| Author |
Message |
    
Pablomartinez
Tinkerer
Username: Pablomartinez
Post Number: 69
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 07:25 am: | 
|
I think it is called Baquelite in english but I'm not sure. What I talk about it is the black kind of plastic that many old cameras are made of.
I just bought a french baquelite camera and when I got home I discovered that a chunk of baquelite from the camera body is missing, letting light get in the camera.
I need to remake a new piece of the camera. Anybody knows what shoud I use? Epoxy? Car filler?
Thanks |
M_currie
Tinkerer
Username: M_currie
Post Number: 60
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 07:40 am: |
|
The English spelling is Bakelite. I think either a heavy bodied epoxy (putty consistency) or car filler would probably work, but if there is a need for structural strength, I'd go with the epoxy. The heavier the better, because even car filler sags when unsupported. You might have to make a paper or tape dam to hold it, or apply it in multiple layers.
I haven't done more than glance, but if you do a Google search for "Bakelite repair" you'll find some information, because Bakelite was a common material for old radio cases. |
Pablomartinez
Tinkerer
Username: Pablomartinez
Post Number: 70
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 12:19 pm: |
|
Bakelite, with a K!
Thanks, I'll try with an epoxy putty that I normally use to repair leaking water pipes.
That stuff is white, so I will have to paint it black. |
Wernerjb
Tinkerer
Username: Wernerjb
Post Number: 163
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 12:20 pm: |
|
Hi Pablo, the problem is that Bakelite cases often tend to lose their original shape if a piece has broken off. The new material you use when replacing the missing chunk often does not stick to where you put it. I have repaired several old radio cases and used epoxy plus a fiberglass mat plus several types of car filler. It was not possible to make colours match, so I had to mix different paints to obtain the right dark brown finish. |
Wernerjb
Tinkerer
Username: Wernerjb
Post Number: 164
Registered: 07-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 12:24 pm: |
|
PS: "brown" is a difficult colour, by adding white to make it lighter it tends to look violet-purplish, so one has to be careful not to spoil the mix! |
Pablomartinez
Tinkerer
Username: Pablomartinez
Post Number: 71
Registered: 09-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 01:33 am: |
|
I repaired the case yesterday with epoxy putty and this morning I dicovered that the piece has not stuck in place. The new piece I added came off. I carefully sanded the bakelite befor gluing but that did not help.
I have to try something else! (not much to loose, I payed 1 euro for the camera)
By the way, the bakelite of the case is black, I should not have any problem with the color. |
Adrian
Tinkerer
Username: Adrian
Post Number: 60
Registered: 08-2006
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 01:53 am: |
|
Random - yet nearly relevant - factoid.
Leo Baekeland, inventor of Bakelite, was also the inventor of Velox photo paper - so all those 1930s Kodak prints with "Velox" in a little diamond shape on the back are thanks to him too.
Quite a chap - apart from anything else, he must have kept the French camera industry in work from about 1945 to 1960!
Not that that helps Pablo...
Adrian |
Canuck_curt
Tinkerer
Username: Canuck_curt
Post Number: 10
Registered: 03-2007
Rating: N/A
Votes: 0 (Vote!) | | Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 04:10 am: |
|
You might also try a product available at least in the US and Canada called JB Weld. It is a form of expoxy(I think) putty that you press on, shape and it dries hard as rock. |
