[Milsurplus] Slightly OT: Restoring plastic...

[J. Forster]

I have had some success with the plastic polishing compound sticks and fabric wheels both available for the purpose at Home Depot. If the plastic is thermoplastic (melts when heated) rather than thermosetting (like bakelite) you need to be very careful as overheating in polishing will make a total mess.

FWIW,
-John



Bruce Lane wrote:

> Hi, folks,
>
>         This is borderline off-topic, though I suspect the units I have were used by military as well as civilian techies.
>
>         I have a pair of 3M Telecomm division test sets, model 965TD. They're built into an outer case made from high-density polyethylene, the same stuff the outer jacket of aerial telephone cables is made from, molded in bright glossy yellow.
>
>         At least it was bright and glossy when new. As one might imagine, with craft instruments, these have gotten dinged and marred pretty badly. I've tried simple plastic cleaner/polish, but haven't gotten very far. What I'd like to do, ideally, is to take a layer off to get rid of the dings, and then repolish the beasties so they look new. However, I've never done any serious plastic restoration before, so I haven't a clue where to start.
>
>         Anyone done this sort of work before? Suggestions, and pointers to the necessary materials, would be most welcome.
>
>         Thanks much.
>
> -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
> Bruce Lane, Owner & Head Hardware Heavy,
> Blue Feather Technologies -- http://www.bluefeathertech.com
> kyrrin (at) bluefeathertech do/t c=o=m
> "If Salvador Dali had owned a computer, would it have been equipped with surreal ports?"
>
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