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I just purchased a couple of Apple IIe's from off ebay. They are both in great condition, but they have both been painted! Whats obnoxious is that by indication of the space bars and parts that were missed, both these computers appeared to have not even been yellowed in the first place!
They are both literally in like new condition inside and out, and I would like to restore them by removing the paint.
I know your probably thinking just use some paint thinner, but is that the right thing to do? About 15 years ago I thought it was "the right thing to do" when I took a rag soaked in bleach to clean a very dirty IIc. The damn IIc turned a horrid brown.
I found out the hard way not to use bleach. I don't want to find out the hard way not to use paint thinner.
Anyone have any experience in this category? I'm not sure if painted apple IIe's are even that regular of an occurrence, this is my first time coming across this.
*EDIT* PICTURE ADDED:
The computer under neath the lid is NOT the computer that came with painted.
I also wanted to buy one of those Apple IIs, but they looked too weird on the pictures, now I know why. I'm also interested in finding out if they can be fixed, to get one.
Regards
Javster
Many model-builders use Easy-Off oven cleaner to remove old paint without damaging the underlying polystyrene.
I've read brake cleaner works well too, and isn't harmful to polycarbonate.
Note that with any paint removal on different objects, I've never had something with a textured finish return to a pristine state without sanding. It's too easy to make the cases worse than they may already be. Weigh the risk, I guess.
I used Easy off and got rid of the paint.
I took the computer apart and placed the case in my bath tub. I then covered the case in easy off foam. I waited for about 20 minutes then went to town scrubbing it with a large brush, and tooth brush. (Also mid way through scrubbing it I filled the bath tub with hot water because I realized it helped)
This got rid of a lot of the paint, but it still needed another layer. I emptied the tub and sprayed it with another layer of easy off; and waited an hour this time before scrubbing the computer down again. \
This got rid of all the paint. However, there is some white streaking, I will take pics.
I'm going to go do the lid now. I removed the lids name plates because the are also painted and will get ruined by the easy off. I removed them by using a hair dryer to warm them; then by pushing through the hole on the inside with a paper clip.
lol talk about a total time waster. I got the paint off, to find the case was completely dirty. They did not even bother cleaning before painting it! So I whipped out my magic eraser. Nothing can stop me now, right? Well, it cleaned off for the most part, until I hit a super sticky mess smack-dab in the middle of the lid! Nothing would get rid of it. Not a magic eraser, not soap & hot water with a cleaning brush, not that green cleaner crap. Nothing.
So I whipped out the big guns. Goo bee gone. Or what ever the hell it's called.
I sprayed it on, expecting to whoop ass on some grime. Instead I had another damn IIc' moment. I F-in' bleached it. That lid went straight to hell.
I added pic on post 1.
Whats typical is you can see the freaking grime still stuck in the center. It still didn't come off. Bastard.
Javster, Don't even freakin bother buying one lol. It was a real pain. I was bent over my tub for an hour+ and now I'm just annoyed. At least my tub got a real good cleaning lol. It looks shiny new*
So don't use goo b gone on plastic IIe's. Another learned the hard way so you wouldn't have to lol.
Its Friday, and I'm fuming.
By the way, I wrote this laughing. I'm not too mad lol.
I'm sorry to hear it didn't work. Those movie people don't care about the items: as long as it looks ok from afar, they mess throwing, keys, etc. did you ever thought using retrobrite? It is pretty good for removing stickers, at least on my experience.
Well, maybe this is a good opportunity to experiment painting it black, like the bell & Howell.
Good luck
Javster
Glad you got the paint off; sorry it didn't quite work out.
But...now that you've got the old paint off, you do have the option of painting it again properly, or getting it pro painted. Someone else here a while back was painting their case and researching the proper colours to use:
http://www.applefritter.com/content/anyone-know-paint-colour-respray-apple-ii-case
FYI, they make a goo-gone that won't eat plastic. It's an organic one and doesn't smell as bad or work as good. I keep both around
you can always repaint with Pantone 453; the purported stock paint colour of Apple II/II+ and early IIe.
I thought Pantone 453 was the macintosh color... or is that also the color of the IIe. Everything I have read online says 453 was not the II and II plus color.
For the past 2 to 3 years, I have been restoring Apple iie and iigs computers via retrobrite and other means.
Here is what I have learned so far:
There are several ways to remove yellowing besides retrobrite, but in your case, I think you should a sandblaster to restore the original color.
To remove stickiness you must always use something oily. Personally, the liquid that works the best is L&R Watch rinsing solution #3. You can use olive oil or whatever. Goo be gone is not necessary. You can also try corn oil, canola oil etc.,
After sandblasting, you will have the original color, but not the original shine of the plastic. Just rub it with some Bounty Basic paper towels. Those towels when dry, act as a slight polishing rag.
To remove marker ink, first use some toilet paper and isopropyl alcohol to remove the first layer. The second layer can be removed by using some Ajax cleanser and a toothbrush. Do it gently as you can.
To remove left over residue from old masking tape, use non-acetone nail polish remover. Be careful with this stuff, never use too much. It can cause whitening in unpredictable ways.
http://apple2history.org/2012/02/10/pantone-453/
I have had great luck with D&L hand cleaner. Just had to put it on a flat surface keep the area covered and with D&L. It takes a while to loosen up what is on it. Magic Marker or Paint. Some times the paint was so thick when it was put on that it melted into the plastic like a stain. A stiff tooth brush works, but when using the D&L it tend to soften them a bit. You can actually remove plastic with the two of them. I noticed a couple of times that stain sheen was almost gone, and the plastic had more gloss to it.
That seems to one of the only references that the Apple II line used it. Just googling around most articles say he chose it for the original Mac because it was close to the original Apple II color, but was different enough not to orange over time.
So I'm not sure the Apple II line was Pantone 453 exactly but I guess it sounds close enough.
Just came across a post involving paint removal and remembered this thread. In the link below, the poster used brake fluid to remove the paint, and I'm amazed at the results:
http://68kmla.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=16794&p=179172&hilit=brake+fluid#p179172