GEC 3' Gull wing nears completion.
82 days of work, 5 killed wire wheels, a whole pot of rust killer, 2 tubes of knifing putty, a can of filler primer, 2 cans of primer, and 4 cans of white gloss paint, the 3' gull wing has finally been completely overhauled. The reason so much paint has been used (at least 4 layers of primer and 7 layers of gloss white on each side) is to aid in smoothing out the once badly pitted metalwork, and to bolster up the thickness of paint in the hope no damp can permeate through the layers. 
I now have to leave this two weeks to dry off totally before I can reassemble it and get it working. The ballast and capacitor are also to be restored, I'm currently searching for a perfect colour match, and also a label I can replicate. This is by far the most extensive and challenging restoration I've done to date, but the time and patience have paid off I think. Once its totally reassembled, its being installed.

GEC 3' Gull wing nears completion.

82 days of work, 5 killed wire wheels, a whole pot of rust killer, 2 tubes of knifing putty, a can of filler primer, 2 cans of primer, and 4 cans of white gloss paint, the 3' gull wing has finally been completely overhauled. The reason so much paint has been used (at least 4 layers of primer and 7 layers of gloss white on each side) is to aid in smoothing out the once badly pitted metalwork, and to bolster up the thickness of paint in the hope no damp can permeate through the layers.
I now have to leave this two weeks to dry off totally before I can reassemble it and get it working. The ballast and capacitor are also to be restored, I'm currently searching for a perfect colour match, and also a label I can replicate. This is by far the most extensive and challenging restoration I've done to date, but the time and patience have paid off I think. Once its totally reassembled, its being installed.

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RobTDCI   [04 Sep, 2016 at 09:18 PM]
I must say that I admire your dedication to this and of course the results speak for themselves! Smile My GEC Genalux BC fitting was quite badly pitted on top, as it came from a derelict hospital with a leaking roof. I didn't try to hide the pitting, mostly because I didn't have the patience. It still took a week of work though. I was covered in brown rusty dust following sanding with the belt sander.
Dave   [04 Sep, 2016 at 10:01 PM]
And your comments is why I love to work on bringing old lights back to a factory condition. Whilst the gull wing reflector is 100% pit free, the ceiling spine and gear tray have pitting, but since its very light, I didn't bother hiding it.
Slyspark   [05 Sep, 2016 at 08:50 PM]
Are you sure you've not just taken that out of the box? Looks good as new that does. I wish I had the patience to restore something that well. Currently doing a cast iron column and so far I've killed one wire wheel and one drill and still it's covered in paint Sad
pat_96   [05 Sep, 2016 at 11:48 PM]
Lovely restore, great effort and time put into that Cool
BC5-80   [06 Sep, 2016 at 09:17 PM]
This really is a credit to you, Dave. Proper job is that! I look forward to seeing pictures of it installed and in use.
Dave   [09 Sep, 2016 at 09:36 PM]
Thanks so much for your comments. Tomorrow, I will be able to post reassembly pics and maybe even a pic of the fitting lit for the first time Cool
lampy   [10 Sep, 2016 at 07:12 PM]
Great job there dave, great to see one of these in this condition, i recall seeing these in the 1980's, and they were rusty then !
lampy   [22 Feb, 2018 at 09:40 PM]
is that a T12 crompton daylight in that?
Dave   [28 Feb, 2018 at 08:24 PM]
Its a cool white Crompton T12, i'll post a pic of the etch soon.

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