[Heathkit] SB cabinet repaint question? One man's process.

[Kenneth G. Gordon]

I repeat: I have had extremely good luck with the black 
automotive manifold crackle paint.

I paint it ONLY on a horizontal surface, with a hair-dryer-type 
of paint remover in the other hand, set on low.

I can control both the fine-ness and the even-ness of the 
wrinkling as I paint. Less paint and more heat equals finer 
wrinkles, and vice versa. It is a balancing act. Those pieces I 
have painted, mostly military equipment, look exactly like the 
original when I am finished.

The wrinkling isn't that very fine type someone here mentioned 
either. It is fairly coarse, but not so coarse that it looks weird. It 
looks exactly right.

For any other color but black, I then spray over it, lightly, with 
the appropriate color. The only Heathkit gear I have done so far 
is a couple of VF-1s.

After painting, I let the piece sit for at least a week for the paint 
to really harden.

When I paint aluminum, I first strip off the old paint, then 
wash the piece with raw vinegar until the aluminum looks 
slightly dark, rinse off the vinegar with water, dry with paper 
towels, then immediately paint as above. I mask appropriate 
areas off before I wash with vinegar.

I've never used a primer since, so far, every one of the pieces I 
have painted was never primed to begin with, and I didn't think 
it was necessary.

However, we have to keep in mind that the military gear I 
painted was designed for short term use, and the fact that it 
could have lasted until now was never even imagined at the 
time.

Ken W7EKB