An Electrolux AE is reborn!!!!!

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You can see that

by the reflection of the tablecloth, that the paint is NOT like what comes out of the can. If fact, other than primer coats, no part of the finishing was sprayed...all by brush. I also show some original finish items next to the AE to show color similarity..I am only about fifty percent satisfied with the way this turned out. I think I can do better. Hopefully after a few more attempts, a "system" for Hammertone finish will be perfected.

10-12-2007-23-32-30--crevicetool.jpg
 
Crevicetool,

I am impressed....very impressed! It came out gorgeous, you do beautiful work. I am amazed at the paint job, the color of the paint, and the fact it was done with a brush and not sprayed.
 
Another beautiful job!

Can you tell us how you did the yellow lettering on the machine and the red lettering on the polisher? I have tried a variety of methods. One that seems to work pretty well is using those soft oil pastel sticks you can get at stores. If you heat the machine body with a hair dryer, when you rub the pastel stick into the indented lettering it melts slightly and flows in. Then let it cool down and wipe off the excess with a cloth moistened with Windex. Then the final polishing of the body with wax will remove the rest of the residue.

Originally, Electrolux had strips of wax paper with the logo imprinted on the strip in some sort of waxy material - reminded me of the stuff grease pencils are made of. You'd line up the printed logo on the strip with the embossed area on the machine and rub it with a burnishing tool to transfer the "ink" into the body of the machine. I have a couple of those strips with white lettering but have never tried to use them; I have saved them as part of my paper ephemera collection.

Speaking of which, I have finally organized all my paperwork into labeled binders. What a job that was! But it sure is easy to find stuff now!

See photo--

10-13-2007-01-21-6--charles~richard.jpg
 
Wow,

Those shelves seem to be bowing from all the weight!! I was always curious how Lux did the lettering, right now I'm just painting it in, wiping off the excess, and clear coating over it.
 
Restorations

Wow, you're a talented guy! The Lux looks like it just came out of the box. I'm sure it's a very rewarding experience, even though time consuming. Have you ever restored/painted a model G?
 
Thanks for the kind words...

I did do a G...I think I posted a couple G pics on the Jet99, Super Chief thread about a month ago....
 
Rick:

Well, everyone here thinks it looks terrific!

However, since you say you want to perfect your hammertone finish a little more, I found some info that might be of help, if you don't know about it already. Masterchem Industries distributes Hammerite hammertone paint here in the U.S.. Hammerite comes in both blue and green, so getting a Lux match might be possible by doing a little mixing. It also comes in quarts and gallons, so you could "start small" and experiment. Best of all, if you'll go to the page linked below, you'll find links to an Application Guide, telling how the product can be used in both air sprayers and airless ones.

There is also aerosol Hammerite, but the Application Guide warns that the hammered effect is not as pronounced as it is with the stuff in cans.

Yours for sheer perfection-
Sandy

http://www.masterchem.com/pages/default.aspx?NavID=44
 
I have used spray hammertone with good effect. I have found the trick is to spray one fairly heavy coat rather than several light coats. The thicker the coat, the more pronounced the mottling effect will be. Of course, you have to balance the thickness of the coat such that you don't get runs or drips. It does take some practice. I experimented on the sides of a large cardboard box.
 
Hammerite is the product

I used. However, the Hammerite, Rustoleum, Krylon, etc. Companies intend for their products to be a rust inhibiting, thick coating. And while it may LOOK decorative, the resultant film is pitted, every where the hammer "ding" took place. The old factory applied finish, I believe, correct me if I'm wrong Charles, was an electrostatic-ally applied, then baked process, which leaves a smooth finish, just as any regular paint would be. The companies add additional chemicals to the vehicle of the paint so the end paint film is thick and hard. The problem I had with this is, as applied as packaged, is it fills in the stampings such as the logo on the cordwinder and the canister, and the stamped lines on the top and bottom of the machine. Therefore, I applied a thinned coat, just enough to cover, yet thick enough for the "hammering" to take place. I thinned it with mineral spirits instead of lacquer thinner to slow down the drying. I waited then ten days before applying a sanding sealer, four coats, sanding in between each to "bury" the hammer look. Then applied two coats of clear finish, and a final sanding of that, then hand rub it back to a gloss with rotten-stone and Flitz. The result is a smooth finish and you can not feel the hammer.
 
Rick:

I figured you already knew something about Hammerite even if it wasn't what you'd used.

Were you able to use a stock Hammerite colour, or did you mix?
 
PAIN IN THE A.......

I intermixed Light blue, Black, Silver, stock colors, then tinted with universal tinting colors. That *&%#!@ blue is nearly impossible to match.. I got it as close as I could. Had to take into consideration what effect the sealer and finish would add to the color, then try to subtract that from the mixed color.
 
Rick, You've Done It Again!!

Congratulations on your latest restoration job!! That AE looks fantastic! Another job extremely well done. And thanks for sharing the photos.
Jeff
 
You are right about the thicker applications 'obliterating' the indented logos on the sides. I had forgotten about that. In fact, with the factory-rebuilt Luxes AEs, Fs and Gs they did not even bother to fill the logo in but just left it blank. I have seen these rebuilds in bright hammertone blue (brighter, more 'turquoisey' than AE), brown hammertone and dark gray hammertone. I think there were also some done in the same finish as the underside of the Silverado. Seems I have seen an AE with that finish.

And yes, the original hammertone finish was air-pressure sprayed on and then baked, yielding the mottled finish. btw originally, hammertone paint was meant to simulate the finish of "hammered" metal where tiny hammers were used to pound a mottled surface into metal.



http://www.usawallpaper.com/hamenari.html
 

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