It is scorching hot here today 38 C, a good day to stay indoors in AC comfort. So, we saw the problems of this Meck helme in the first posting. I invited responses from members as to how they would solve the main problem which is of course the fact that the kugel base has cut completely through the top of the shell. Leone came closest to my solution, by suggesting leather should be glued to the inside of the shell. This is essentially what I did. Here are some fotos of the process:
First a pic showing us again what we are dealing with.
Using the spike base support disc as a template, I traced out the patch on a thin piece of leather. I had to cut the leather because it was buckling and not sitting flush on the top of the shell.
Next contact cement was applied to both pieces.
The top and patch have been glued together. Notice I am using the flesh side of the patch because if gives more grip to the glue, than the smooth hair side. I have no choice on the shell top because the original finish is always sprayed on the flesh side for the exact same reason...GRIP.
Next, the patch and top had to be glued into place inside the shell. Because the support disc is larger than the kugel base, we have a narrow circular strip on the patch where it can be glued to the shell. Two support discs and some star screws were used to clamp everything tight while the glue dried. Things look a bit off centre here but this will be put right later on.
After 24 hrs of drying time, the top is now back in place. Next, multiple coats of new finish were added to the the circular cut so as to fill it in and give more support to the kugel. This part of the process is ongoing so a final picture will be posted later.
The front visor has now been stitched back on. The rear visor, which has been glued on will be the subject of another posting. One coat of shoe polish has been applied to the stitch line, more is needed to fill in the slight damage that is done when the old thread is removed and new is put in.
First a pic showing us again what we are dealing with.
Using the spike base support disc as a template, I traced out the patch on a thin piece of leather. I had to cut the leather because it was buckling and not sitting flush on the top of the shell.
Next contact cement was applied to both pieces.
The top and patch have been glued together. Notice I am using the flesh side of the patch because if gives more grip to the glue, than the smooth hair side. I have no choice on the shell top because the original finish is always sprayed on the flesh side for the exact same reason...GRIP.
Next, the patch and top had to be glued into place inside the shell. Because the support disc is larger than the kugel base, we have a narrow circular strip on the patch where it can be glued to the shell. Two support discs and some star screws were used to clamp everything tight while the glue dried. Things look a bit off centre here but this will be put right later on.
After 24 hrs of drying time, the top is now back in place. Next, multiple coats of new finish were added to the the circular cut so as to fill it in and give more support to the kugel. This part of the process is ongoing so a final picture will be posted later.
The front visor has now been stitched back on. The rear visor, which has been glued on will be the subject of another posting. One coat of shoe polish has been applied to the stitch line, more is needed to fill in the slight damage that is done when the old thread is removed and new is put in.
Great job, would like to see all steps of restoring and final results.
