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Brass Faceplate Difference?

J

Jonmustang

Active Member
I've got a few different brass/gold-toned Fisher units and they don't all seem to have the same depth of tone. My FM-200-B and X-101-B came from the same seller who had them since new, and they both have a deep brass tone. My KX-200 is lighter brass, which makes me think either it was left in the sun or that perhaps Fisher had differing processes for different years/models.

Is there any hope of darkening the faceplate of my KX-200 to better match the FM-200-B? Any other Fisher folks notice differences between the brass faceplates on their models?
 
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They aren't brass, they're aluminium. They were likely either anodized or clear-coated and what you're seeing is probably due to UV exposure or nicotine staining. Also, the KX prefix denotes a kit, and may very well have used a different process in order to distinguish it from the factory assembled model finish.
 
Ths364 said:
They aren't brass, they're aluminium. They were likely either anodized or clear-coated and what you're seeing is probably due to UV exposure or nicotine staining. Also, the KX prefix denotes a kit, and may very well have used a different process in order to distinguish it from the factory assembled model finish.
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Yea, brass-toned but not actually brass :yes: I read a few threads about some folks trying to remove the clear coat, with mixed results. Sure would be nice to get the two looking a bit closer in tone, but all the lettering is okay so maybe I should be happy with that.
 
DO NOT try to repair anodized aluminum. Once the anodize is taken down to the base aluminum it's ruined and cannot be fixed withou re-anodizing thus destroying the original panel.
IMO. Just watch out.
 
ferninando said:
DO NOT try to repair anodized aluminum. Once the anodize is taken down to the base aluminum it's ruined and cannot be fixed withou re-anodizing thus destroying the original panel.
IMO. Just watch out.
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Well I certainly don't mind your opinion at all. I wouldn't have tried anything foolish without asking the folks around here first. Looks like I'll be leaving the faceplate alone. I guess if I keep the amp and the tuner on different shelves, no one will notice :thmbsp:
 
If you have ever seen anodize with scratches you get the idea what I mean. You can see the base aluminium in the scratch. Its all over then.
Older fishers were not anodized,but just coated metal possibly brass. removimg the clearcoat is like doing it to a car with clearcoat. they say you cant just sand the scratch and reshoot the spot. you have to clear the whole panel.
These old front panels are not restore friendly. the lettering comes off easily unless its engraved.
 
I would ask someone who professionally restores antique hardware. Maybe they can suggest one of those "tricks of the trade".
A local trophy shop is where I would begin. They should be able to recommend some experts.
 
I recently acquired my first Fisher, a 500B. I removed the faceplate, gently bathed it in Dawn and warm water to remove surface grime and called it a day. Too risky to try to remove what's deep in the brushed surface crevices.
 
car wax does a good job getting the film junk off. just dont hit the lettering to much.
your left with a nice shine.
 
Okay, finally got a photo of the faceplates. The upper left is the KX-200, the upper right is the FM-200-B and the lower faceplate is a spare for a KX-200.

The brass-tone is bright and deep on the FM-200-B, I find. The KX-200 is a little faded (or just "greyish" as one forum member described). The spare KX-200 faceplate below may or may not be brass-toned at all. I read about a "champagne" finish that was on some Fishers, but this one could also just be a silver/aluminum finish. Not sure.

Anyway, the real goal for me was to have the KX-200 looking like the FM-200-B but perhaps that's just not possible.
 

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All anodized aluminium, one goldtone, one silvertone and one in between or goldtone but different lighting. the x100-B in my avatar is along the goldtone lines ,
 
ferninando said:
All anodized aluminium, one goldtone, one silvertone and one in between or goldtone but different lighting. the x100-B in my avatar is along the goldtone lines ,
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Yea, it's that "in between" one that bugs me a bit. Trust me, it's not just the lighting... the difference you see is the exact reason I started the thread.

I was talking to a Fisher collector today who speculated (as a previous forum member had) that perhaps KX-series amps were a lighter shade than K-series. I went home to look for a gold-toned X-200 to see if it was, in fact, darker than the KX-200 but could only find photos of silver-toned.

Well, anyway, I'm not worried about it, really -- more just curious about it all at this point.
 
anodize will change color somewhat over time I think so maybe thats what has happened to the silvertone shaded one. could be atmosphereic, sun lite exposure. who knows?
 
If you've got three decent faceplates, I think that's as close to perfect as you can get.

I suspect that Fisher used more than one manufacturer to make their faceplates. It's the same with the knob brights. I've noted seven different styles and variations of styles within a model run. So, I've seen 500-Cs with more than one knob bright style.

The top right is a champagne brushed aluminum faceplate.
You're fortunate. Some champagne faceplates had their champagne color put on with a lacquer coating. For that type, I've never seen an undamaged faceplate. Finger oil damaged around the volume knobs and other frequently used knobs on the lacquer champagne front panels.
Yours, at least, is champagne colored brushed aluminum.

The real brass faceplates are brass colored. You see them in the TA series, such as the TA-600, and also my early production Fisher X-1000 integrated. Fisher turned away from the solid brass look and towards brushed aluminum at the end of 1961.
 
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Anodize color will change also depending upon dirty/old electrolyte and based upon concentration. I had some pieces gold-anodized in Detroit a long time ago and was less than pleased to see just how greenish and brassy it looked.
 
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Would this be safe to use on a 500B faceplate? Label says it's safe for clear coat on cars.
 
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I also say yes. Don't concentrate on the lettering when leaning in with the cleaner/wax.
Also, a magic eraser is good for hard-to-remove smudges. Again, mind the lettering.
 
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