What is best way to refinish dash knobs?

[BobB]

I've managed to collect a complete set of knobs including the four heater/defrost/air/temp.

Most have bare metal fronts - some chrome, some brass.

I want to paint them all black with white lettering like the couple of original finished ones in my set. Does anybody have suggestions for how to get the lettering sharp/crisp? I can easily see myself re-doing this job several times before I get it right unless I get some helpful hints first.

thanks in advance for your advice/suggestions. If you've found ways that don't work we'll, that's good info, too.

- Bob

[MBF]

In my 1 ton, I left the brass center showing for awhile because I kinda liked that look.   I have taken them apart and cleaned and painted the centers black.  After allowing a couple days or so to dry, I lightly dusted them with white rattle can and carefully wiped off the white paint off the black background and left it in the embossed lettering.  It might be just as easy to leave them together and mask them carefully, paint the centers, and then using a brush with a couple of bristles paint the letters.   I'm sure someone else has done them and can offer other suggstions.  Mike

[Jeff Balazs]

I mounted all mine on my lathe and cleaned the surfaces up really well. Then I used a draftsmans hole template as a spray shield to spray the face black. Once this has had a chance to cure you can apply the white with a brush. Go ahead and fill the letters. Then after it has had a few hours to start hardening remount it to the lathe or a drill motor and while it is spun up clean the excess paint off with some 1500 or 2000 grit paper and very light pressure. Works really well.

 

Jeff

[HanksB3B]

That sounds like a good simple way to do it ! I'm not sure about this but I think the 48-50 series were white on black, but the 51-53  series were just left as brass. Mine were multi-tone brass some looked bronze now they are all chrome.  Seemed like the fastest way for me to get them done at the time knowing I could always spray them black then white and wet sand and polish the black face. 

 

Hank 

[ggdad1951]

All of the PH knobs are white on black

[John-T-53]

I hand brushed por-15 black on the knobs after cleaning them good and sanding with 400 grit. Then a day later I brushed in Rust-Oleum "antique white" in the letters, let that dry slightly, and went back with 3M adhesive cleaner on a blue shop towel and wiped off the excess. They came out sharp!

 

I have two reasons I used the por-15:

 

1. It is not affected by solvents after it's dried like most rattle can paints.

2. It brushes on easily and levels out nice.

2. It's very durable and won't wear off with the constant use the knobs get.

 

It has been two years now with daily use, and they still look good.

[JBNeal]

haven't tackled the knobs just yet, but have refurbished some Farmall stamped aluminum emblems with similar recessed lettering details and had gotten some advice from a fellow Red Power enthusiast.  Painting the background, then waiting a few days to letter by paintbrush works depending on a steady hand, a good brush & paint, and a good wipe cloth that is slightly moistened with a lacquer thinner (preferably a cheaper, less aggressive brand from the chain stores & not the body shops) and won't track any lint.  An alternative to lettering by brush is to mask over with a quality tape and use a sharp knife to stencil in place, but that can be tricky as tape has a tendency to curl up when ya least want it to, especially at sharp points like the letter K.  Another alternative that I've only read about is to paint the letters first, wet sand the excess paint, then fill the recessed lettering with petroleum jelly or grease, cleaning off the excess with lacquer thinner, then painting the rest.  That one sounds kinda tricky, especially on these control knobs, and might be prone to having paint too thin at the transition from the black to the white.

 

For best results, as with most paint jobs, applying multiple thin coats results in a robust appearance

[P15-D24]

I hand brushed por-15 black on the knobs after cleaning them good and sanding with 400 grit. Then a day later I brushed in Rust-Oleum "antique white" in the letters, let that dry slightly, and went back with 3M adhesive cleaner on a blue shop towel and wiped off the excess. They came out sharp!

 

I have two reasons I used the por-15:

 

1. It is not affected by solvents after it's dried like most rattle can paints.

2. It brushes on easily and levels out nice.

2. It's very durable and won't wear off with the constant use the knobs get.

 

It has been two years now with daily use, and they still look good.

 

 

Close up pic please!

