Willys77 Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Looking for info on "rebuilding" and or "repairing old Switch Housings! I'm thinking these would be of the "Bakelite" variety. Has anyone had any experience with doing this sort of thing? Any suggestions on casting new housings? Is this something that would even be feasible? Feedback and suggestions wanted as it is very unlikely that I'd find any NOS Switches! Thanks for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest De Soto Frank Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 Oh boy...I'm not aware of anyone in the US that is casting traditional Bakelite.I had a Bakelite control knob from a 1933 Monitor-Top GE refrigerator that was broken, and could not find anyone to make a repro.My issue was that the "knob" also had a long and complicated cam-shaft that operated various metal switch fingers, so the knob/shaft had to be physically hard, stable (not subject to plastic deformation), have electrical insulatiing properties, etc. In short, it had to be old-time hard, black Bakelite.Do you have pictures of what you're working on ?Depending on the shape of the part, location, whether or not it is visible, etc, sometimes bakelite that has broken into two or more pieces can be glued back together, and re-inforced with some sort of eternal brace ( metal clamp or band, or the like ).I have heard of people having distributor caps reproduced for cars like Packard or Pierce 12's... distributor caps were almost always Bakelite, so perhaps the same outfit could do a switch body.... but any custom job will not be cheap. Don't give -up on finding a new part, it's amazing what turns-up.Doesn't seem like I've been much help, but without knowing exactly what you're working on, I can only offer general suggestions...Perhaps somone who has gone the custom distributor cap route can offer suggestions ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleach Posted October 21, 2011 Share Posted October 21, 2011 In the past I have carefully glued back together broken Bakelite parts with mixed results. Simple housings that were subject to little stress were usually most successful. Those that involved moving parts usually broke after a few uses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV Puleo Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Bakelite is a hard rubber compound... if I remember correctly, the material was heated in a steam generator (like a pressure cooker) and pressed into moulds under extreme pressure. It isn't the sort of process that lends itself to "one off" items. If I was going to replace a Bakelite piece, I'd look into machining the part out of micarta... aka a dielectric linen based pressed phenolic resin material. I'm machining a special distributor cap out of this material for a current project, similar to the distributor plate on a magneto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen_Dyneto Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Bakelite is NOT a rubber compound, it's a rather primitive plastic formed by the condensation of a phenol with an aldehyde. Using various substituted phenols and aldehydes (like formaldehyde) results in a range of differing properties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV Puleo Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 OK... I was wrong. It happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rsd9699 Posted November 1, 2011 Share Posted November 1, 2011 JV Puleo - post some pictures of your before and after work.Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willys77 Posted November 6, 2011 Author Share Posted November 6, 2011 Thanks for the info guys! Time to do some internet research, I guess and see what comes up. I have a couple of Light Switches to redo, rebuild or repair. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JV Puleo Posted November 6, 2011 Share Posted November 6, 2011 The distributor cap is only about half finished so I'll post a photo when its closer to completion. Depending on the shape you need you probably won't be able to get a "molded" look but you may be able to get something that doesn't look too "modern" and thus out of place.jp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BobD735 Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 Hi,I plugged about a 1" dia. hole in my Bakelite radiator cap, after bonding a circular brass plate to the underside. I used a mixture of J-B Weld and lamp black. When it hardened, I sanded the filled area, and I was happy with the results.Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BobD735 Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 Here is a photo of my radiator cap after repair.Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexRiv_63 Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I purchased a reproduction distributor cap and rotor for my Cadillac V12 that was made by Kip Motor Company in Dallas. I am not sure if the material was bakellite but it was a dead ringer for the original, fit and worked like new. Check them out at www.kipmotor.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 I am told that bowling balls are (were?) made from a material very similar to Bakelite. Are there bowling ball repair materials available? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest De Soto Frank Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 That would probably be the black ones; Brunswick, Balke, & Collender in New Jersey were pioneers in "plastics", first as producers of billard balls in the 19th Century.A descendant company, Brunswick, was functioning as part of AMF in the 1970's and '80s, at least...Their pet name for the black bowling-ball stuff was "Ebonite", which I believe was also used to make student-model woodwind instruments (clarinets, oboes, etc.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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