Topic: Distributor finish

[preaction]

Has anyone come up with a refinishing process for a distributor housing other than glass beading, even at low air pressures the glass bead seems to change the aluminum surface. Was the original finish as cast ?

[carlite65]

i think most prefer to tumble it slightly.

[Mike_B_SVT]

Has anyone come up with a refinishing process for a distributor housing other than glass beading, even at low air pressures the glass bead seems to change the aluminum surface. Was the original finish as cast ?

You might try contacting Tim O'Connor and see if he will share his secret.  Or consider just sending it to him to restore.  Great work, beautiful distributors!  Here are two that he did for me.
http://www.428cobrajetcars.com/

9J22 date AFTER:



9J22 date BEFORE:



9G24 date AFTER:



9G24 date BEFORE:

[preaction]

I thought tumbling was the answer but a search didn't show anything.

[Bob Gaines]

I thought tumbling was the answer but a search didn't show anything.

Glass blasting and tumbling ,soda blasting and some use as is or also tumbling , Walnut blasting and some use as is or also tumbling to name a few .A lot depends on how bad the housing is prior to refinishing. There are various tumbling media to talk about too. This is not a easy button one answer subject IMO. Of course appropriate machining is also done after what ever process or processes. There is a learning curve if you have never done one before and that experience goes into the preferred method of refinishing the case . After you tackle the case you have to be concerned with the internal parts and their condition . Not a big issue on  the internal finishes as it is the outside finish but re assembling them and adjusting the internal timing advance is.  the internal restoration including adjusting the advance curve is not for the first timer even if you had the distributor machine. You will get excellent results first time out plus a properly adjusted timing curve for the advance if you let Tim do it from start to finish. Just my .02 . 

[J_Speegle]

From an earlier thread. Dist on left is a NOS version with nice fairly consistent main body finish and the brighter machined edges/surfaces (red arrows). I built a hardwood holder to hold the shaft and use a drimmel tool to spin the case (with the vacuum advance not attached) to redo the machined surfaces as they often get chipped and scratched over the years and to get the fresh machine look of the original. Is helps allot if your starting with a good core and like other aluminum parts I have at times used the light acid aluminum wheel cleaners for the main body (yellow arrow) before the detailing

I'll try and remember to drag out a few of the NOS distributors and take a closer shot of the machined surfaces as they don't show up in the picture below as they do in person

[jwc66k]

All too many distributor housings are rendered illegible by well meaning rebuilders. They are interested in selling a usable distributor, not a concourse grade unit, so they "overdo" the bead blasting and tumbling. I used Berryman's Carb Cleaner (not always available) to clean the outside without losing the detail of the part numbers and date codes. If you take your distributor to a rebuilder, insist strongly that those letters remain as legible as when you brought the unit in.
Jim

[preaction]

Are the cap hold down spring clamps black or natural. Also its not clear what finish for the spring clamp retainers and vacuum advance screws.

[carlite65]

cap holddowns are p& o. the retainers are olive drab and the screws zinc.

[J_Speegle]

cap holddowns are p& o. the retainers are olive drab and the screws zinc.

+1 Would call the pin more of a greenish/gold finish similar to ported vacuum switches, Thermactor T fittings and back fire valve main bodies. Finish didn't hold up well over the years. Examples are NOS (not rebuilt) units boxed in 1968 or 69

Mounting screws depends on what year as you can see in the pictures below


Advance attaching hardware P & O







Advance attaching hardware zinc. (Don't just copy the paint marks - they likely don't match the ones that should be on your car - 

[preaction]

Thanks for the pics Jeff, would a clear coat be a no no.

[carlite65]

yes imo it would be. not original finish.

[Shuskan3]

Wanted to share a picture of my rebuilt distributor. Housing was vapor blasted to restore it to its original aluminum finish. I then polished the machined surfaces in a lathe. Let me know your feedback.

Edit: sharing photos from a couple different lighting conditions to give a better feel for its actual look.

[J_Speegle]

Wanted to share a picture of my rebuilt distributor. Housing was vapor blasted to restore it to its original aluminum finish. I then polished the machined surfaces in a lathe. Let me know your feedback.

Edit: sharing photos from a couple different lighting conditions to give a better feel for its actual look.

Cleaned (not the machined) appears to be a bit brighter than original but maybe the lighting and angle or it may also just dull with time and exposure. Most of the time the freshly cast surface didn't look monotone so not sure how to go about cleaning the surface, removing years of neglect and producing the same look.  Maybe the wheel cleaner trick might help or work but would need a test unit to try it out on. Get to get the garage done so I can get back to experimenting in the evenings

The other thing that should be noted is that your efforts do not seem to show damage from the cleaning and how little, if at all, it changed the flashing and sharp edges of it, we often see associated with other media

Just for comparison here are some originals

This one appears to have had the machined surfaces dull with age and slight (well stored) exposure to air



Close up of some of the surfaces. Machined surfaces are more pronounced on this one



Fresh out of the sealed box. Boxed in 68/69 up close

[Bob Gaines]

Wanted to share a picture of my rebuilt distributor. Housing was vapor blasted to restore it to its original aluminum finish. I then polished the machined surfaces in a lathe. Let me know your feedback.

Edit: sharing photos from a couple different lighting conditions to give a better feel for its actual look.

I am impressed.