Antique-shop.com
Antiques! => Antique Questions Forum => Topic started by: hosman321 on April 12, 2010, 11:15:26 PM
-
Does anybody know a paint removing chemical that is safe to use on porcelain signs? I believe these signs are pretty much glass, so can I use any paint remover on them? I'm no good about chemicals.
I bought this sign today for $15. For some reason, it was painted black at some point. When I scrub long enough with water, the paint does start to wash off. But my arms are killing me now. It's pretty rusty and in fair/poor shape. I just love it anyways. I can't find one online exactly like mine but there are similar Arden Ice Cream ones that have sold for $600-$800 in good/perfect condition. So, I think I did darn good if I can get all this black paint off. Thanks for any advice!
Pics are of the front side and back side. It also appears that it has been cut off on the top, sides, and bottom. But the brackets for attaching it to the sidewalk sign are still on the bottom so I have no idea.
-
I would say to keep doing what you are doing. Working with vintage and antique items can be time consuming and tiring at times - but well worth it in the long run it done right!
-
Well, I've removed about an inch or two worth of paint in an hour of scrubbing. All of the bare parts in those pics were already bare before I started. So, in a few weeks it may be clear but my arms will be long gone. But, if that's the safer way then I'll just have to do it. :P
The shop owner used a razor blade and it scraped off pretty well. But there are lots of chips in the enamel and I don't want to scrape more away.
-
Use rubber gloves...
I have some tips. First try SUDSY Ammonia. That is SUDSY Ammonia not just plain Ammonia. You may have this already if not it is pretty cheap at the store. When using this, always have clean water available to wash the surface to stop the action of the ammonia. Use in a well ventilated area like outside in the garage or just plain outside. Use a cloth and try it on a small part of the black first to see how it does with the black paint.
OK, if this does nothing the next to try is any brand of liquid sandpaper that you may have on hand. Liquid sandpaper is what you wipe on painted surfaces to 'cut' the surface to prepare it for painting. It goes by different names such as , Surface Conditioner, Preparite, Liquid Sandpaper, and others. Different brand names have different chemical compositions and work faster or slower. Use this liquid on a cloth and rub on the black paint. Black showing on the cloth shows the paint is being removed. Always have clean water available to flood the surface to stop the action of this chemical also. You only want the black overpaint to be removed and nothing else so if something else is coming off, quickly flush water on the surface to stop any chemical action.
-
Thanks for the advice wayward! I'll be headin' to the store tomorrow.
-
I have done this many times on fishing lures with old overpaint so I do have some experience with it. I learned it from duck decoy collectors that used these methods to remove old overpaints from wood duck decoys. Some paints such as the old aluminum paints come off fast, almost like washing it off with water. Some paints come off real slow. I have had white enamel and yellow enamel come off excruciatingly slow but they came off.
Good luck. I will check back on this thread to see how you are doing.
-
Dang, this sign is a bit more rare than I thought. I can only find 1 exact one online. And one or two Arden Ice Cream ones. I'd say it was worth the $15, even though it's kinda "roached", as Mike always says on "Pickers." ;)
I'll post "after" pics soon.
I still don't understand why the top, bottom and sides were cut. But the brackets are still attached. Hmm...
http://cgi.ebay.com/1933-Arden-Ice-Cream-Double-Sided-Porcelin-Sign_W0QQitemZ170468673174QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item27b0b98696
http://www.icollector.com/Sunfreze-Ice-Cream-by-Arden-porcelain-Advertising-sign_i8638437
-
Hosman I believe someone cut it down & repainted it to advertise a new business that is why the brackets are still attached. great find to bad it was cut down. Advertising signs seem to be sought after even in this market and prices seem good, I think in the future they will be even more sought after & prices will skyrocket. keep an eye out for more signs ;D
-
If it is a porcelain sign then I would not be afraid to use paint remover. Just dip a cotton cloth in the paint remover and then rub it across the surface of the sign.
-
Agree with Cogar. Don't use razor blades or any type of scraper. You could ruin it.
-
I've had some luck with fingernail polish and cotton. Try a very small spot forst. It's not as harsh as paint remover and sometimes works. Don't use scraper though. You could really ruin it.
Linny
-
Hey, I think I have nail polish remover layin around. I'll try a tiny spot and rinse it fast. Maybe it'll work. Nail polish remover can be kinda harsh too so I'll let ya know what happens. Thanks for the input guys.
-
Another ( cringe ) method is a pressurewasher ( on signs made for exterior use ) - much less surface abrasion/chemistry goin' on ...
can blow off flakes or huge chunks , though (ablation) .....
.... other times (with latex-based paints) plain old boiling water & a synthetic bristle brush (no wire brushes , please) helps ;
'heat guns' can also be useful , when trying to avoid abrasion .
Any way you cut it , it's work !
Hats off to you for workin' away @ this one , hosman321 .
:)
-
Well, the nail polish remover was a bust. Got a tiny bit off, but I think that was mostly my elbow grease doin' the work. Thanks for the idea though!
