Removing Yellow Tarnish?

[XDelusion]

How do I remove the yellow Tarnish from my old Amiga? Or is it even possible?

[odin]

Depends, if it's muck from having been around smokers it should be easy to remove with a general purpose cleaner diluted in some water. However if it's yellowness due to having been exposed to UV radiation you can't clean that. Your only option would be to sand the yellow layer off or paint the case.

[Doppie1200]

Sorry but it is impossible.

Search the web/forum for 'yellowing amiga' and you'll find this is a common problem.

The plastic is oxydizing due to exposure to sunlight. At least that is the most common explaination. This means its yellow all the way through or at least a good portion of the plastic.

For the case this is not that much of a problem. You could opt for spraypainting it in it's original colour or somethink kinky.

For the keyboard it is a desaster since spraypainting will make you loose all the printing on the keys.



Maybe you are in luck and is the yellowing caused by nicotine (read heave smoking near the machine). This should be cleanable. If else you are out of luck. But should you happen to find a cure please notify us.


Edit: I should learn to type faster and shorter messages. Someone beat me to it  :lol:

[XDelusion]

Ok, thankx.

[Argus]

Speaking of UV, my machines are like vampires...by day they live in the dark and only come out at night.  The dreaded yellowing is a real problem and I recommend closing the blinds when you leave for the day to minimize light exposure to the plastic (if you don't want a jaundiced Amiga, that is).

[odin]

Or, alternatively, you could place your precious Amigas in a vacuum...

[starf81]

Hi!

In these days I'm "restoring" an old Amiga 1000 that was very yellowed after many years under the sun light. Now looks like new... I've had success using bleach.
Since I've obtained a very good result, I think to put online a tutorial with my "work".

Meantime, let me know if you need additional infos...

Alex

[guest1955]

I remember using bleach (Or some bleach based kitchen cleaner) on my 1200, with little success.
I think the only way to removing the yellowing is to spray it white again. But I'm not sure what you could do with the keys though (Obviously if you just spray the keyboard, you are going to lose all the decals on the keyboard- so you'll end up with one of these for free!)

[T_Bone]

odin wrote:
Or, alternatively, you could place your precious Amigas in a vacuum...

That would suck. :-P

[blobrana]

Hum,
Bathe it in carbon dioxide (placed in a large tub)...

But a cheaper way would be just to ware yellow tinted glasses when you want to play – that way you’ll never notice the yellowing…

[guest1955]

Or alternatively, don't ever look down at the keyboard, and keep telling yourself it's still as new.

[adolescent]

I woudln't say it's impossible as above (although, it's usually easier just to find a newer/better condition case or keyboard).  Check the link below, I don't read the language, but the pictures speak for themselves.

http://www.rabayjr.com/monte_o_seu_hardware.htm

[PaSha]

blobrana wrote:
Hum,
Bathe it in carbon dioxide (placed in a large tub)...

But a cheaper way would be just to ware yellow tinted glasses when you want to play – that way you’ll never notice the yellowing…

Carbon dioxide? As is dry ice?

-Paul

[PaSha]

adolescent wrote:
I woudln't say it's impossible as above (although, it's usually easier just to find a newer/better condition case or keyboard).  Check the link below, I don't read the language, but the pictures speak for themselves.

http://www.rabayjr.com/monte_o_seu_hardware.htm

Have a look at the bottles on the picture, one is acetone. Acetone literally eats most kinds of plastic (Acetone=nail polish remover), so be very careful, and clean the stuff with normal soap&water afterwards. It also eats brain cells, so either use a mask, or do this outdoors.

[boing]

>However if it's yellowness due to having been exposed to UV radiation
>you can't clean that. Your only option would be to sand the yellow layer off or paint the case.

It really pisses me off when people who don't know the answer just conclude that because *they* don't have a solution, that it must be impossible.  There are precious few "can do" people in the Amiga world today.

I was going to suggest Didi-7, or Bleach or any of a number of cleaning items that might whiten the afflicted plastic.  Test a small 1" square area on the bottom of your Amiga first though, and wipe it clean, rinse and observe for about a week before proceeding.

>http://www.rabayjr.com/monte_o_seu_hardware.htm

Cool.  English version?