Past month or so, I've been working on restoring an old Underwood No. 5 that had been living in a barn since who knows how long. Through some intense wire brushing and a lot of PB Blast, I've got it broken down and all the rust removed.



The metal arms attached to the strikers in particular were extremely rusty and most of the nickle plating on them was shot through. What I wanted to know is, in place of replating them all, is there any disadvantage if I used a blueing fluid to give them a different finish? Additionally, would it be a bad idea to do that on the strikers for consistency, or should I look to just replate those?

>>2604480 (OP)

Your guess is as good as anyone else's. You could probably spray the entire damn thing with a whole bottle of WD40, wait for it to dry while you're rubbing, then liquid blue it for corrosion resistance and wipe it down again.

That'd be the quick and dirty without disassembling it fully and doing it correctly.

>>2604480 (OP)

um anon where's your carriage?

Already removed. Just off on a separate table



Yeah, I already broke it all down to the bare frame here. I tried at first just cleaning it assembled, but those keys were so rusted to shit, they really needed a good brushing

well good luck

my ibm wasn't near as bad, just needed lubed, adjusted and a new drive belt for the motor

>>2604480 (OP)

>is there any disadvantage

Plating at least adds material. If the oxidation is really bad, the striker arms may not survive aggressive typing very long. But if you're not going to actually use the machine beyond demonstration, it won't matter.

It's not a disadvantage, more of a missed opportunity.

paint might be shellac, would dissolve

Op look for Redox nickle electrolyte, mass plating without electrolysis in a simple stainless pot

cold bluing is electroless copper plating, but the coat is not exactly thick
