New Vintage Audio Restoration HQ

Several before and after pics.

Group 1 is the before / during / after how I bring back the white lettering that has faded over time.

Group 2 is before and after on the metal work on the vintage short wave radio I just received.

Final one is a pic of the two metal switches from the radio - on original and untouched and one after about an hour of polishing.

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Nice work, Michael! I don't know how you have any time to review audio gear considering everything that you've been restoring. Please don't tell me that you have a full-time job as well. If so, my next question will be: How many hours are there in a day in Texas?
 
JCS123 said:
Nice work, Michael! I don't know how you have any time to review audio gear considering everything that you've been restoring. Please don't tell me that you have a full-time job as well. If so, my next question will be: How many hours are there in a day in Texas?
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Yes - this is all part time for me as I do work a normal job. :)

I pretty much eat, sleep, breathe hifi audio when I'm awake and asleep.

I don't want to allow audio to become a full time job. In my mind when that happens and then you need to make money from it, the dynamics change to a place I'd rather not go.

Right now I get to review gear (I turn down about 70% of requests), topics, and restore items that I WANT to spend time on. To me I can't think of something less desirable than creating content on something I don't like.

I also just scored an inbound piece from 1898!! This is going to be an entirely new process for me because rather than restoring / refinishing like I have been doing, I need to move into a preservation-only mode as they are SUPER rare.

I studied how the museums clean preserve and protect middle aged armor over the weekend (to deal with the different kinds of metals, woods and dyes) and ordered about $200 in museum-type preservations products to learn how to tackle that.

For instance, the metal I'm going to be dealing with uses a red Japanese ink dye that is totally unique!

This is going to be fun.......
 
This guys has a channel on restoring vintage audio gear.

He should be put in vintage jail for using Restore n finish on anything.

Basic rule - for the most part if HD or Lowe's sells it, never use it on your nice projects. The only exception would be the Shellac they sell.

This pains me to look at...




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Michaels HiFi said:
This guys has a channel on restoring vintage audio gear.

He should be put in vintage jail for using Restore n finish on anything.

Basic rule - for the most part if HD or Lowe's sells it, never use it on your nice projects. The only exception would be the Shellac they sell.

This pains me to look at...
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Finding those cases these days is pretty hard...
 
Michaels HiFi said:
I don't want to allow audio to become a full time job. In my mind when that happens and then you need to make money from it, the dynamics change to a place I'd rather not go.
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Wise choice. I had been a woodworking hobbyist for many years, but when I started doing it professionally it took all the fun out of it. When you smell sawdust for 8-10 hours a day, the last thing you want is to smell it when you get home.
 
It's amazing to me how in some instances the test equipment from the past runs circles around modern test equipment.

I just got this military analyzer to add to my growing array of vintage test gear to use to restore vintage tube testers and other vintage pieces.


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Since you asked.........here are SOME of the items.

I just bought new shelving from Costco so it's a total mess as I organize everything.

Upper left pic has the Hickock 509A meter up top, then a new just received today Weston 978 I've yet to reveal, and at the bottom of the first photo is the National NC-125 short wave radio.

Next photos are of the stuff in general. I have 7 currently open testers I am working on. Almost All the vintage test gear on the selves as well (except 3 of the items) need to be gone through as well.

I was not able to capture everything in the photos. There is 4 more also on the way - vintage Weston voltage meters from 1901 I'm going to be restoring.

I also am putting two up for sale (not in the photos) this week.

The vintage test gear looks REALLY cool and I'm going to be selling them as I restore them as they make awesome unique gifts, man cave items, or just cool period pieces (that will be WORKING) that will help fund purchases.


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Michaels HiFi said:
Since you asked.........here are SOME of the items.

I just bought new shelving from Costco so it's a total mess as I organize everything.

Upper left pic has the Hickock 509A meter up top, then a new just received today Weston 978 I've yet to reveal, and at the bottom of the first photo is the National NC-125 short wave radio.

Next photos are of the stuff in general. I have 7 currently open testers I am working on. Almost All the vintage test gear on the selves as well (except 3 of the items) need to be gone through as well.

I was not able to capture everything in the photos. There is 4 more also on the way - vintage Weston voltage meters from 1901 I'm going to be restoring.

I also am putting two up for sale (not in the photos) this week.

The vintage test gear looks REALLY cool and I'm going to be selling them as I restore them as they make awesome unique gifts, man cave items, or just cool period pieces (that will be WORKING) that will help fund purchases.


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Yumpin yiminy…
 
Time for a NEW challenge, a new endeavor, a new undertaking.

This is an 1899 - yes from 1899 - Weston Model 1 tester. This is the one that launched the storied trajectory of Weston test equipment.

127 years old. Think about that.

The red is Japanese ink - amazingly still relatively intact. Almost all modern products will scratch this finish beyond repair.

The wood is still there but needs to be preserved and is fragile.

The glass needs to be gingerly cleaned.

So this is a NEW undertaking for me - rather than simply stripping the wood and refinishing, and polishing the metal to bring back the shine, this calls for something completely different:

Gently clean, preserve and protect.

I have on order items from a company that sells preservation product to museums. I've researched articles on how things are done at the Louvre. And I'm ready for a very slow, delicate and deliberate undertaking: to let this beauty live for another 100 years.

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Today I reorganized the detail cart. This is the cart I have next to me for all the cleaning, polishing, waxing, etc supplies I use to clean the faces and cases (obviously not wood cases).

Cleaners including degreasers, APC's, rinseless washes in the middle middle shelf.

Spray sealant waxes middle bottom.

Hand/machine applied waxes and sealants bottom right in the back.

Panel wipes bottom right front.

Compounds and polishes middle right front, middle and back.

Spare product middle shelf in the back.

Leather cleaners, waxes and oils bottom left.

1-off APC's and interior shampoos middle left back.

Top shelf: a complete mess.

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