How to restore a Marples blue handle
Welcome! / Forums / General Woodworking Discussions / Tools and Tool Maintenance/Restoration / How to restore a Marples blue handle
- This topic has 3 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 5 years, 6 months ago by Tim Ridolfi.
-
AuthorPosts
-
My Stanley 5002 blue plastic (polythene?) chisel handles had been hammered, gouged, scratched, and abused for years. I tried the lot:
Acetone (nail polish remover) dissolves and ruins plastics and vinyl. Avoid using Acetone altogether.
Brasso (and milder Silvo) SOMETIMES works, on SOME plastics. It’s a gamble. Brasso will dissolve plastic Plane Handles to a soft goo which will never re-harden.
Autosol Metal Polish works, very slowly. You’ll need a Buffing Wheel or Dremel to get anywhere in a reasonable time.
Some recommend using a gentle flame, such as a Spirit Burner used for Acrylic Fountain Pen barrels.
I tried alternatives; candle, lighter, gentle blowlamp… but the soot just made it worse.—-
Start with a fine file to remove the worst of the chewed-up areas and to reshape the handle ends.
Follow-up with fine wet & dry paper to smooth the areas further.
Next, Abro Rubbing Compound (used to restore car bodywork). It works well.
Finally, Abro Headlight Restoration Polish. It’s designed to remove haze from plastic Car Headlight Lenses and restores that crystal clear, smooth finish without harming the plastic.My plastic chisel handles now look like new.
12 October 2018 at 3:20 pm #552685It may be that applying solvent directly to the handle is too aggressive. You can try vapor polishing. Just place the chisel along with a tray of solvent under an inverted glass bowl, and keep an eye on it.
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.