this please use gloves and eye protection.  The Blech-Wite stuff is very caustic, it has bothersome fumes and it is an active skin irritant.  Remember as you use a stiff bristled brush, little droplets will fly everywhere.  Make sure it does not fly into your eyes or onto your unprotected skin or onto a surface where someone else can come in contact with it.


There is no evidence of the wrinkles being damaged by this treatment.  I think maybe I need to attempt it again but doing the entire surface at once and letting the stuff sit for longer.

Obviously this is still an experiment so you should go slow if you try this.  I would like to hear how it works for you.

Hope this is helpful---bruce  KJ3Z









________________________________
 From: KR4OJ <kr44oj at charter.net>
To: wrcromwell at gmail.com; arc5 at mailman.qth.net 
Sent: Thursday, May 24, 2012 12:44 PM
Subject: Re: [ARC5] Touch Up Paint
 
If the Wrinkle texture is still there, just dirty and “crudded over’ I have had pretty good results using Rust-oleum flat black “textured” paint, available from the “Mart or other sources. spray lightly more than once, if needed. Hard to tell from the original and U can always spray over if U don’t like the results. True “Wrinkle Finish”, is a pain. requiring dis-assembly, paint removing, sanding & a baking session.

Jess  KR4OJ
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