Wanna restore your tired looking ST?

[grant74]

Hi fellow Atarians! hope ya all enjoying the summer holidays! After getting countless valuable snippets of help from you guys I finally have something to give back to the community! Sort of.....

 

After recently getting my Atari ST1040 from Mick - aka Preppie! - I decided the outer casing was looking a little tired and discoloured, and I wanted to re-vamp it. Luckily the keyboard was not discoloured, so that made the job a lot easier! originally I was going to paint it in 800 xl colours and make it a bit of fun, but decided to go down the boring route and put the ST as close to original as possible (maybe I can pick up a cheapo tatty ST and give it the 8-bit treatment in the future? - will report back on that one!) - So, after perusing through countless cans of spray paint at various stores, I came up with a solution, see the attached pictures for pics of the spray cans I used.

 

They are made by a manufacturer called "Rust-oleum" - and the variety I used was Plastic Primer - white matt finish, and Painters Touch - Stone Grey, Satin Finish. I found these paints in our UK hardware store - B & Q, so I dont know if our american and european friends can find the same paints locally? but I'm sure us fellow Atarians can help. After painting a couple of coats of each paint, then leaving to dry in front of the radiator, the finish was excellent and in my opinion, so very close to the original it'd take a bloody keen eye to spot the difference!

 

I'd just like to add - I dont work for B & Q! lol! and the paints should be available in quite a few stores, maybe Evilbay? but B & Q is where I found them anyway! Also its worth bearing in mind that the job will only come out right if the paints are applied according to instructions! And all parts are cleaned and dried correctly prior to painting - paint dont like dirt and dust. Dont blame me for any bad paint jobs! ha! Unfortunately I didn't think to shoot pics of the dis-assembly of my ST but I'm sure that info will be on the forum somewhere anyway!

So there you have it, hopefully it helps a few people with tired looking Atari ST's! Finally I should mention, dont forget to mask important areas, for example the Atari logo. The led covers on the facia (power on indicator and disk drive "busy" light) can be removed from the back with a sharp knife (carefully!) and put to one side whilst painting - its much easier than masking as they're so small its nigh on impossible! They can be superglued back in once the paint is dry - this is how I did it, how you wish to do it is up to you guys! Happy painting!

[Shredder11]

Looks really nice.....apart from the keys but that is like anything else next to something newly painted! My friend once had his old red Cavalier car re-painted on one section by a Rolls Royce specialist, and they did such an amazing job it made the rest of the car look horrible! I suppose for your ST keys, you could just cover the key letters and symbols with some protective tiny sticky lablels, and then Retrobrite the keys back to their original colour. I do like the colour shade you have chosen though.

[+wood_jl]

Hi, that looks nice now. Just curious if you considered the hydrogen peroxide/de-yellowing route?

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/138244-how-to-remove-yellowing-from-an-old-atari-case/

[grant74]

Hi Guys, cheers for the feedback, yes - I did nearly consider painting the function keys and masking off the tiny letters but in the end decided it was too much hassle and had a big potential to look poo! - in the end I decided on removing the keys and giving them a going over with some cream cleaner, "cif" - or "Jif" as is known to us over 30's! (apparently it was changed cos "Jif" is rude in another language?) - anyway, I divluge, it did make them look a lot better and the keys look worse in the photo than they really are.

 

As for the retro-brite idea, to be honest, I know it works, and I've seen it when it has been done - looks a million dollars, but this ST was one that, for some unknown reason reacted badly to it when the previous owner retro-brighted it, and in fairness, he'd done loads before with great results, but yes, it went from tired looking to "patchy / blotchy" looking, so rather than risk trying to retro-brite it again I went down the route of painting - Interestingly enough, the same shop I got my paint from had some other colours that looked a good match for 800xl colours - and I almost went down that route, making a 8-bit look ST which I thought would be cool, the only major hurdle would of been what to do with the keyboard, though I guess I could of painted the keys and re-applied the correct symbols on the keys - mmm, maybe one day - sounds like a big job though!

[Charlie_]

I think I've seen the ST keys being sold on ebay. Brand new....

 

Not sure if it was a one time auction or something thats always for sale...

[mellis]

I would encourage folks to first try using the Retro-brite process described in the 8-bit section. If you do it right, it will restore the case to like new condition -- key caps and all. If you run into issues, you can always fall back on this technique after first trying Retro-brite.

[KLund1]

 

They are made by a manufacturer called "Rust-oleum" - and the variety I used was Plastic Primer - white matt finish, and Painters Touch - Stone Grey, Satin Finish. I found these paints in our UK hardware store - B & Q, so I dont know if our american and european friends can find the same paints locally? but I'm sure us fellow Atarians can help. After painting a couple of coats of each paint, then leaving to dry in front of the radiator, the finish was excellent and in my opinion, so very close to the original it'd take a bloody keen eye to spot the difference!

