Restoration continues

[jasmine64]

Hi guys,
I'm beginning my restoration after the death of my brother this past week.

I have the racks out of both machines and will remove all the evaporators and condensors. Scrub and fix all the rust.

My question is should I replace the vending selinoid or not on the 56? Works ok now but would like to have it working for a long time.

[jasmine64]

How should I prevent more rust after cleanup? Spray paint, oily rust preventer by Rustoleum or what?

[johnieG]

Quote (jasmine64 @ Mar. 07 2005,7:35)

Hi guys, I'm beginning my restoration after the death of my brother this past week. I have the racks out of both machines and will remove all the evaporators and condensors. Scrub and fix all the rust. My question is should I replace the vending selinoid or not on the 56? Works ok now but would like to have it working for a long time.

Your's looks squeaky clean to me, & it's the sort of a part that either works or not,  I have machines from the ''40's with their original solenoids, thousands of cycles & cases soda's later, they just keep humming along, so unless you short them out ,
(so that they'd be "on" all the time), they take a real beating) if you have a brand-new one, you may by all means put it in, & keep the old one as a spare ( for a full-blown restoration) if you're just "refurbishing" the machine ( replacing worn parts, polish, wax, cleaning, etc.) I wouldn't bother... :'>

"if it's not broke, don't fix it"   :'>

jasmine64, so sorry to hear about your brother. You are in our thoughts here.

I agree with what johnieG said. But if you do need a solenoid, I have bought new ones like that from Fun-Tronics.

[jasmine64]

Thanks.

I'm going to wait and see how it all works after it is put back together.
Then if I have to call Steve I will.

What should I use on the rust in the bottom of the cabinet?

[loman4ec]

If you just need a touch up use silver hammer tone rustoleum. It is almost the same color as the liner. You will never be able to tell you used it.

[BrianB]

Man, I think I'm going to have to try the Hammertone from Rustoleum on my next restoration. Sounds like a good product and I know my local lowes has it by the quart and by the spray can.

[jasmine64]

I'm planning on doing this 56 in Coke red and replace the decals and sign. This machine is in pretty good shape. Has a dent in the upper right on top of the machine.

I do have a can of Hammer tone paint, think I'll try it. I'll take some before and after pics.

How do i remove the decal stickers from the side of the machine? They are flaking off in places and feel like vinyl.

[BrianB]

Here are some instructions for removing adhesive backed decals:
1.Adhesive backed decals can sometimes be tough to remove.
2.Heat the decal up slowly using a hot towel.
3.Spray all the edges of the decal with Windex.
4.After a few minutes try to get under the surface of the decal using a razor blade, credit card, or something else that is thin. Note: Be careful not to scratch the surface of your machine. The goal is to lift the decal edges up.

5.Grab hold of the decal edges and slowly pull outwards. Note: You may have to continue to add heat to the decal to loosen it. A spray bottle or the towel should work.

6.When the decal is removed clean the area with Windex.

Tip:For tough decals try using a hair blow dryer on low heat. Be careful not to make the surface to hot. You may have to experiment a little bit but eventually you should be able to remove the old decal.

[Eric]

Try Bestine it's a solvent thinner for rubber cement but it'll disolve
through old tape/sticky residue. Get it at a Art supply store. It should
take off the stinky stuff and the decal and won't hurt the paint.
It flamable so keep it away from the heat gun....... Heat it to soften
the decal then use it.

Eric

[Eric]

Also check under the topics GENERAL by VMC117BMB
he found someone to make a bottom for his machine.
I'd look that guy up if the bottom of the cabinet is too bad.

Eric

[jasmine64]

Thanks for the tips I'll get right on the decal removal tomorrow weather permitting.

[jasmine64]

OK,
I finally got the cooling system out. How should I clean it?

I picked up a muscle rack storage unit for 30 bucks at Lowes and it adjusted to the perfect size to hold the cooling parts.

Has 4 shelves so i broke them into 2 units one for the 63 and one for the 56.

I should be able to paint the machines sometime late this month.

[Eric]

Great idea...I'm going to Lowes tonight!

Thanks!
Eric

[MoonDawg]

The plate under the compressor will slide out after the bolts are removed from the compressor, fanmotor and condenser.
     Sanding and painting parts sepatate from the baseplate is not really a lot of work, and your finished product looks so much more professional.  Painting baseplate same color as machine looks good too.

