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How to remove yellowing from an old Atari case


mimo

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Quick question, because I'm going to have a go at this shortly (assuming today's sunny spell wasn't the last we'll see in the UK till May): when treating a keyboad (an ST keyboard in this case), is it essential to pop all the keys off and do them individually, or is it safe to coat the entire keyboard with the keys "in situ" (having first removed the PCB and rubber caps, obviously)? The latter would surely be much easier.

Edited by flashjazzcat
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It even got a mention on the Guardian online; it's a pity they got my surname wrong, but at least I'm spared millions of e-mails...

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/.../mar/04/gadgets

 

We is teh l33t!!!

 

I have a mild :( resentment toward one statement made in this article. Hilighted for clarity.

 

getting more useless by the day.

 

[/b]

:)

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Quick question, because I'm going to have a go at this shortly (assuming today's sunny spell wasn't the last we'll see in the UK till May): when treating a keyboad (an ST keyboard in this case), is it essential to pop all the keys off and do them individually, or is it safe to coat the entire keyboard with the keys "in situ" (having first removed the PCB and rubber caps, obviously)? The latter would surely be much easier.

I know it is a pain in the ar$e but I think it is better and safer to take the keys off the board for two reasons.

1- the keys get yellowed at the sides as well as the top, if they are separated it is easier to get UV light onto them

2- I don't know exactly what lies beneath the keys, but it is electronics, you are going to need to do a lot of washing to get the gel off the keys, and electronics and water are not a good mix.

 

Oh, and I am really happy with the way my ST has come out. Photos tomorrow when I get all those bloody key caps back on :twisted:

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Quick question, because I'm going to have a go at this shortly (assuming today's sunny spell wasn't the last we'll see in the UK till May): when treating a keyboad (an ST keyboard in this case), is it essential to pop all the keys off and do them individually, or is it safe to coat the entire keyboard with the keys "in situ" (having first removed the PCB and rubber caps, obviously)? The latter would surely be much easier.

I know it is a pain in the ar$e but I think it is better and safer to take the keys off the board for two reasons.

1- the keys get yellowed at the sides as well as the top, if they are separated it is easier to get UV light onto them

2- I don't know exactly what lies beneath the keys, but it is electronics, you are going to need to do a lot of washing to get the gel off the keys, and electronics and water are not a good mix.

 

Oh, and I am really happy with the way my ST has come out. Photos tomorrow when I get all those bloody key caps back on :twisted:

Great, I'm looking forward to seeing these photos. :)

 

Do the keys just pop or twist off? I can tell you what's under the keys: a circuit board, the LEDs, the joystick ports, and all the rubber cups. I routinely remove this if I'm going to submerge the top half of the keyboard in water (which I did as soon as I got the ST). I see your point about even exposure to the UV light, however. I suppose even exposure could be achieved automatically using sunlight by the earth's movement around the sun. You can actually tell the angle the sun's hit the ST in the past, because the top row of keys have left shadows of less-yellowed plastic just below the function keys. It's mainly breaking the keys when I remove them (assuming I do remove them) that concerns me. :ponder:

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The keys pop off just by pulling on them, once you have got a few off it gets easier.The space bar and a couple of other keys also have a metal piece that also needs to be pulled out.

 

It does take a while, and I don't want to do it again in a hurry, but well worth the effort.

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@ Mimo (and anyone else who is interested)

 

Do you want to collaborate on the Wiki? If so, let us know via the Wiki, confirm your e-mail address and we'll add you to the members list.

Sure, if you think I can be of use. All I have done is follow your instructions!

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@ Mimo

 

That's OK mate, I want some other people who have experienced this first hand on board to guide others. You will be in good company as Tezza has joined from New Zealand.

Edited by Merlin
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Hi All, I'm back with an update of my first try with this process.

WORKS GREAT!!!!!!

With a couple of warnings...

See ingredients I'm using on page 10 of this thread.

Hair bleach "developer' works great! But only on light colored plastics!

With 'developer' you do not need any of the other items to thicken up the h202. Just add OXY, stir and paint on. I used a blender to mix the OXY into the developer. The OXY is very gritty. I figured that blending would break up the OXY, and better distribute it through the OXY. Foams up a bit. I added a couple of teaspoons of water to make it less thick!! (Wear eye protection!!!) Brushed it on.

I put some items in direct sun, others under my florescent black light. 8 hours each. The Sun worked better overall, but had to turn parts as the sun moved. Also had to reapply 2 times as foam dried out. FUV Light worked, but need to have at least 1/4" white foam over all surfaces the whole time. If not, you get streaking of yellow on parts not as well covered.

I washed all parts off, and they looked as good as new!!

I also, tried this on a 800xl dark keyboard bezel. I had it under the FUV. It came out badly!!! Splotchy, with lots of bleached, whitish dis-colorization in the areas that bad more foam than others. Any suggestions on how to fix it???

