The PHILCO Phorum

Good afternoon,

I have started on the refinish of my 53-960. As you will see from the pictures, I have the stripping done with some cleanup from water stains on the top to finish. Most will be straight forward, but I have questions for the experts.

First I am trying to determine the toner color for the cabinet. I am thinking Medium Brown Walnut only because I think Perfect Brown might be too red. Any suggestions?

The second problem I have is with the stained grille cloth. Since it needs to be replaced, would a pattern with gold accents be sufficient? Gold seems to be the accent theme on this radio as the front dial opening was painted gold.

The third problem I have is with the leather front trim. I was able to remove it, but it's not stripped yet. I was thinking light applications of lacquer thinner on a rag might work without soaking it. Any suggestions here?
I think when it comes time to glue it back on I will apply glue to both surfaces, let it dry, and then apply heat with a iron to smooth it out.

This will be a fun little project, and I just want to get it right.

See attached pictures.

NINE bands!   That's ambitious.  

On the leather I would not use any strippers on it. The gold leaf will disappear. Would clean it gently and carefully w/oms. Could give a coat or two of clear before installation.

Thanks Terry...

I’m sure you can see all the cracks in the old lacquer, which is why I was thinking about stripping it. I wonder if I can spray it with lacquer and it will flow out the old cracked lacquer. After it’s glued down of course. Any toner suggestions?

Jake, I’m not too ambitious. The radio works well and was easy to restore. This cabinet is a piece of cake compared to the 38-690 I did. I just want the cabinet nice for when I sell it.

I doubt you can get the clear to flow out and fill the cracks unless you put a lot on, I wouldn't. Toners I think I was reasonably happy w/ using med walnut and universal walnut. I don't like the too red look either. I'm pretty sure that's what I used on the 116B.

Thanks Terry,

I’ll be making progress this week finally after getting my winter house projects done. Long time coming. More posts to follow.

This one is finally done! Two years in the making. Home projects get in the way

The leather looked awful, especially next to the freshly refinished cabinet. I stripped it and used Acrylic Leather Paint and sealer to recreate the original look the best I could. It's not factory original, but it will do. The Grille cloth is from Richmond Designs, and the gold really pops when light hits it.

All in all, I am happy with the results. I wish I had room for it, but it's just too big. You can't even extend the antenna to full height when it's on the table.

Once the swap meets open up again, I'm going to try and sell it.

Enjoy!!

That turned out really nice, job well done.

Greg B

If you wish to sell I may know someone, ahem, in Boston. So super, a great piece. Paul.

Very Nice!

Very, very pretty ! You have a right to be proud of your work, and now have a radio you can enjoy for many years.