Interesting approach - unfortunately, we're just entering fall here (PA, USA) and all the sunny is behind us for a while. If I don't do something else over the winter, I may try this come spring.
Also, a previous message mentioned automotive vinyl and plastic paints. The brand on that paint was "SEM Color Coat", and the manufacturer's web site is https://www.semproducts.com/product/color-coattm-aerosols That's the part of the line that's in aerosol cans, they also make quarts and gallons for HVLP spraying. On Tue, Oct 13, 2020 at 7:33 PM Electronics Luckydip <m...@electronicsluckydip.com> wrote: > > Howdy. An alternative that may be worth trying before any sprays or chemicals > is what I know as "airbriting" or "sunbrighting", which is literally just > leaving the plastic out to sunbake for an extended period. > > I do not have any experience with "sunbrighting" a M100 but in general I have > had very good success in restoring the color of all but the most stubborn > yellowed plastics by just baking the plastic in the sun for several days. For > example, this last month it took me ~8 sunny cloudless days to complete the > de-yellowing of a moderately-heavily yellowed compaq keyboard (including > keycaps), though I could see results after the first day or two. In a few > projects where "sunbrighting" has not completed the job for me it has at > least reduced the yellowing substantially. I have the benefit of the Aussie > Sun but it's not that much different to other parts of the world. > > The technique was recently covered on the Retro Recipes youtube channel at > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P1OVj0IcqY > > In that video there is also some mention of using LED lights to help prevent > the yellowing from returning, which I believe may apply to both retrobriting > and sunbrighting techniques. Incidentally, the room in which I keep my gear > does happen to have LED lights and I have not seen the yellowing return in > any of my items - though I have only been dealing with this for a short while. > > I've recently acquired an NEC 8201A and have been lurking here accumulating > info that will be of help when I get around to studying it, but thought I > should mention the possibility of "airbrighting" in case it is of use to you > or anyone in the same situation. > > Regards, > Ben > > > On Tue, Oct 13, 2020 at 10:13 PM Michael Kohne <mhko...@kohne.org> wrote: >> >> I've got an M100 with a severely yellowed upper shell, and I'm >> wondering what remediation possibilities I have. >> >> I've heard of retrobrite, but I've also heard that it can make >> plastics more brittle. For something that's a portable computer, >> brittle (even if only slightly more than original) sounds like a bad >> idea. >> >> Had anyone ever tried painting one of these shells? Are there paints >> that would hold up to actual use? It'd be like painting the case on a >> keyboard, and I'd worry that it was going to chip or rub off very >> quickly. >> >> I poked around the mechanical keyboard community and found references >> to using Krylon's Fusion paints, anyone have any experience with them? >> >> Also, does anyone know what kind of plastic the M100 shell is? I'd >> like to find some similar plastics to experiment with before I risk an >> M100 shell. >> >> -- >> Michael Kohne >> mhko...@kohne.org >> >> Anything real you do that's important will be scary. Having kids. >> Getting married. Donating a kidney. Writing a book. Do it anyway. - >> Neil Gaiman -- Michael Kohne mhko...@kohne.org Anything real you do that's important will be scary. Having kids. Getting married. Donating a kidney. Writing a book. Do it anyway. - Neil Gaiman
