Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

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RichJ
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Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by RichJ » Tue Mar 09, 2021 5:15 am

\Who does reasonable porcelain license plate restoration ?
It Doesn't have to be perfect, a little patina is ok.
Thanks in advance Rich J 561 262 0393


csnailnrun
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by csnailnrun » Tue Mar 09, 2021 9:27 am

Shawn with Restroe-A-Tag (www.restoreatag.com) restored my '12 KY plate. He does prefer to leave the back to be untouched in case there was ever question of the plates authenticity. If he can do this, I'm sure he can get the patina you're looking for.
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Erik Johnson
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Erik Johnson » Tue Mar 09, 2021 1:07 pm

My father restored the Minnesota 1911 number three license plate below and is currently in the process of restoring a second one.

In 1911, the original owner drilled two holes, one to the right of the "3" and one to left, creating major chips, instead of utilizing the factory holes to mount the plate on the back of the car,

He filled in the chips with JB Weld as level as possible and then sanded the fill. He followed with body glazing/spot putty.

For the background paint, he got a digital color scan match packed in a rattle can at a local automotive paint supply.

The numbers and lettering he did by hand.

NOTE: He only painted the areas that are filled/repaired, not the entire plate.

First photo is before.

Second photo is after.

I apologize for not having better close-up photos. Both were cropped from larger photos that I happened to have in my computer.
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1911 before.JPG
1911 after.JPG


NorthSouth
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by NorthSouth » Tue Mar 09, 2021 1:31 pm

I had a sign maker exactly replicate my damaged 1915 CA plates. I carry the originals under my back seat in the event some authority needs to see them.
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These are the same size just one is further away than the other.
These are the same size just one is further away than the other.


TXGOAT2
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by TXGOAT2 » Tue Mar 09, 2021 1:40 pm

Is it possible to restore enamel signs and license plates with actual fired enamel?


Wayne Sheldon
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Wayne Sheldon » Tue Mar 09, 2021 4:57 pm

"Is it possible to restore enamel signs and license plates with actual fired enamel?"

I am not an expert on this, however, I have read several debates on that subject on this and other forums in past years. The general consensus of opinion seemed to mostly believe that the required heating of the base metals would most likely have a disastrous effect on the long set original porcelain.
It may be possible, and could maybe work well? But most collectors I have spoken with have not been willing to take the risk of destroying the original by thermal expansion of the base steel. Nearly all the collectors I have spoken with use some sort of epoxy to fill with, and then careful painting to match.

That was what I did with a 'wall-hanger' 1914 Califunny single I bought cheap at a swap meet a few years back. It was in very poor condition with two sizeable holes. One hole was about the size of an old half dollar coin, the other about the size of a dime. I used some scrap wire window screen I had (carefully cut to size and shape), and epoxy to bridge the holes (the epoxy flows throughout the screen wires!). Then mixed enamel paint and clear epoxy to paint the surface. The epoxy and enamel mixed together well, and gave an aged shine that mimicked the old porcelain well. I didn't get a perfect color match (especially the red?), however the plate looks great on my wall from a few feet away.
Another trick? I used electrical tape, NOT stretched, taped on the downside (front or back doesn't really matter?) as a form for filling the holes with epoxy. The electrical tape holds well, and when the epoxy has fully set, pulls off easily.


Herb Iffrig
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Herb Iffrig » Tue Mar 09, 2021 8:20 pm

Years ago I visited Harold Bowden. He was the guy who developed Kwik Poly. He used to be at a lot of swap meets with his product. The day I was there he was messing around with coloring some Kwik Poly to repair chips on a porcelain sign. I don't remember what he was using to color the Kwik Poly. If you have ever messed with it Kwik Poly it sets up hard and fast. It is also shiny but can also be sanded. It is the same idea as stated by others above here but the color was already in the epoxy.


Topic author
RichJ
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by RichJ » Wed Mar 10, 2021 12:49 am

Thanks to all for the info. does anyone know what pigment can be used to tint clear epoxy?


Wayne Sheldon
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Wayne Sheldon » Wed Mar 10, 2021 4:51 am

I just used some enamel paint I had left over. Mixed about 50/50 for the final color coat. I didn't know what to expect, but I thought it came out pretty good. It has been hanging on my barn door for about five years now.


Topic author
RichJ
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by RichJ » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:15 am

Wayne when II tried to use enamel , the epoxy never completely cured !


Wayne Sheldon
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Wayne Sheldon » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:24 am

Interesting. I wonder if it could have been a variation of the epoxy? Or the enamel? The enamel I used was Rustoleum oil base or a knockoff. The epoxy I think was the slow set two ton off clear.


Topic author
RichJ
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by RichJ » Wed Mar 10, 2021 5:56 am

Wayne
Definitely trial and error
I'm sure there is color additive that is compatible to epoxy kinda makes it a 3 part mix !


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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Luxford » Wed Mar 10, 2021 6:45 am

A two pack urethane paint such as used on motor vehicles now ( there is even a high end clear ceramic version used on top line cars) would be far better than epoxy clear.

Epoxy is great for protection such as lining corrosive substances but normally it is not meant for exposure to sunlight as is the car paint version.
Use the base color for the top coat clear and then coat it with the clear. Adding pigment to the clear will make it muddy and it will need a massive amount to cover any different color. The reason for a base coat under the clear is to eliminate this problem the base color blocks out primers and filler used to level the surface but has no great gloss the high opacity base color blocks out those coats and the clear provides the gloss.


Topic author
RichJ
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by RichJ » Thu Mar 11, 2021 5:18 am

Peter
I knew epoxy doesn't weather well,Thanks for the additional Info.
I don't think there is any one place in the world ,that one can get knowledgeable info on any subject; from rocket science to computers to elementary question !! Thanks MTFCA .

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Steve Jelf
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Steve Jelf » Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:27 pm

Enamel and porcelain are not the same thing. Enamel is paint. It can be cured by baking at 180º, a relatively low heat. Porcelain is melted glass. That's why it shattered when the original owner drilled those two holes in 1911. It takes a LOT more heat to melt glass than it does to cure enamel. Porcelain signs are still being made (see Ande Rooney), but I'd be surprised to find that anybody is repairing old plates or signs with new porcelain. I expect any porcelain repair done today is with some type of modern material as described above.
The inevitable often happens.
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Fordwright
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Re: Porcenlin liscense plate restoration

Post by Fordwright » Thu Mar 11, 2021 12:58 pm

Yeah, don't give that autocorrect any help at all.

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