Fixed and Cleaned Up: ELAC RD-100

[Jon_Gargoyle]

And here's the potential issue to maybe look out for. Because of how the case is removed, if the clock is sat on a hard surface then the upper cover almost naturally will angle back (almost as if it is hinged) and will press or at least touch the surface when you remove it.There isn't much space to separate the two halves of the housing, so I think it's almost inevitable that this will happen. I think in the example here, what's happened is that the previous owner has not realised this and it's caused a loss of plastic at the bottom right hand side of the upper case. Once I noticed this I made sure I had the clock on a soft surface and I put something behind it to rest the upper half against so there was less likelihood of it getting worse. It's not a major thing, but if your clock is pristine in every other way then you're going to be pretty unhappy with yourself if it's you who maybe causes this damage (I know I would be if it was me). You might want to check ebay photos etc closely in advance of buying just in case (no pun intended)?

[Mackey]

Very nice!

[Jon_Gargoyle]

Any hints on achieving a shiny plastic finish welcomed. I've heard of using vaseline/petroleum jelly but have always been a little bit worried about doing that, especially on the more "valuable" items that I have. It would be nice if the clock had at least some of the high gloss look that it must have had when new...

[davidm]

That's a very nice looking flip clock radio, that orange is great, I'm just about over imitation woodgrain!

I believe antique dealers bodge up holes and faults with coloured wax, but there's no too much orange timber!

Maybe some filler for that chip then touch up paint.

As for the polish, just about everyone seems to use Meguiars Plast-X Polish on the clear plastic parts, I've just got some to do the front lenses, but I don't know if it's the best for coloured plastc.

What sort of repairs did it need?

[Jon_Gargoyle]

Hi David,

Many thanks for the compliments and the information on the plastic polish. I'll do some research on the coloured plastic - it would be nice to have it glossy again, but I'm not going to endanger it just for that.

In terms of repairs, luckily not very much. It just needed the motor flushing and re-lubricating and then nudging back into action again. I don't think it had been powered up in quite some time. And, it needed a serious internal (it's amazing how dirty and "oily" the insides of these get, isn't it?!) clean and a thorough external clean. I got lucky with this one., after taking a risk with buying it.

[flipoclock]

For a really fine polish, I always stick with 'Polywatch'. Meant for watch glasses, but it works very well on flipclocks! I buy it in bulk to get a really good deal for else it is rather expensive, but it does get the job done!

[Jon_Gargoyle]

That's a great tip, thank you! I'll go looking for some now. It looks like the kind of thing I could probably find 101 uses for!

[flipoclock]

You can use it for all sorts of purposes indeed, it is a bit expensive at that.... You pay between 4 & 5 euros per tube online, I have a cheaper address, but the shipping is higher so when I buy it in bulk it is still cheaper all added up.