[BryanH]

Jasmine - like the rack idea... looks like it works better than my milk carton .  As for cleaning the system.  Search the forums on cleaning there are TONS of tidbits and recommendations.  Basically you just pick your favorite degreaser (Like Simple Green Automotive, scrub, hose-off and repeat)

I've been cutting and pasting the ones I found to be particularly useful into a word doc.... here's some of it...  The full text is somewhere on these boards and the wisdom / experience belongs to others (not me).

Quote

Cleaning the machine The best thing to do is to remove the refrigeration system & place it on a work table. It may take two people to pull it out & hold the upper/lower sections. Place on a table then you can inspect the whole opertion while it is running. I would then remove & replace the two fan motors, install a new T-stat & wiring harness. While the motors are out you should take the whole remaining sections outside, spray the coils with a heavy coating with a good cleaner, allow to soak for 20-30 minutes. Then pull out the garden hose & back spray (opposite of the air flow direction) with water.  A good cleaning like this along with new fan motors & T-stat will solve most all refrigeration problems. These sealed systems do no go bad unless they have been neglected. When testing the system while it is on the table you should just look for frost on the edges of the upper coil. The system will not have the proper airflow to cool but you can test all parts of the system prior to reinstallation. If the refrigeration does not frost the upper coil you will need to get the system serviced by a local company or your home ac man doing some side work. Now as far as cleaning the lower cabinet I used some kind of cleaner I bought at Lowes. I sprayed, allowed the cleaner to sit, then started to scrub with a sponge & finally I sprayed with the garden hose. Once it was clean & dry I sprayed the inside of the lower cabinet with a white rust preventative paint. I have not plans of repainting the outside of the machine with spray paint & some people will think I may have detracted from the machine for spray painting the inside of the cabinet. For my personal beer machine I think it looks great. I would never try to spray paint the outside of a machine that I had for sale. I am getting ready to sand & repaint my Vendo56. There is another thread on the 56. So there is no secret cleaner to make it look like that but a combination of cleaning & a white paint. Cleaning / Painting the Compressor / Evaporator (from Brian Beeson) For the really corroded/heavy verdigris, I start with Steel Wool. I use 4 different gauges working my way down to 00 and then I move to Neverdull.  The big deal with copper and brass is you have to remember that it's very soft as metals go. When it comes to copper refrigeration lines, brass valve bodies and others in this category to much polishing over a long period will lead to material degradation, cut and dry. It all comes back to basic metallurgy. All of the polishing products have some sort of abrasive. It may be darn near microscopic but it is still there. There are however products that use citric acid as a main ingredient and it works well but is easier to use when the part to be polished can be dipped in the solution for lengthy periods (overnight). On that note, In the Navy, we used to take a gallon bucket of hot water and a package of "Bug Juice" (similar to Kool Aid) and put the parts (Brass deck drains and fire station nozzles primarily) into the bucket overnight to remove any serious corrosion/verdigris. You'd come back in the morning and use the equivalent to a Scotchbrite pad on em' and.....BAM!! Bright as new! And then we had our old stand-by's Brasso and Neverdull. But they became more and more difficult to keep due to Hazmat rules that exist. After I finish the polishing, I use a clear coat from Eastwood called "Diamond Clear" specifically designed for bare metal to keep it shining. For the evaporator I use a metallic silver paint and for the compressor I use a high heat (400 F) engine paint. I make sure that all of the rust/dirt/grease is gone by first blowing both coils out and then using a product I got from a local HVAC store called "Coil Blast" to get the fins/coils clean. If there is more than just light surface rust present, I remove all scale/flaking rust with a wire brush made just for compressor coils and then I dip the entire coil in an acid solution I got from the same HVAC place. That seems to take care of the rust. In addition, I make sure all of my coats of paint are VERY light. I've been told by a few select HVAC guys that what I am doing is wrong: That I shouldn’t paint anything. Well, I've had zero problems. It hasn't affected heat transfer in any way shape or form. I know a few other guys that use the same process as I do and they have zero problems too. I guess if worse came to worse, Eric, from Global Compressors would be the guy to ask. He does restorations on decks and would most definitely know!

[jasmine64]

Cleaned the inside.

hartlenb,
Thanks for the great info.

[jasmine64]

Looks like I'll have some reading to do. Good info.

The decals peeled right off. Weather is perfect for the cleaning.

low to mid 60's, 70+ out of the shade.

I'll need a new shopvac after all this.

[jasmine64]

One great thing about the shelves there are no nuts and bolts!
Just use a rubber mallet to lock the pegs into the sloted holes.

Use it later for storage.

[jasmine64]

I have cleaned, removed rust from the inside of both
machines and painted the bottom appliance white
(advice by steve at funtronics). Used Hammertone
only in the bottom of the cooler.