[P15-D24]

I'm still struggling with this issue. Seem like painting the letters first then masking with a product like modeling clay would be viable. Any one come up with a way to get a clean edge where the chrome overlaps? 

[Young Ed]

I'm still struggling with this issue. Seem like painting the letters first then masking with a product like modeling clay would be viable. Any one come up with a way to get a clean edge where the chrome overlaps? 

How would you remove it all?

[BobB]

In my 1 ton, I left the brass center showing for awhile because I kinda liked that look.   I have taken them apart and cleaned and painted the centers black.  After allowing a couple days or so to dry, I lightly dusted them with white rattle can and carefully wiped off the white paint off the black background and left it in the embossed lettering.  It might be just as easy to leave them together and mask them carefully, paint the centers, and then using a brush with a couple of bristles paint the letters.   I'm sure someone else has done them and can offer other suggstions.  Mike

q

Mike

I've considered trying to mask the center by taping over the whole thing and cutting the circle with a sharp exacto.

You mention taking them "apart" which sounds like the cleanest way to get crisp definition. How do you take them apart? I've tried pushing the center out by inserting a small Allen wrench through the threaded section. It didn't seem to want to come apart and I really don't want to damage one since they're so hard (and expensive) to get. How'd you go about getting them apart? thx Bob

[HanksB3B]

1. Mask off the metal around the knob face (you want the brass stamped insert to be able to rotate) (the narrower the

    tape the tighter the achievable radius will be) 

2. Spray Paint face with Rustoleum Black Appliance Epoxy

3. Lightly Sand with a high number of 3m wet/dry (like sand the epoxy like primer is used to fill the valleys and smooth

    out the plateaus and

    peaks)

4. Apply 2nd Coat Rustoleum Black Appliance Epoxy (thinking two should do it) (maybe bake in mommy's oven when

    she's away) (not too hot maybe 200 deg.?) 

 

Wait a day...

5. Spray entire face with a coat of White Appliance Epoxy (light enough to fill the letters 3/4 full)

    With wet/dry then with white compound buff and polish to remove all but the recessed white paint.

 

I'd try that first,  then if it didn't work I'd get out the little brush,

 

On my wish List,

 

Hank 

 

P.S. + 1 on the ^ Xacto Knife ^ (good idea for step 1)

Edited January 4, 2014 by HanksB3B

[P15-D24]

How would you remove it all?

I'm thinking using a squeegee to press the clay into the lettering indents, paint the black then remove the clay with toothpick and rag. 

[P15-D24]

You mention taking them "apart" which sounds like the cleanest way to get crisp definition. How do you take them apart? I've tried pushing the center out by inserting a small Allen wrench through the threaded section. It didn't seem to want to come apart and I really don't want to damage one since they're so hard (and expensive) to get. How'd you go about getting them apart? thx Bob

Seems like the chrome housing is probably crimped on the brass center piece after they were painted at the factory. Wondering if their is any way to get the bars center out and be able to recrimp the housing. 

[Jeff Balazs]

I think a lot depends on the condition of the knobs you have to work with. Mine range from as new to fairly worn. The definition around the letters on the worn ones won't lend itself to holding much detail. I got decent results with a couple of light coats of black spray paint and filling the letters with white then cleaning and buffing.

They came out fine ....... not as new maybe..... but then the truck is 60 years old and should show some wear. No big surprise here but the choke knob has the most wear. Just what I would expect to see.

 

You don't need to mask these off to spray......just find a thin metal hole template with a 3/4" diameter hole and use it as a spray shield. Works very well.

I would not attempt to try and take one of these apart........but I have drilled one out and epoxied in a thread insert for one switch which has a different thread pattern than stock. No problem doing this.

 

Jeff

[Scruffy49]

Paint the background with appliance epoxy. Use a toothpick to dab model paint into the letters. Did the hubcap lines red the same way. Slow but works fine.

 

I do plan to replace the cables, knobs and switches with aftermarket, mine are a hodge podge mess as is. Anyone succesfully integrate dash and headlights in one switch like a more modern version would have?

Edited January 6, 2014 by Scruffy49

[John-T-53]

Close up pic please!

 

As requested...

[John-T-53]

Another one for ya...