Here's my try to add a pic here. I can't drag it here.

c:\sanyo09.jpg

This system 'insert image' icon wants a URL, or Http:// to post a pic. The pic just is sitting on my c:, whatever....

 

What's the process for doing this with keyboards? I see a lot done here. Paint all the keys, put in sun, rinse off with water. Wouldn't that rust the key springs? just wondering

Klund1

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you don't need to do the brown bits on an XL, so don't try and do the keys.

On an XE, remove all the keys, paint them individually. There is no problem with the metal clips, but you can detach them if you are worried

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mimo

It looked like others had dipped the whole keyboard in, and came out looking perfect.

Are you saying that they pulled all the keys, painted all 5 side for all 45+ keys, one at a time, waited 8+ hours, rinsed, and replaced the keys, one at a time. Come on....................

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mimo

It looked like others had dipped the whole keyboard in, and came out looking perfect.

Are you saying that they pulled all the keys, painted all 5 side for all 45+ keys, one at a time, waited 8+ hours, rinsed, and replaced the keys, one at a time. Come on....................

 

yes. its not as hard as you think.

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mimo

It looked like others had dipped the whole keyboard in, and came out looking perfect.

Are you saying that they pulled all the keys, painted all 5 side for all 45+ keys, one at a time, waited 8+ hours, rinsed, and replaced the keys, one at a time. Come on....................

Thats exactly what I did, but you forgot to add re-apply the gel every hour :twisted:

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You must be using the developer 'creme' and not the liquid. I am using 40vol developer but it is the liquid and needs the other ingredients. I will have to get the creme version and try it. would make things easier as it is already thick.

 

Hair bleach "developer' works great! But only on light colored plastics!

With 'developer' you do not need any of the other items to thicken up the h202.

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The Cream developer was the only thing I could find with more than 3% h2O2 here. It works, and saves time, and $$ trying to find the items. The white creamy "40 developer" 16oz, I used, only cost $3.75 US. It did 2 800xl's, 1 1200xl, 2 1050's, & 1 1027. 2 coats each on a sunny, cool day.

I guess for the keys, you could put them on a baking tray and pour the foam over them, and let them 'bake' in the sun. Just remember where to put them back. lol

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The Cream developer was the only thing I could find with more than 3% h2O2 here. It works, and saves time, and $$ trying to find the items. The white creamy "40 developer" 16oz, I used, only cost $3.75 US. It did 2 800xl's, 1 1200xl, 2 1050's, & 1 1027. 2 coats each on a sunny, cool day.

I guess for the keys, you could put them on a baking tray and pour the foam over them, and let them 'bake' in the sun. Just remember where to put them back. lol

Glad to hear that: I could only get the more opaque cream peroxide last week, at 40vol (12%). It tried a couple of keys in the watery sunshine on Sunday but not for long enough and the effect was precisely nil. Hopefully it work better with an eight-hour shift under some uninterrupted sunshine.

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Uninterrupted sunshine? In the UK?

 

What have you been smoking, because I want some...... :lol:

 

All that happens in Manchester is that the rain gets warmer in Summer.....

Edited by Merlin
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Uninterrupted sunshine? In the UK?

 

What have you been smoking, because I want some...... :lol:

 

All that happens in Manchester is that the rain gets warmer in Summer.....

LOL. :) A day of non-stop sun is a thing devoutly to be wished, as my peroxide bottle gathers dust on the kitchen bench and the ST languishes yellowly amidst the pristine greys of its 8-bit brethren! I just want to see the process take place with my own eyes. I suppose patience is a virtue, and one day I'll look out of the window and know that "the time is now"...

Edited by flashjazzcat
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I'm planning on submerging the top half and then the bottom half of a 1040STf in Sally 40 Volume. Will the Atari 1040STf logo label be okay while it's submerged in the peroxide?

 

I've already tried submerging the 1040's mouse in Sally 30 volume with sunlight and gotten great results. No other ingredients. It's wasn't very yellow to begin with, just slightly off it's factory shade of grey.

Edited by MaXKiLLz
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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, it's finally a sunny day when I'm not at work so I put the ST case, mouse and the keys out on the roof of the kitchen extension this morning. :D The sun's pretty intense and the paste on the tray with the keys on it has swelled up nicely; clearly something's happening. Unfortunately I have to go out so I can't watch it all afternoon, and I get the feeling it's going to keep drying out. Fingers crossed for another sunny day tomorrow and then I can give it a second go if need be.

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I decided to take ST down from the roof and wash the bits because I felt uncomforatble leaving them up there while I'm out... WOW! Most of the keys need no further work: just the space bar and the shift keys still have yellowing on one side. The case needs a longer stretch but is already coming up well after only two hours: you can see isolated areas where the peroxided has started to remove the yellowing, revealing patchy areas of pure grey underneath. I'm praying for sun tomorrow; I think another four hours or so for the case will finish the job. :D

Edited by flashjazzcat
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