• Thanks for the great tips - gogzhad@hotmail.com 07:44:30 05/30/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Polishing Brass End Bells posted by gogzhad@hotmail.com on May 29, 2006 at 11:50:03:

  Thanks to all for the excellent information. I'll try the polish-lacquer-wax route and post results if they turn out well.

  I think I'll leave the lams alone rather than risk disturbing them.
  
  

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• Re: Polishing Brass End Bells - mqracing 05:30:29 05/30/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Polishing Brass End Bells posted by gogzhad@hotmail.com on May 29, 2006 at 11:50:03:

  Hi Dave:

  the 2004 juniors laminations are interleaved... which "locks" them together pretty well. If your careful in taking out the nuts and bolts and don't drop the unit or jar it excessively... you will not disturb the laminations.

  you could then polish or powder coat or otherwise finish the covers to your liking. Dan has some good pointers in his post.

  Don't use any abrasive techniques to clean or strip the lams.... if your careful you could use Xylene to strip the four outside surfaces of the lams if you want to paint them. Nickel might be a little fussier about the paint sticking to it... try some rustoleoum paint and thin it a bit and use a foam brush and load up the brush enough so that the paint sort of flows out onto the lam surface.

  when you reassemble the unit.... go finger tight and a quarter turn past finger tight... nickel is moreso schizzy about how much pressure you put on the laminations. Not too tight... is key here.

  any more Q's fire away....

  let us know how it works out for you,

  msl
  
  

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• Re: Polishing Brass End Bells - Doc B. 20:02:43 05/29/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Polishing Brass End Bells posted by gogzhad@hotmail.com on May 29, 2006 at 11:50:03:

  Take the bells off and put the trans somewhere safe where it won't be knocked around. If you drop it and wreck it with the end bells off, it's not covered under warranty. Absolutely don't try to polish the nickel lams, you could end up overheating them, twisting them, knocking them or several other bad things that will diminish the magnetic properties of the lams.

  For a quick job you can just buff the bell ends with jeweler's rouge on a buffer. For a fanatical job start off with heavier compounds first and work your way up to rouge, which means more buffing wheels for various polishes, more time spent and the potential for a mirror finish. Either way it's dirty work. You're hands will get covered with black tarnish even if the metal looks pristine. You may find a Dremel tool with small polishing spuds very useful in the corners. Once you get it just right clean it with a good degreasing cleaner and shoot it with clear lacquer. Wax won't protect the brass in the long run, and you'll see tarnish after a few months. Lacquer will last for many years. For the ultimate finish wait a few days for the lacquer to harden, then gently rub the lacquer out with rottenstone and a rag dampened with WD-40, then wax over the lacquer for a truly superb shine.
  
  

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• Re: Polishing Brass End Bells - Ian L 14:28:34 05/29/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Polishing Brass End Bells posted by gogzhad@hotmail.com on May 29, 2006 at 11:50:03:

  I hope Mike /Doc B. or somebody else with a ton of MQ transformer experience will correct me if I'm being too loose about this but I don't think you have to worry about the lams as long as you're really really careful when you take off the bells and don't move/knock the transformer while the bolts are out. Personally , because I usually have lots of the stuff around from wood working, I would wrap the body of Lams with a few turns of green Low Tack (low adhesion) painter's masking tape for a little insurance before removing the bolts and I'd slip the bolts back in the holes and gently finger close the nuts until ready to put the bells back on.
  For polishing expertise the guy to contact is Wardsweb, a regular poster on the Bottlehead Forum and hoster of Bottlehead meets in Texas. He's friendly and encouraging and photos of his results show he knows what he's talking about.

  hope this helps
  

  • Wardsweb's Page   (Open in New Window)

  
  

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• oh, and one more thing - gogzhad@hotmail.com 11:51:42 05/29/06 (0)
  In Reply to: Polishing Brass End Bells posted by gogzhad@hotmail.com on May 29, 2006 at 11:50:03:

  As for finishing the end bells, I've seen suggestions on here for clear lacquer and clear poly - what about a good wax?
  thanks,
  dave
  
  

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