Re: Restoring a NST & Other Qs

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Christopher Boden by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>" <chrisboden-at-hotmail-dot-com>

>Original poster: "by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-uswest-dot-net>" 
><MaverickIce00-at-aol-dot-com>
>
>Hi Terry, List,
>
>Today I exchanged my old NST (6/30) because it had a 277 volt primary 
>(which
>I didn't notice at the time I bought it) for an "antique" 7.5/30 NST, but
>this "new" NST of mine has a ton of surface rust, which is constantly 
>flaking
>off and looks really nasty. But basically, i'm wondering how I can go about
>removing all this rust and making it look nice and pretty (i'm a
>perfectionist, I can't help it...). I've been thinking, after checking out
>Chris Boden's work with his pig, that I can sand it down to the bare metal
>with some sandpaper or maybe emery cloth, then using my shop teacher's
>airbrush (used for model aircraft, cars, boats, etc.) to coat it with a
>couple layers of flat black acrylic enamel paint. I have some 100 and 220
>grit sandpaper at hand already, would the 100 grit work well with a little
>Makita electric sander?
>


Ok, I'm assumeing the following....
1. The NST is potted, and the case is in good repair (no holes, broken 
insulators, etc...).

2. You have access to all the tools required.

This is how we do NST's.

1. Clean it.
Knock off all the loose rust, anything that comes off with a screwdriver is 
loose rust.

2. Sand it. If you're doing it in your house, mist it down with a sprayer 
(or just sprinkle a little water on it, not a lot) and it will keep the dust 
down. Change your paper as needed, pay close attention around your 
insulators and corners. Sand down to bare, shiny metal, starting with a 
coarse grit (about 100 or so) and get off as much as you can.

3. Clean it all off with a rag.

4. There will likely be small areas where ther paint just will not come off, 
these are not a problem, just sand them good.

5. Sand out the rouch scratches (that you just made with the 100 grit paper) 
with 200grit paper, this till make it shile a lot more. Keep working untill 
it looks good. I STRONGLY reccomend a Random Orbital Sander for sanding NSTs 
as it's a full afternoon by hand. Go to lighter grades (I have never used 
anyhting like 400 on this stuff, it's not required) untill it's clean and as 
smooth as you can get it.

6. Wipe it down with a degreaser, any good cleaner will work, auti-shops 
have a solvent just for this that works really well. Keep cleaning it untill 
your rag comes off clean. Make sure to do your last wipes with a dry cloth 
to get the degreaser off.


7. Mask it off, use good masking tape (1" would be fine) and paper from a 
brown paper bag. Make SURE not to paint your insulators, nuts, etc.... it 
can do weird things with the electrical properties.

8. If you can get a tach cloth, use it now. If not, use Masking tape, drag a 
piece ofer the surface lightly, it will remove lint and hair, you'll be 
suprised how much is there.

9. Prime it, for an NST I would reccomend basic Grey Krylon brand primer.


10. Let it dry in your garage (or other indoor area) do NOT turn a fan on it 
and it will immediately fill with dust, hair, and God knows what else, don't 
cover it either..it has to outgas. Draping plastic over it will result in a 
bad Marbled look (learned this the hard way). I would reccomend at least 30 
Mins between coats, 2 hours is fine.

11. Paint the colour of your choice. Keep in mind that if you paint it black 
you REALLY have to work on your prep because black will show EVERY surface 
imperfection, grinder marks, hickeys, EVERYTHING...and it's a pain to keep 
clean...but it's worth it :)

12. Let it dry at least 2 hours.

13. Shoot a coat of clear on it, it will make it look a lot better and 
protect it. Let it dry overnight.

14, carefully remove the masking.

You're done. :) Now, after 2 days of making it beautiful, hook it up to your 
coil forget to set the safety right, and kill it in 20 seconds!

Yes......I've done that. You will too....give it time. :) The joys of Tesla 
Coiling.






The Picasso of HV gear......The Monet with no money....The Rosseau with a 
static gap....the Van Eyck of MMCs.....the BALD FREAK OF THE GEEKS!

Christopher "The Artist" Boden Geek#1
President / C.E.O. / Alpha Geek
The Geek Group
www.thegeekgroup-dot-org
Because the Geek shall inherit the Earth!




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