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Not another dial ageing experiment


aeromatic

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I thought i would purchase a few cheap dials and see if i could make them look better unlike my last experiment which involved 200c oven abuse this time i just used 2 acylic laquers the first was teak colour and then clear coat all sprayed at a distance away to achieve a textured semi-matt look here is the dial as purchased and then photos of the dial through various spray stages The yellow turned orange !

post-27094-0-93082600-1350406600_thumb.j why do they do these yellow markers ? notice the scrape at the 1 oclock marker

post-27094-0-30028400-1350406949_thumb.j all i could do with the damage was scrape it with a tooth pick !

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The lume markers actualy look good but I have never seen a gilt dial where the gilt print is the same as the markers. If you could make a mask that leaves only the markers visible spray the teak and then spray the clear all over I think it would look far better

Right now it is just too even

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The lume markers actualy look good but I have never seen a gilt dial where the gilt print is the same as the markers. If you could make a mask that leaves only the markers visible spray the teak and then spray the clear all over I think it would look far better

Right now it is just too even

I thought about it too do you mean to leave the writing yellow if the printing was white it would be better i dont intend to use this dial in anything the experiment was to remove the yellow colour

the problem is that the colour of the dial is affected by the laquer so masking would involve a template with the markers exposed

Edited by aeromatic
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i might try rubbing the writing with t-cut to lighten it or lighten or darken the lume markers , the lume markers would be the easier but i like the colour of the markers

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what i mean is that you should use a tremplate

the lume darkens becase of the tritium but the printing shoiuld remain gilt

Like this photo wish i had a steady hand and relume it i will try and use a template mabe greyish black

post-27094-0-43796100-1350421665_thumb.j

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I've tried to lume using a template, didn't work for me. I tried taping off the coronet, toughest for me, using that blue painter's tape. But that didn't work either. The tape pulls the new lume up with it.

So, I do it free hand, and practice, practice, practice. First i remove all the old lume. On gilt dials I use a toothpick and sandpaper to a 'chiseled' point and gently try to 'pop' the lume off.

Luming, the round markers are easiest. I take a round toothpick and flatten the point to just about the size of the marker inside the gilt. I touch the flattened point in the lume and just touch the marker as centered as I can. Sometimes I need to do it twice to get enough in there, but after a little practice one dip and one dap and it's done nicely.

The straight markers are more difficult, and the coronet is most difficult.

I have tried many things, including an oiler, needles, toothpicks, etc, all not very good. Then I got from an artist supply store a nib pen and point. The pen shape gives me more control, maybe because it feels more comfortable. I dip the pen point a little heavier than for the round markers, and touch at the top of the marker, and draw a straight line. On the coronet I outline the triangle the same way, then fill in the center.

Many here do it much better than I do, but I can mix the color I want, and not have to mail and wait.

From my earliest attempts to the latest:

65422.jpg

White4.jpg

]Rolex6542BlackDial.jpg

Mydialpic.jpg

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JoeyB thanks they look very authentic i think you are correct i am going to use a spray paint grey (silvery colour that is used for antique metal garden furiture it gives an old look as i cant do much about the coronet and writing but as you said i will try and apply it by hand the good thing is that with the many coats of laquer and mistakes should be able to wipe of and redo as loog as there is no reaction !

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I use an acrylic water-based 'glo-paint' from an artists store, about $5. I then use a 99¢ kid's paint set, those dried ones in the tray you add water to, and take some of the color to tint the glo-paint. Like you said, if you goof up, a wet tissue wipes it right off and you get a do-over!

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Like this photo wish i had a steady hand and relume it i will try and use a template mabe greyish black

post-27094-0-43796100-1350421665_thumb.j GEN TUDOR ROSE DIAL

Well my first attempt and (age luming) a dial it looks like scambled eggs ! 20$ dial !

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The dial looks a lot better in a case im not sure if i will use the dial i was going to bin it but i do have a spare cartel 6538 case and a set of aged hands i will use the same finish to the merc hands as the markers. i need to practice keeping the lume inside the rings the dial has completely changed from a flat yellow printed finish

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Funny thing is the dial looks brown in the flesh the teak laquer has turned the dial into a tropic but strangely it does not pick it up in the photos

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