I'll be headin' to Walmart or Home Depot tonight. I want this sign to be clear dangit! The colors underneath are in good shape on one side, so it's worth the trouble. I'll let ya know what finally works!
-
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! There is fingernail polish remover and then there is fingernail polish remover that contains acetone. Be very careful with the acetone stuff as that will melt plastic and make other finishes gooey in very short order. I would not use acetone as a paint remover on anything unless I did not care about taking off ALL the paint - overpaint and everything underneath.
-
Oops, good thing I rinsed it off within a couple seconds! I'll just stick with the previous advice. :P
-
Here's some for Arden exclusively and their prices:
[url]http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/5246476/url]
Completed listing Ebay 170468673174
And I totally agree that someone cut it down and painted it black to reuse as a store sign!
-
Hosman agree with wayward on the nail polish remover I would never under any circumstance use it on any antique of any kind!! I have worked in a salon for many years and that stuff is deadly to most surfaces. I am restoring an antique trunk with embossed steel that is loaded with rust it would be way easier to use a chemical to remove it but to do no damage & advice from professionals it would be a big NO NO. slow & steady by hand (more work) but worth it in the end.
-
I know it's a ton of work, but you've been getting good advice on the paint removal. If you can bear with it, and finally get the job done, I think you will be very proud of the result.
-
Well, it looks like this is as good as she's gonna get. I used Motsenbocker's Latex Based Paint Remover. Worked great. Bio-degradeable, no harsh solvents, and is water based.
This is the side that was mostly covered in paint. I'm just going to leave the other side as-is for now. It hardly has any paint on it. It'll face the wall anyways. It may be beat up and cut up, but it'll look cool on the kitchen wall anyways. Thanks for all the advice everybody!
-
Well, hosman, that looks pretty good! You should be proud of yourself!
-
hosman looks awesome!!! good choice with the Biodegradable, no harsh solvents, and water based remover better safe than sorry. Love all the chipped & rusted parts gives it great character!!!!
-
Thanks guys. :)
You know, I kinda like the banged up porcelain signs better than the perfect ones that sell for big bucks. Not only are they a fraction of the price, but they do show their age and have great character. Plus, I kinda feel like I have to save them. Other people may see these damaged ones and want to melt them down or destroy them. So, I may as well take them in and give them a home. :P
I also got my old Texaco one for a great price because of it's big gash. But I love it just the same.
Now that I look at the pics, these two would look great with each other. Guess I have to make space now. :)
-
Hosman, if you are going to hang that in your kitchen you might think about treating those "rusty edges" on your sign with something.
Like putting your sign out in the hot Sun to heat up real good to rid it of any moisture and then putting a polycrylic or something on the rusted areas.
The constantly changing heat and humidity in your kitchen will cause the rust to ever so slowly eat its way back under that porcelin coating.
-
That's a great idea cogar. Sunshine is definitely rare on the Washington menu. :)
But I believe it's supposed to be sunny tomorrow. I'll lay it out for the day. And then maybe spray a Rust-oleum clear coat on the rusty edges?
-
Great advice Cogar!!!! Enjoy hosman!!! You are hooked on 'tiques and vintage items!!!!
-
Well, I'm considering listing one of these on ebay tomorrow. I spent a small fortune on a 1770's textile and I need the money to put towards it. My whole goal is to go older and more primitive and sell a few things that aren't very old. But I am so attached to them both and can't pick which one. What would you do? The Sunfreze one is very damaged, but much rarer than the more common Texaco one. I think the Sunfreze one would bring around $100, the Texaco around $65 because it is also damaged. Should I keep the less common one? ::)
-
If it is a water based paint, try putting it in the bathtub and soaking it with hot water and a bit of dish soap for a couple of hours. Usually it comes off pretty easily. Dried oil based paint, I just use paint thinner. Lighter fluid or charcoal starter even works on some. Needs to be outside though and washed well afterward !! I would test on a small place before trying on the entire thing.
-
Personally... I like the Fire Chief one best but this is probably a matter of taste. Hard to believe it would bring less $$ since it appeals to sign & fire collectors. Just shows how bad I am at "picking" stuff - lol
-
Well, I listed the Sunfreze sign. Within a couple hours it had a bid. I'm hoping it brings around $100.00. I'll be sad for it to go, I never sell my antiques!
-
Hosman, did you see your Fire Chief sign on that Texaco gas pump on Pickers tonight? There it was, right on the bottom part of that red pump that had the rotating cylinder for the hose. It was when they stopped at the guy that had the Keep Out signs posted all over and he had the bibs and beard.
-
I saw one on pickers before, was it a rerun? I haven't watched tonight's new episode yet, I usually catch it later in the night.
-
No, it was a new one.
-
Sure wish that gas pump was attached to my sign. :-\ It was very cool.
-
And man, I want that red Ford sign they bought so bad!
-
And man, I want that red Ford sign they bought so bad!
Don`t think my budget for junk would handle that price !!
-
Me neither mart!
