I've been wanting an orange Herman Miller shell with a rocker base for quite a while now. Finally ran across a baseless shell on craigslist this week. It wasn't too pretty but it was a descent deal at $20 and cleaned up pretty nice. I'm not sure what that black stuff all over it was but a magic eraser couldn't touch it, and those things take off everything! I had to resort to fine steel wool. I used barkeepers friend to get the major gunk off and then switched to powdered Oxiclean with a little bit of water. That stuff really seems to do a good job cleaning out the little cracks and crevices. The last shell I used it on was just about as dirty but not quite as rough and I was able to get it looking like new scrubbing with a dish sponge rather than the steel wool, which kept the finish from getting dull. This one will need a coat of Penatrol to restore the shine. The only major problem with the chair is that it has an unfortunate dent in the front that bulges out a bit in the back. It doesn't hurt it structurally and really doesn't look all that bad so I can live with it. I'm not sure when I'll get a base ordered. I think I'll go with a black base with walnut rockers. Need some new shock mounts too. So much for a bargain!
I've been wanting an orange Herman Miller shell with a rocker base for quite a while now. Finally ran across a baseless shell on craigslist this week. It wasn't too pretty but it was a descent deal at $20 and cleaned up pretty nice. I'm not sure what that black stuff all over it was but a magic eraser couldn't touch it, and those things take off everything! I had to resort to fine steel wool. I used barkeepers friend to get the major gunk off and then switched to powdered Oxiclean with a little bit of water. That stuff really seems to do a good job cleaning out the little cracks and crevices. The last shell I used it on was just about as dirty but not quite as rough and I was able to get it looking like new scrubbing with a dish sponge rather than the steel wool, which kept the finish from getting dull. This one will need a coat of Penatrol to restore the shine. The only major problem with the chair is that it has an unfortunate dent in the front that bulges out a bit in the back. It doesn't hurt it structurally and really doesn't look all that bad so I can live with it. I'm not sure when I'll get a base ordered. I think I'll go with a black base with walnut rockers. Need some new shock mounts too. So much for a bargain! 
Yikes! What WAS that gunky stuff on the bottom?! Have you ever tried the Goof Off? I use it almost daily to clean up my finds but it's strong enough to destroy some plastics so you gotta be careful. Can't wait to see the finished product!
ReplyDeleteAwesome find. Can't wait to see some pics of your finished product too!
ReplyDeleteThat cleaned up very well! We use Penetrol to restore fiberglass. It's used on fiberglass boat hulls too. A friend of mine swears by artist oil paints to re-color faded fiberglass chairs. He rubs it in really well and then leaves the chair in the sun for a few hours so it will soak in. It's amazing all the tricks we learn for restoring these old pieces of ours.
ReplyDeleteI saw that chair shell on Craigslist, too. You are a braver person than I because I don't think I would want to tackle it. I bet it will look great once you get the fiberglass restored and get a base on it!
ReplyDeleteWow, awesome restore! Congrats. I LOVE these too and orange is the best. ;)
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