OT: Vintage engraved pushbuttons

[Sparky]

usually bakelite, "Start" or "Stop" engraved with paint filled in the
engraving of the letters.

what's the technique for renewing the painted-in lettering?

thanks.

[Rheilly Phoull]

I used to dig out the old paint with a scriber or such, paint over the
letters with a small paint brush (of the artistic variety) then with a
cloth stretched very tight over a finger and just damp with thinners
gently wipe the surface a few times to remove the paint on the surface
of the button leaving the residue in the printing.

[Jasen Betts]

Start with wax or silicone polish on the surface, then clean out the
grooves and re-paint, the polish will prevent staining of the surface
when you wipe the excess paint away.



--
umop apisdn

[Dave Platt]

>usually bakelite, "Start" or "Stop" engraved with paint filled in the
>engraving of the letters.
>
>what's the technique for renewing the painted-in lettering?

Check out "Lacquer-Stik". It's a solid-paint crayon, designed to
brighten up engraved or stamped lines.

http://www.markal.com/solid-paint-markers/lacquer-stik/

I've used it to renew the engraved markings in a plastic-body slide
rule.

[Jeff Liebermann]

Renewing means new paint. Clean out as much of the old paint as
possible with a dental pick and brush. Polish the bakelite surface
BEFORE re-painting. Make sure there's no grease, wax, sweat, or filth
in the engraved depressions. Slop on some enamel model paint and
quickly wipe the knob clean. If you make a mess, clean the knob with
solvent and try again. The reason you want to polish the knob first
is that if there are any cuts, gouges, or grooves in the knob surface,
the paint will also fill them.

If you don't want to use paint, I've found the white "correction
fluid" works fairly well if the engraving is reasonably deep. If it
somehow wears off, just slop some more on. I use this for radios
where I don't want to ruin the resale value by changing the
appearance.
<https://www.google.com/search?q=correction+fluid&tbm=isch>

Note: I'm partial to glow in the dark acrylic phosphorescent paint
for pointers:
<http://glowinc.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=2>

--
Jeff Liebermann je...@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

[Dave M]

The usual solution for restoring faded or worn markings on engraved knobs
and panels is a Lacquer Stick, such as the one on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Markal-Lacquer-Stik-Paintstick-White/dp/B002BY8HKS

Cheers,
Dave M