Removed, cleaned and painted the vending mech eyelet.
Cleaned the cooling system but have not painted the base yet.

I have not painted the exterior, so what is it worth now as is,
if I decide to sell it?

[jasmine64]

Vendo 63.

[jasmine64]

What can I use to replace the "foam" behind the wires at the door?
Still some rust there, but that will clean up easy.

Quote (jasmine64 @ Mar. 13 2005,1:41)

...painted the bottom appliance white (advice by steve at funtronics). Used Hammertone only in the bottom of the cooler.

What was Steve's reasoning?

[jasmine64]

I was looking to buy the white paint he had to cover up the area I cleaned and he said any appliance white would do the same thing.

[johnieG]

Quote (jasmine64 @ Mar. 13 2005,3:00)

What can I use to replace the "foam" behind the wires at the door? Still some rust there, but that will clean up easy.

You can also use grey caulking putty to fill the void between & behind the refrigeration lines (before you replace the line-cover) if you've removed the tank (liner) from the cabinet (chassis) you should make sure that the seams & corners are also caulked up good to prevent air from sneaking in, this includes the seams & corners of the bottom tray ( the sheet metal cover that separates the compressor's (hot side) area from the inner liner area ( cold-side) of the chassis, caulk only on the inside of the chassis, (think of it as the "cold" side) this will prevent hot humid air from contacting the cold liner & causing consensation & rust out...it's available at any heating & cooling supply house, do not use plumber's putty ( for sink drains) it will fall out, you can also use a good outdoor rated silicone caulk in a tube....helpful hint. :'>

[jasmine64]

Great hints...
Wish I'd known that before I went to Lowe's a few hours ago.

[Kevin C]

Hello

Nice topic & it is good see some of my posts reprinted here.

One item that I use in the area where the freon line sets pass from the upper to the cabinets is to use ac line set insulation. You  can cut it & place it on both sides of the lines & then compress it with the cover plate to get the air tight fit.

Kevin

[Eric]

Hey Kevin...
I'm not sure where you're talking about... I just spent Saturday taking apart my 81..
pretty solid but when I put it back together I want it to be the last time. Anyway
I'm wanting to know what to put under the liner to help it keep dry and prevent rust to
both it and the “shelf” of the machine body... Didn't look like there was much in between I was thinking of using some of that pink insulation foam board.
Now this is an older machine so it may be made different that the one being restored here.
The only lines I see go under a little chrome/steel shield that has two screws that protect
them and run up to the fan under the bottle shelving.

Anyways sorry to get off the subject of this restoration.... I'll start my own topic once I
figure out what I'm doing (or doing wrong).
Your machine is looking good so far!

[jasmine64]

I noticed that my Vendorlator 56 has putty where the Vendo 63 has foam around the lines and wires between the cabinets.

Wonder what that's all about. Anyway the foam stuff just crumbled to dust. Plus the foam had lots more rust behind it.

[Kevin C]

Hello

I you want to know what I am talking about go out to your heat pump or AC condensing unit & look at the line sets. The larger of the two lines will be covered with insulation called Rubatex. Very soft & it will mold around the linesets. You may be able to buy at Lowes or H D but for sure you can get it through your local AC supply store. Just remember to place a section back against the case & then a section on the outside before the cover goes on.  

I have the same situation with my V110 where the lines sets pass behind a section of trim with the cover. I have not started on that machine so let me look at it & get back.

Kevin

[jasmine64]

Thanks Kevin,
I have a highschool friend who has an AC business
so I'm pretty sure he would know what I need.

[MoonDawg]

Quote (Eric @ Mar. 14 2005,10:47)

Hey Kevin... I'm not sure where you're talking about... I just spent Saturday taking apart my 81.. pretty solid but when I put it back together I want it to be the last time. Anyway I'm wanting to know what to put under the liner to help it keep dry and prevent rust to both it and the “shelf” of the machine body... Didn't look like there was much in between I was thinking of using some of that pink insulation foam board. Now this is an older machine so it may be made different that the one being restored here. The only lines I see go under a little chrome/steel shield that has two screws that protect them and run up to the fan under the bottle shelving. Anyways sorry to get off the subject of this restoration.... I'll start my own topic once I figure out what I'm doing (or doing wrong). Your machine is looking good so far!

Kevin, choice of insulation will not prevent rust. Make sure the inner liner does not allow water to enter the cabinet.  Special attention to fitting drain pipe

[Eric]

Glen... I got a ton of questions for you on this 81 restoration
I'll email you tonight also FINALLY have the DVDs burned and it wil be on its way!

Thanks
Eric