 

 

Just a couple questions on your painting process. I'm assuming you painted in the order your show above? How long between coats? How did you mask off the badge, or did your really remove it and not bend it?

Just asking...

I've used the retro-brite process on a few ST's and can not get a clean case. I always get the blotchy (whitish/gray mix) results. Painting seems to be the best option IMHO. But I could not find the right combo of paints. I will try and find your colors here in the USA and report back when I can.

Thanks for the post !!

 

Could you post the UPC's of those paints cans?

Edited August 5, 2011 by KLund1

[carmel_andrews]

could you try it in a colour/color other then ST 'boring' grey, hows about the original Amiga/Atari800 colour scheme (very retro)

 

Or even better do the case in black, keys in gold and the key symbols in black

[tjlazer]

Hi Guys, cheers for the feedback, yes - I did nearly consider painting the function keys and masking off the tiny letters but in the end decided it was too much hassle and had a big potential to look poo! - in the end I decided on removing the keys and giving them a going over with some cream cleaner, "cif" - or "Jif" as is known to us over 30's! (apparently it was changed cos "Jif" is rude in another language?) - anyway, I divluge, it did make them look a lot better and the keys look worse in the photo than they really are.

 

As for the retro-brite idea, to be honest, I know it works, and I've seen it when it has been done - looks a million dollars, but this ST was one that, for some unknown reason reacted badly to it when the previous owner retro-brighted it, and in fairness, he'd done loads before with great results, but yes, it went from tired looking to "patchy / blotchy" looking, so rather than risk trying to retro-brite it again I went down the route of painting - Interestingly enough, the same shop I got my paint from had some other colours that looked a good match for 800xl colours - and I almost went down that route, making a 8-bit look ST which I thought would be cool, the only major hurdle would of been what to do with the keyboard, though I guess I could of painted the keys and re-applied the correct symbols on the keys - mmm, maybe one day - sounds like a big job though!

 

The "Blooming" happens a lot on certain ST/XE systems if you are not careful. I believe it's the plastic, as on some it did not happen and on some it happens, and I did all the same... just my opinion. But it can be remedied by scrubbing the case to remove the blotching. Mr Clean Magic eraser or other methods. Works ok...

[grant74]

Hi there - sorry for delay in getting back to you - must check my posts more often! - so, to answer your question. I removed the outer covers (of course!) - the badge I masked off with plain masking tape and a REALLY sharp blade (stanley knife type) - the little plastic "windows" where the led's are were carefully cut out with the blade too (dont worry - you can superglue these back in later - steady hand and maybe a pair of long nose pliers needed). As for the surface prep - not a lot really - clean the outside - I washed mine in the sink and left to dry outside in the sun (yes, we had a sunny day in England!) for an hour. Then I just "keyed" the surface a little with some "wet n dry" paper - not too rough, say about P800 or P1000 - then a couple of coats of the primer - maybe just half hour between coats on a warm day (it dried really quick) - then 2 to 3 coats of top coat - about an hour or more between coats - then left to dry overnight. Put the ST back together the following day. Its worth noting that I would leave gluing the led windows and removing the badge masking till the last moment before ya put it back together - and place the ST face down on a towel or similar to protect the freshly painted surface. Worth the effort though - I'm pleased with mine and a couple of months use so far and no signs of deterioation in the finish. Let me know if you have difficulty in finding the paint and I will try to help you - although I can imagine shipping to the US would be expensive and I dont know if you'd incur a import charge? We do in the UK if we import from the US - but I dont know about vice versa.

 

Sorry for delay again, hope this helps!

 

Grant

[mimo]

You can't export the paint without loads of hassle as it is a dangerous product.

People in the states have access to a product called krylon fusion which is supposed to better than the stuff we have over here.

[grant74]

cheers for the input Mike! nice one - hope ya keeping ok buddy. long time, no see! - Krylon Fusion eh? cool name - sounds like a death metal band!

Hopefully catch you at next RCM - ps, have got a spare 800xl if ya want one - the one that we scapped off to rescue mine - its a bit pants but maybe make a good donor - keyboard is nice condition though - let me know. Needs a serious retro-brite session though - or a trip to B & Q! lol!

[mimo]

Hi mate, I'm ok ta.

Would love the xl if u don't want it, I have a project screaming out for a donor

[grant74]

cool mate - no worries Mike! - the XL has your name on it no probs - ya can buy the woody too if ya want it - dunno what its worth to a fellow Atarian though! Maybe we could do a trade on summat? WHY?

