vacguy77
Member
So being that I am also a vintage Apple computer collector, I had been reading about a process called Retro Brite which reverses the yellowing that occurs on beige and grey plastics from the 1980's. During that time period, they added a chemical called Bromine to the mixture of ABS plastics which is the culpit of the yellowing to our beloved vintage electronics and vacuum cleaners from that time period. Retro Brite is made in a blender with 12% Hydrogen Peroxide, Xanthan Gum, Glycerine, and OxyClean powder. The Hydrogen Peroxide and OxyClean give it it's whitening properties, while the Xanthan Gum and Glycerine give it the gelling properties. It creates a gel like suds that is applied to the affected plastic with a paint brush and left in the Sun for 3-15 hours. The Kenmore stayed in the Sun for about 5 hours. This vacuum when I got it from John Pease was pretty yellowed, specially the lower half (bag/motor compartment). The hose was also shot and wrapped with duct tape. I was lucky enough to find a new three wire molded end hose, otherwise it wouldn't have been worth restoring. The yellowing was mostly all removed and then I re-assembled the cleaner, and applied a coat of wax. She's as good as new! I really wish I would have taken a "before" picture because this was really a transformation, John can probably attest! You can find the recipe by going to the Wikipedia page for Retro Brite. I will warn you to wear safety goggles and use gloves when mixing/applying the formula. 12% Hydrogen Peroxide can give you chemical burns, and do severe damage to your eyes if it get's splashed in your eyes. Here are some pictures 
