Removing Name Badge.

[Geoff Wooff]

Anyone have experiences of removing the Wheatstone "shield" badges from metal ends ? This seems like the right thing to do before sending the ends off to be replated. That way these badges would not get defaced when the Polisher gets heavy handed.

Perhaps it is possible to get the ends plated but not polished, then one could do a more carefull polishing job at home?

 

Seeing an original Nickel plated end with its Brass name plate is so much more Classy ! Hmm some badges do appear to be Nickel plated or made from a white metal.

 

PS: of course, replacing the badges might be more difficult than removong them

Edited February 4, 2013 by Geoff Wooff

[Greg Jowaisas]

Geoff,

My experience, at least with wood end Wheatstones, is that the badge is held on with two pins. These may be carefully "unbent" from the reverse side to release the badge.

 

I've refinished a baritone and it is time to reassemble. Soon I'm going to find out if the original pins can be reused.

 

Greg

[Geoff Wooff]

Greg,

I have a feeling that the badges on the metal ender's also have two pins that I think are soft soldered to a seperate plate on the inside of the ends. This might make it easier to remove than the necessity to bend the pins of a wooden ender.

 

Good luck with re-bending those pins !!

 

PS: I'm still fiddling with those valves you sent... most notes are now fine but.. well you know how it is... in the end we just have to accept a certain degree of 'valve' action and be content.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Geoff Wooff

[gcoover]

Be very careful who does any replating! The folks in Houston who replated the ends of my Jeffries Duet many years ago did a total hack job when removing the old plating, leaving huge comet-like tails gouged out to one side of every button hole. And that's not fixable. Must. Resist. Urge. To. Kill!

 

Gary

[SteveS]

Does anyone have an idea from where these pins can be had?

 

Last label I removed the legs were very fragile and snapped easily.

[Geoff Wooff]

On close examination of several instruments;

 

1. An early metal ended (c.1898) has Nickel Plated (or Nickel Silver) ends with Brass Shield badge which is rivetted to a soldered on underplate, using Nickel silver wire rivets. The 'shield' shaped cutout in the end looks as if it was sawn out during the fret cutting operation and the badge sits neatly recessed into this cutout .

 

2. A wooden ended 1927 model... has a very pale brass badge with pins that look as if they could have been 'cast' in. These pins fit into pre drilled holes but they do not protrude through the wooden end... perhaps they originally did but broke during a previous restoration, although I do not think this instrument has been 'restored' as such... just patched enough to keep it playing.

 

3. A metal ended 1922 model which looks to have a white metal Badge.This one is more difficult to decide if the badge is held by 'through' rivets or if there are 'cast in' pins that have been peened over at the back in the same way as the 1898 example because the colour of the badge and the rivets are the same .

 

If the metal ended versions are held by tiny rivets, well that should not prove to be a great problem for the carefull worker. To replace the broken pins for a wooden ended model it should be possible to find very small brass 'domed head' nails, which could be annealed and cut to length . For rivetting the metal ended version a short length of Silver wire, which can be bought in a wide varierty of sizes, would possibly be the best/easiest material to make a small rivet from.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Geoff Wooff

[RP3]

Geoff, if I remember correctly, the process of replating involves multiple plating steps -- each followed by its own buffing -- so I don't think your idea of having all the plating done and then you buffing it carefully at home will work. But good luck with your restoration just the same.

 

Ross Schlabach

[Geoff Wooff]

Geoff, if I remember correctly, the process of replating involves multiple plating steps -- each followed by its own buffing -- so I don't think your idea of having all the plating done and then you buffing it carefully at home will work. But good luck with your restoration just the same.

 

Ross Schlabach

 

You could be right Ross,

I for some reason think that the Nickel plate process on a non ferrous metal is a single coating and that the triple coating ( copper , nickel, chrome) is used when Chrome plating ferrous metals.

Still, I do appear to have answered the questions regarding lifting off the Badge but would be pleased to read of anyboby's experiences of doing it.

 

Thanks, Geoff.

Edited February 4, 2013 by Geoff Wooff