[AT] restoring tractor lights

[Robert Brooks]

Cecil;

You can send the reflectors out and have them stripped and rechromed or you 
can clean them up real good, and get a can of chrome paint and spray them 
chrome.

The right way will cost more than that the wrong way but the results will 
not be too different.

I've done both versions on old cars, my budget makes me lean towards the 
spray painted version.

With the bulbs in and the lenses on it's tough to see a major difference 
unless you hold the 2 versions side by side.

I have also seen some done with chrome metal tape, to me they looked tacky, 
but it may have been the execution rather than the materials.

Didn't you have a couple of extra lights you could practice on.

If you go for the spray can routine I would suggest that you don't do it in 
the living room.  Joan seemed to get a little miffed when I sprayed some 
Krylon Paint in the basement on Saturday, I think she would have been more 
than miffed if I did it upstairs.....

Bob



At 10:08 AM 2/18/04 -0500, charlie hill wrote:
>Cecil, It wouldn't be exactly the same but I wonder if you could strip the
>metal inside the light housing and then tin it with solder?
>
>Charlie
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Cecil E Monson" <cmonson at hvc.rr.com>
>To: <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>; <antique-tractor at atis.net>
>Sent: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 9:27 AM
>Subject: [AT] restoring tractor lights
>
>
> > I was reading an article yesterday in one of the older issues of
> > the Belt Pulley magazine. The author wrote a pretty nice article about
> > restoring antique tractor lights. He went into detail for taking them
> > apart including drilling out the rivets and so on. Where the article left
> > off was when it came to two things. One, a lot of old lights I have are
> > losing the silver lining on the inside of the reflectors. I have a feeling
> > this silver lining could be restored by using a proper technique and
> > wondered if anyone on the List has ever done it successfully?  I realize
> > that some lights can simply be outfitted with 6 volt sealed beam lights
> > but that would not work for the rear lights with the combination red and
> > white light. I also realize that a lot of guys restoring antique tractors
> > simply do not use the lights or worry if they work or not. I happen to
> > like to have mine working.  I would just put new sealed beam lights on
> > the tractors but most of them look quite out of place. I'm not going to
> > spend $55 a light to get those that look right either.  grins.
> >
> > The other question comes because the author also skimmed right
> > over the part where it comes to installing the lens and a new gasket.
> > I don't think those cork or rubber gaskets are available any more and
> > wondered what to do about this.
> >
> > Any comments or help would be appreciated.  Thank you.
> >
> > Cecil
> > --
> > The nicest thing about telling the truth is you never have to wonder
> > what you said.
> >
> > Cecil E Monson
> > Lucille Hand-Monson
> > Mountainville, New York   Just a little east of the North Pole
> >
> > Allis Chalmers tractors and equipment
> >
> > Free advice
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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> > http://www.antique-tractor.com/mailman/listinfo/at
> >
>
>
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