[grant74]

ps - that last message may read a little wrong - in a hurry to do tea and trying not to burn the kitchen down! lol! - the XL is for free obviously - just need to do a deal on the old woody

[mimo]

Thanks, will have to wait until end of next month, I'm skint right now

[carmel_andrews]

Mmm...A free XL, Smells good

[grant74]

lol - the XL has Mikes name on it - but dont worry - ya not missing a great deal - its not exactly a boxed minter! more a poorly donor!

[+wood_jl]

I read in the 8-bit forum's restoration thread (much of which applies to the ST, so this discussion should probably be in there) that the "Testors Light Sea Gray" was a close match for the XE. I assume the ST and the XE are the same? Close enough?

 

At any rate, by hopelessly-yellowed-beyond-repair ST disk drive - anything would look better than it did.

 

I couldn't find a shop that sold Testors model paint around here. So I went to the Hobby Lobby (I think this may be a chain store) and found this, which is damn close, and which I am very pleased for the disk drive. You can see the $5.49 price tag in one of the shots.

 

 

 

 

I don't know how well this would match, say, the function keys on an ST/XE machine. Probably, the machine would have to be so bad before I painted it, that it would look so much better after the painting, that it wouldn't matter.

 

At any rate, I was rather pleased with the results of this stuff, and it's available to Yanks.

Edited August 29, 2011 by wood_jl

[pinkstone]

Nice! How about the Falcon? Which color do I have to use? I´ll like to paint an LCD monitor who match the Falcon...

 

[oky2000]

Hi fellow Atarians! hope ya all enjoying the summer holidays! After getting countless valuable snippets of help from you guys I finally have something to give back to the community! Sort of.....

 

After recently getting my Atari ST1040 from Mick - aka Preppie! - I decided the outer casing was looking a little tired and discoloured, and I wanted to re-vamp it. Luckily the keyboard was not discoloured, so that made the job a lot easier! originally I was going to paint it in 800 xl colours and make it a bit of fun, but decided to go down the boring route and put the ST as close to original as possible (maybe I can pick up a cheapo tatty ST and give it the 8-bit treatment in the future? - will report back on that one!) - So, after perusing through countless cans of spray paint at various stores, I came up with a solution, see the attached pictures for pics of the spray cans I used.

 

They are made by a manufacturer called "Rust-oleum" - and the variety I used was Plastic Primer - white matt finish, and Painters Touch - Stone Grey, Satin Finish. I found these paints in our UK hardware store - B & Q, so I dont know if our american and european friends can find the same paints locally? but I'm sure us fellow Atarians can help. After painting a couple of coats of each paint, then leaving to dry in front of the radiator, the finish was excellent and in my opinion, so very close to the original it'd take a bloody keen eye to spot the difference!

 

I'd just like to add - I dont work for B & Q! lol! and the paints should be available in quite a few stores, maybe Evilbay? but B & Q is where I found them anyway! Also its worth bearing in mind that the job will only come out right if the paints are applied according to instructions! And all parts are cleaned and dried correctly prior to painting - paint dont like dirt and dust. Dont blame me for any bad paint jobs! ha! Unfortunately I didn't think to shoot pics of the dis-assembly of my ST but I'm sure that info will be on the forum somewhere anyway!

So there you have it, hopefully it helps a few people with tired looking Atari ST's! Finally I should mention, dont forget to mask important areas, for example the Atari logo. The led covers on the facia (power on indicator and disk drive "busy" light) can be removed from the back with a sharp knife (carefully!) and put to one side whilst painting - its much easier than masking as they're so small its nigh on impossible! They can be superglued back in once the paint is dry - this is how I did it, how you wish to do it is up to you guys! Happy painting!

 

Nice write up.

 

My $0.02 worth......I have been doing this for about 4 years now and this is my experience even with rubberised surfaces.

 

1. Clean surface with alcohol/white spirit thoroughly.

2. If smooth surface then lightly rub down with finest grade wet & dry paper.

3. Primer not required but plastic paints essential NO ALTERNATIVE STICKS. I used to use Plasti-kote or something.

 

Method is king,

 

first coats must be very light thin layers AND run a hot hair dryer instantly from 6 inch height SIMULTANEOUSLY WHILE SPRAYING. Essentially you're powder coating. Leave for 1 day under sunlight/UV lamps MINIMUM.

 

For a gloss glass like finish then get UV lamps or wait for bright sunshine and repeatedly spray slow even lines in light coats but do not stop until it looks 'wet' but careful paint doesn't run! Leave under lamp for 2 days or in sunlight for 8 hours solid if you can.

 

Paint will never chip even from rubber and will look like it was original gloss or matt plastic made in that colour from manufacture. Gold is a nightmare, silver I have done once but a real PITA.

 

If keyboard yellowed soak keys in food grade hydrogen peroxide (12-15% concentration).

 

(I did custom laptops for 100s of buyers with 100% positive feedback btw but also an STM and a C64 for myself)