Zenith G2952 "St Regis" porthole restoration

[John Marinello]

Very nice, Bob!
Hopefully you'll be able to do your magic on the damaged speaker cloth??

I know some will gag when I suggest this, but I've used a little dish soap and water, with a soft brush to clean the insides of the cabinets. just a quick job and dry it off. Never had it harm anything, and the results are amazing. Clean and fresh smelling.

[bandersen]

Unfortunately, the fabric is torn and distressed. Short of replacing I don't there is much I can do.


Meanwhile, I primed and painted the screen bezel with some metallic aged brass I had handy. This set had been a rental for plays and such and abused.





Fairly close to the original. Maybe bronze would be better? Either way, I'll paint the control doors to match.

[John Marinello]

This cloth is close:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/39231363662...ef01ab592a0aab

[bandersen]

Thanks. Found the same pattern in a smaller size from a domestic supplier. Should be here next week.

[Electronic M]

Originally Posted by bandersen

Thanks. Found the same pattern in a smaller size from a domestic supplier. Should be here next week.

If it looks good and is proper speaker grille cloth please post the source. My porthole (and I suspect several other models) uses it and mine is just as torn up as yours.

[bandersen]

Not entirely happy with this "aged copper" but it's better than the "aged brass"

[bandersen]

I got it here. Diamonds run the wrong way, but it's just tall enough to rotate 90 degrees and fit.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/375306979157

[John Marinello]

Ever check auto parts stores for touch-up paint?

[bandersen]

No, but I should. Seems like 'champaign' would be a good match. The control doors are in better condition than I thought and I will not be painting them. I'll try to bring one with me to a store and find a better match.

[Electronic M]

Originally Posted by bandersen

No, but I should. Seems like 'champaign' would be a good match. The control doors are in better condition than I thought and I will not be painting them. I'll try to bring one with me to a store and find a better match.

Some of the auto parts stores can scan a sample and mix a custom matching rattle can the same way a hardware store will make you a gallon of latex to match a decades old chip from your house...

[bandersen]

Just cleaned and polished the controls doors. Color difference isn't as bad as I originally thought.

[bandersen]

I think we have a winner. Grill cloth just arrived too. I'll check it out when I get home from work.

[bandersen]

Here's the grill cloth. Not quite the same, but given how hard it is to get cloth these days, it's a good option.

[bandersen]

Very happy with the new paint. The controls doors are original.
Only took three tries to get here

[bandersen]

Well, that took a while, but the top is finally back together




Next up - grill cloth