Painting aluminium: zinc chromate primer vs self etching primer

[Scott Bentley]

Not the greatest pics, but you can see the results of the above method.

[Scott Bentley]

I didn't actually strip the old paint from mine. I did a light scuffing with Scotchbrite pads, wiped down with Acetone, and then sprayed with Gillespie 24087 Semi-Gloss OD. I suppose one could also go with 383 CARC Green, but 90% of the radios I used were still in Semi-Gloss OD by the time the TCCCS started arriving. While I'm happy with the end product, I feel like I should drag them through gravel or something as no radio I ever handled from that era looked this fresh

For sunk in letters there are a couple options. You can spong the paint over the letters, let the paint tack up for a few minutes, and then wipe away the excess with an acetone soaked cloth. Looking at NOS Comms bits, this looks like how it was done at the factory as I could actually see faint smudges from the excess paint being wiped away. Alternatively, you could get a fine point white paint pen from Michaels or similar and go that route.

I'd definitely be curious to see how my installation is working. Everything powers up and receives fine (I used to tune in Range Control when I was in Gagetown), but I have no idea if everything transmits. Aside from confirming that the 524A fan spools up when keying the mic, I've attempted to communicate with anyone.

[Scott Bentley]

The Gillespie paint isn't terribly expensive, but the process of getting it is. I think my rattle cans came from Rapco. I had it shipped to the Ogdensburg NY UPS Store as the UPS fees to have it delivered in Canada were significant enough to justify the 2hr round trip to the border. I used it for all my ancillary equipment like the radios, pioneer tools, etc.

I have a few cans left, but I still need to paint the underside of my hood to match the rest of my engine compartment. If you're willing to wait a little bit, I may be able to help you out. I need to find the case of cans and count how many I have left.