300 emblem on grill

jmustian

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Does any one know how this emblem made of clear plastic is attached to the steel base? Colors are gone and id like to repaint it.

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I've got some Newport hubcaps that have a similar type of emblem in the middle of the wheel, and to me, it looks like at some point in the manufacturing process a clear plastic resin is poured over the painted parts of the emblem and left to level out and dry. If that's the case, the only way I could imagine repainting it would be to pry out the clear plastic, probably destroying it in the process, do your clean up and repaint, and then pour new clear resin into the part and let it harden. Risky, I know . . .
 
I thought so too but i can get a hobby razor knife around the whole thing, all the way to the bottom of the steel housing. Its got a couple chips where someone tried prying it out.

Maybe i can find something that will eat or soften old glue. I tried lacquer thinner and paint thinner. Neither one loosened it.
 
I thought so too but i can get a hobby razor knife around the whole thing, all the way to the bottom of the steel housing. Its got a couple chips where someone tried prying it out.

Maybe i can find something that will eat or soften old glue. I tried lacquer thinner and paint thinner. Neither one loosened it.
maybe a healthy application of "Goo Gone" liquid can get beneath everything and loosen the adhesive. Might take several days of soaking . . . might also try a heat gun or hair dryer on the back and see if the adhesive will loosen that way.
 
Umm, just thinking out loud here, but be careful the Goo-Gone doesn't cloud the plastic.

Been there and done that on other clear plastics... I don't know what kind of plastic this emblem is, so I can't say for sure either way.
 
Looking at the back of this NOS piece I found on eBay ($250! gulp), it looks like the plastic has a couple pins that were pushed through and then probably heat "welded" in place.

I'd try cutting the diameter down so it would push back through and then pushing on them as equally as possible.

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The emblems were painted from the backside prior to installation.

On the '65-'66 Newport, the wheel cover center emblems are kind of popped into the stainless steel wheel cover body, with a circle of rubber between the emblem and the cover. On ours, the lh frt emblem disappeared one day, leaving a hole with the wheel bearing cap showing through. I upgraded to '66 New Yorker wheel covers, which have a wire spring holding them in from the backside. Looks a lot better.

CBODY67
 
The emblems were painted from the backside prior to installation.

On the '65-'66 Newport, the wheel cover center emblems are kind of popped into the stainless steel wheel cover body, with a circle of rubber between the emblem and the cover. On ours, the lh frt emblem disappeared one day, leaving a hole with the wheel bearing cap showing through. I upgraded to '66 New Yorker wheel covers, which have a wire spring holding them in from the backside. Looks a lot better.

CBODY67
Well finally got it apart. Lots of heat and prying. The plastic disc is one piece. The colors are indeed done from the back and then a gray blackout is sprayed over that. The 300 emblem is inserted plastic, chromed letters. Two of the numbers stuck to the metal and one stayed in the plastic.
Ive never seen glue this strong on metal. The pins sticking thru the back were just for alignment so now the repair starts.

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wow, that's gonna take some finesse to get all cleaned up, painted, and reassembled. Can't wait to see how it turns out!
 
Dont try it. After cleaned up you can see the little crackle in the face.
Secondly, you cant get to the chrome circle around the 300 word. It appears the 300 black center was made and painted and then inset into the resin emblem. I painted the inside edges and the paint seeped slightly under the 300 piece where the chrome circle was but it wont soak in evenly so its spotty under there. Then with the worn and crackled top layer, the colors underneath looked uneven and washed out. Ill play with it a little more but checked junk yards for a better one or see if my artist friend can make a new one.
Anyway, ill post whatever i end up with. Good thing im retired haha.
 
Dont try it. After cleaned up you can see the little crackle in the face.
Secondly, you cant get to the chrome circle around the 300 word. It appears the 300 black center was made and painted and then inset into the resin emblem. I painted the inside edges and the paint seeped slightly under the 300 piece where the chrome circle was but it wont soak in evenly so its spotty under there. Then with the worn and crackled top layer, the colors underneath looked uneven and washed out. Ill play with it a little more but checked junk yards for a better one or see if my artist friend can make a new one.
Anyway, ill post whatever i end up with. Good thing im retired haha.

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After all the work to remove and then paint, that $250 nos might not seem too bad.
Glad i got time haha.
The flat paint seems to be working better. After it dries, i paint it again and it slowly moves under that piece and looks good. Have to keep paint light so it doesnt spread haha.
 
Glad i got time haha.
The flat paint seems to be working better. After it dries, i paint it again and it slowly moves under that piece and looks good. Have to keep paint light so it doesnt spread haha.
Well considering how beat up it was, im satisfied until i cant find or afford a better one.

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