my 'new' Philco refrigerator

[classiccaprice]

As some of you may recall, I've had quite the issue getting a working vintage refrigerator that will fit in my kitchen.

1) First, I got a free '51 Westinghouse (a la I Love Lucy) that would fit fine in my kitchen, but decided to stop working when we got it here.

2) Then I got a '58 Philco for free. I was so excited that I didn't check the dimensions. I got home to find out that it was too tall to fit in my kitchen!

So they say third time is the charm. Recently I found what I believe is a '57 model Philco refrigerator on craigslist. The interior is complete and very near mint. The outside needs a fresh paint job and it could stand a new gasket. However I am so thrilled! To top it off it works (though I haven't plugged it in since I got home, as a precaution)! What do you think fellas?

 

[classiccaprice]

inside

 

[classiccaprice]

door

 

[classiccaprice]

freezer door

It even has the original Philco ice scraper with it! I'll have to get a picture of it later.

 

[austinado16]

HUGE Score!!!

That's going to be gorgeous!

We have a '52 Philco that we found in a 2nd hand store. Same sort of situation as yours......perfect interior with all the bells and whistles, both inside, and in the door, but the exterior needed paint. We had some rechroming done while the body as being painted and put it back together with a new gasket. That was 1993!!

 

[goatfarmer]

Nice 'fridge!

 

[classiccaprice]

Hey Fellas,

I was thinking about rechroming the handle, the P-H-I-L-C-O letters and the (not pictured) automatic that is on the bottom of the fridge.

Does anyone have any recommendations for places that would do a good job?

 

[austinado16]

That's exactly what we did...

We did both handle pieces, the lettering, and then a long metal shelf face/handle for the meat drawer.

It's tough to get good chrome work now due to EPA laws in the US. Your best bet would be to contact local shops that you see doing vintage car and street rod restorations and ask who they use. They'll know the best places.

 

[danemodsandy]

Will:

If there is any way to avoid re-chroming, you should avoid it. Unless there is severe corrosion and/or plating loss, cleaning and polishing might bring the chrome up very nicely.

The reason is, those elements are almost certainly pot metal, which is absolute hell to restore properly. Pot metal has impurities in it, which are what cause the bubbling you sometimes see on chromed pot metal, and it is very painstaking and expensive work to strip the old chrome, repair the pitting, and re-chrome. There is no way to save money on this; someone either does a good job, in which case they have to charge a high price because of the effort and time involved, or they do a crappy job, in which case the price will be lower, but so will the satisfaction. There's a link below to a Webpage that gives the best explanation I've read of what you'd be getting into.

Also, your letters are fragile. Each one has little "legs" cast into its back; the legs poke through holes in the door. On the inside of the door, behind the inner panel, there are little clips on each leg that hold the letters in place. Removing all this, getting it replated, and getting it all reinstalled without breakage is going to take some real patience, gentle handling, and good luck. A lot of restored '50s and '60s cars have had to have broken lettering glued back in place; replacements are almost impossible to find for many makes and models.

I don't mean to discourage you, but know that this is not something that just anyone can do correctly. If you can't afford top-quality work right now, it's better to do nothing until you can afford it; someone who isn't good can grind away a lot of detail in your trim pieces, and it will never look right after that.

http://iversonautomotive.com/potmetal.htm

 

[classiccaprice]

There is some pitting on the handle, but I may be able to live with it (depending on how well it cleans up. I've already removed the lettering and the handle and I'm trying to get the paint off all the chrome now. Does anyone have any suggestions on the best way to remove paint from chrome? I don't want to scratch it up. Is there something I can soak it in? Thanks for the info!

 

[classiccaprice]

Also there is a little bit of rust on the shelves. Useable for now, but any suggestions on what to do with them?

 

[danemodsandy]

Will:

Chemical action is the way to go with both the paint and the rust. The paint should respond to a good stripper like Strypeeze. Tip: Remove the stripper residue with mineral spirits, not water, for a clean, scratch-free job.

For your rusty shelves, a chemical rust remover like Lime-A-Way or CLR should work fine if they're not too bad. Both of these rinse off with water. Do not leave either one on too long; both can cause metal to darken if left on for an excessive amount of time.

In both cases, I would spot-test in an inconspicuous place to be sure that nothing weird is going to happen with the plating.