[Michael Gerber]

Just got a RCA k80 radio console and was wondering if anyone knew how I could polish just the dial cover frame[It does come apart though]
Also I was wondering how to go about refinishing it, I'm pretty for sure it will need to be re stained/re-lacquered I'm not quiet sure which colors to use since it looks like the top and base are darker and which ones will match up to the originals the best and the process for doing that[/size]

[Arran]

Hi;
I think that maybe you should just see if you can clean the dial escutcheon on this set rather then trying to polish it, it had a brushed rather then a shiny brass finish so if it's polished to a shine it won't look right. Try soaking it in pan of hot water and washing soda (or baking soda) with a sheet of aluminum foil, that will take most of the dirt and tarnish off. If it's really bad soak it in a pan of Tarnex or some other dip polish.
As for what to do with the cabinet it's hard to say without seeing any pictures, sometimes a good cleaning with gojo goes a long way, other times the finish is so badly deteriorated that you can scrpae it off with a fingernail After finding a picture or two of the same model online it appears to have pretty much the same colour scheme as many other consoles built in the late 30s and early 40s, with dark walnut tone spray on the solid wood parts like the grille bars and bottom rail, maybe medium walnut on the rest if anything at all. In spite of what some websites say it is not a very valuable radio, maybe $150 restored, so doing most of the work yourself is probably the way to go.
Regards
Arran

[Michael Gerber]

Thanks I'll try that. I'll post a picture if I can get a good one. I only paid $2 for it at a radio swap meet last Saturday. I think it will turn out good though. Thanks again