Looking for best way to clean and polish Bakelite.

[kx250rider]

Originally Posted by Phil Nelson

Another caution: It's also possible to over-polish (or over-sand) the finish so that it can never be retrieved.

The shiny outer layer of Bakelite is quite thin. If you get carried away with sandpaper or other abrasives, you may grind down into the pulpy underlayer which no process or substance will polish.

I have a couple of Bakelite radios whose finish is so worn that they are unpolishable. The only remedy at that stage is to paint the cabinet.

If your finish is almost perfect, perhaps a coat of high-quality wax (like carnauba) would make it shiny enough for your taste. I'm not a big advocate of waxing Bakelite -- these cabinets were not waxed at the factory -- but some people do it all the time. And it's reversible, unlike the results of over-polishing.

Phil Nelson
Phil's Old Radios
http://antiqueradio.org/index.html

I agree about not doing the polish or sanding when the finish is in basically good shape... But if the thin glossy finish is already shot, then the sanding & polishing technique has worked great for me without having to paint. However I will add that others have done the sanding technique but NOT polished, then sprayed a thin coat of clear gloss varathane. That brings a deep high gloss, but slight texture that doesn't look totally original.

Charles