[R-390] Filling Engraved Panels

[David C. Hallam]

Get a Lacquer-Stix made by Lake Chemicals.  It is a fill-in paint on stick
form made for this application.  Any excess can easily be removed with a
wipe of light mineral oil.

David
KC2JD/4

> -----Original Message-----
> From: r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:r-390-bounces at mailman.qth.net]On Behalf Of Robert Nickels
> Sent: Tuesday, October 16, 2007 12:37 PM
> To: R-390A Receiver List; Hammarlund
> Subject: [R-390] Filling Engraved Panels
>
>
> I'm looking for "best practices" aka "what works" when filling engraved
> panels.  The panel in question is for a Hammarlund SP-210 but I've got a
> 390 panel in the queue and the process should be the same.
>
> I've read everything Google has produced on the topic, which basically
> amounts to using a) acrylic artists paint or b) lacquer stick to fill
> the engraved lettering.   "Filling" is the easy part, the trouble comes
> when trying to remove the residue that inevitably gets on the panel.
> Most folks say to wait "a while" for the fill to dry, then remove the
> residue with a damp cloth, or something similar.  It sounds good, but
> I've had less than zero success at removing the excess paint while
> leaving the filled area intact.
>
> The laws of physics seem to get in the way.  Common sense tells us that
> a thin layer of paint will dry before a thick one, and my attempts thus
> far confirm that if I wait long enough for the filled area to be
> sufficiently dry, the residue on the panel has fully dried and is nearly
> impossible to remove without marring the panel.   Edison-like, I've
> tried dozens of different methods on my (now) test panel, including
> adding cornstarch to thicken the paint, using various materials as a
> squeegee, and different cure times, but the result is inevitably a
> whitish haze around the letters, inconsitent filling of some letters,
> and a generally lousy (polite word) appearance.
>
> There must be a trick to this, and while I'm busy stripping and
> re-priming and painting, I'm hoping some of you who have had success
> will share your secrets.  In as much detail as possible, please!  Edison
> was a patient man....I'm not ;-)
>
> Thanks and 73,
> Bob W9RAN
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