-
Good luck with your auction and keep us posted. The signs look great!
-
Rackin' up the views and watchers, but still at $40. :-\
-
How many watchers do you have? I figure at least half of the watchers are bidders and the other half are just interested to see what it goes for. Most of the bidding will occur in the last minute if they want it.
-
8 watchers, 77 views, 1 bid. ;)
-
I never ever would have sold that sign for $46. I'm thoroughly pissed. Oh well, you live and learn. Should have started it higher. >:(
-
I see that you had a lot of views on that sign. Maybe the trimmed condition held it back? I have been experimenting with a higher opening bid and free shipping, low opening and fixed shipping, and some other stuff. Free shipping does not seem to drive prices higher. Low opening does not work unless the item is in demand. Not sure what is the hot ticket to do. I am going to be listing more as I have stuff to get rid of. Maybe the key is to just throw enough stuff up there and average it out. Some high, some low, some break even, and some losers. Maybe a reserve on that sign would have been in order. The market is hard to figure out.
-
Thanks for your advice wayward. It definitely is damaged and in rough shape. But I just thought it would bring at least $75. I need to realize that I only spent $15, so it was a good profit. I just need to work on my emotional attachment to these items. Or, only get emotionally attached to the items that I am most passionate about. Now I gotta go look in the antique room for something else to list. I've got to earn money to pay back that textile I bought. I already have my eyes on another one, too. ;)
-
3x your investment (minus the fees) is darn good. A.Pickers operate on less than that. I try to not get emotionally attached to anything I sell. I like to sell, make a profit (the hard part), and then buy something I really want with the profit. That way I think I come out ahead. I think you are doing the same with buying the textile.
I also buy stuff way out of my areas of expertise and hope for some good returns. I do not buy glass. Glass collectors are really picky and I can't figure age out by looking at it. I do watch all the shows and hope to broaden my knowledge there. Smalls are always good to sell because you never notice them missing like you would a chair.
-
Ok, I'm thinking about selling another one of my signs. But it's an australian sign and it might do better if I offer shipping to Australia. How big of a hassle is this? Are there extra charges for customs? I have never sent anything to another country.
-
Depending on the size and weight of the sign the shipping to Oz could be quite high. Re extra charges, over here its the buyer who pays all the import duties over about a value of c $30.
A while back I bought something from a Texas auction, didn't have to pay the local States Taxes, which was possibly only 10%, although I could have that wrong, but ended up paying over $160 in duties and VAT just to get it through our customs. :(
-
Texas sales tax is 8.25%. Wow,, thats way high !! How much is your VAT ??
-
Shipping can be a deal killer which is possibly why your sign did not fetch more. Add shpg to the final price and it hit $60.
-
Hi Mart,
VAT at the time was 17.5% (now it's 20% :( ) and the remainder was import tax of some description. The item was c $850 before all the charges, but still worth it. Although when I was bidding I hadn't factored that into it ... However, the Postage was FREE ;D ;D
You seem to have made a reasonable profit there, Hosman, sell and invest it in something you like a little more ...
-
Just curious but why a vat on an auction item?? I figured that would be retail only !! I don`t think auctions here even add a sales tax. Its just looked at like a private sale. Of course we are in a smaller town !! Large auctions in a metropolitan area might have to add sales tax.
-
Household/farm auctions in Wisconsin where they are disposing of the whole estate, they do not charge sales tax. Off premises at an auction house with consignors and there is sales tax charged. Probably varies state by state.
-
Could be a depending on state laws but come to think of it,, I don`t think I have seen it mentioned at larger auctions. Usually they have all the monetary requirements listed so everyone knows what they are spending.
-
In WA/Seattle you pay State/City tax at my auction house. I also paid it at an estate sale run by a professional company.
-
Just curious but why a vat on an auction item?? I figured that would be retail only !! I don`t think auctions here even add a sales tax. Its just looked at like a private sale. Of course we are in a smaller town !! Large auctions in a metropolitan area might have to add sales tax.
That got me wondering whether I'd got my facts correct, so I fished out the receipt. I lied ::)
I paid c $140 VAT and then another c $20 Parcel Force Clearance Fee. That last sum basically was their charge for taking the VAT money off me and paying it to the Govt. Nice work! The reason why I had to pay VAT on it was because it was a high value item and not exempt, and were it imported into this country and retailed to me then I would still have had to pay VAT via the retailer (the govt needs to get their cut no matter what!). That was for the gold Corletto watch that I posted a while back. I can't complain, it has tripled its price tag since I bought it ;D
Over here all buyers and sellers at Auction pay VAT, but only on the commission paid to the auction house, so the commission will be say 17.5% + (20% of 17.5%)
-
Wow !! Still too rich for my blood. But seems that you came out Ok if it has increased in value.
-
Wow! Learning something new every day!
BUT, have also learned....if it is what you have always wanted and you can afford it....get it! Most likely the chance will not come back around and the mental part of "kicking yourself in the rear for the rest of your life" just isn't worth it! If it goes up in value...well that is an added bonus!