ZX80 treatment with RetrObright

[sirmorris]

[zx81jens]

Paul wrote:

I wonder what kind of bar in the UK will have H2O2.

I wonder what kind of bar in the UK will have H2O.

[MaFli]

Ok guys, update..! This is what my ZX80 looked like when I got it. Yellowed and scuffed and probably used as an ashtray as there were burn marks all over the place.

ZXyellow.jpg

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After proper cleaning with soap and alcohol, I sanded down most of the burn marks. I managed to get my hands on 35% hydrogen peroxide from my local drug store. I did dilute it down to roughly 20%. I used a recipe from the official RetrObright website with Xanthan gum, Vanish oxi action and glycerine. Gives quite a creamy substance. Brushed it on to the enclosure and wrapped it up in cling wrap. Here it is bubbling away...

ZXretrobright.JPG

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Took it out after one hour because I wanted to check if the solution was not too strong and might damage the ZX80 logo. And here's what it looks like! Almost completely white already! Will give it another treatment tomorrow. There are still a few tiny spots here and there. And I will fix the "N" of the Sinclair logo. That was also damaged when I got it. But so far succes! I'll show you the end result tomorrow.

ZXwhite.jpg

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[MaFli]

A chemist and her friend walked into a bar. The waiter appeared and asked what they would like to drink. The chemist, being funny, said "I'll have a glass of H2O please". Her friend, laughing along, said "And I'll have a glass of H2O too!" He died.

LOL!
I ordered 12% hydrogen peroxide online, but managed to find the 35% variant at my local bar. So, thanks for the tip!

[Moggy]

Looking good!

The "burn" marks are not actually burn marks as such but are usually the result of leads such as the cassette ear/mic lead or the power pack lead being draped across the case, which for some reason causes a reaction with the case plastic over time especially the issue one styrene vac-formed cases such as yours.


Somewhere on the forum I'm almost sure someone posted transfer graphics for the 80's case, I'll seek it out and post a link.

EDIT.

here third post down..
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=752&p=19898&hilit=z ... ers#p19898

[1024MAK]

PVC "burning" - more hot melt down info here

Mark

[Tezz]

Great result! a big improvement

[MaFli]

Looking good!

The "burn" marks are not actually burn marks as such but are usually the result of leads such as the cassette ear/mic lead or the power pack lead being draped across the case, which for some reason causes a reaction with the case plastic over time especially the issue one styrene vac-formed cases such as yours.
Somewhere on the forum I'm almost sure someone posted transfer graphics for the 80's case, I'll seek it out and post a link.
EDIT.
here third post down..
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=752&p=19898&hilit=z ... ers#p19898

Wow, didn't know that! Good to know NOT to store the ZX80 with cables on top. Thanks for the link btw. But I think I will try to fix it with some paint for now...

PVC "burning" - more hot melt down info here
Mark

Now looking back at some of the pictures I took before the restoration, I can see that some of the deeper marks are curved. So that could indicate that a rolled up cable has been laying on top for a looooong time. It is surprising to see how deep these nicks can get over time.

Great result! a big improvement

It absolutely is! Are you the same person as Tezza mentioned on the official http://www.retr0bright.com/make.html website? Just noticed that while I was making batch two of the stuff.

Anyway, back to the chemical lab Forgot to put the rivets in the Retr0bright yesterday...

[1024MAK]

There is another member here known as Tezza, his name is Terry.

Mark

[Tezz]

Are you the same person as Tezza mentioned on the official http://www.retr0bright.com/make.html website? Just noticed that while I was making batch two of the stuff.

No that's not me but I'm sure that I have spoken with him and Merlin many years ago in another forum.

I did some retr0brighting actually this afternoon on some Spectrum+ keycaps. Rather than the plastic which in this case of course is black, the white print had yellowed quite considerably. It was pretty overcast today but I thought there would be enough UV and after a couple of hours the print looks nice and white again. The peroxide has a bleaching effect so if they were yellow due to pollutants or a reaction to the oil in the skin left over time rather than UV exposure I guessed it would help either way. Thorough cleaning beforehand had made no difference. There was no tobacco smell although the system was pretty dirty overall. I'll post a before and after photo when I put it back together