In the 60's the U.C. Berkeley campus outdoor cafe was outfitted with Bertoia wire chairs. Late one night at the tender age of 17 me and my sister pilfered two them. I'v had them ever since. They spent a fair amount of time outside and now hae numerous breaks in some welds. I at one point had someone re-weld some of the breaks but it was not well done. I need to know how to go about getting the original plastic dip off so I can have them properly repaired. Also, will powder coat be a solution once the welds are repaired? My local powder coat guy felt sandblasting was not the solution for removing the original finish.
Hazelnut
If your local powder-coat guy
can't answer those questions himself, you need to find another local powder-coat guy.
There are tons of shops in the Bay Area that can strip the old nylon off the chairs, weld the breaks, and do the powdercoating. A good shop shouldn't need any input from you except your credit card number and color choice.
Bertoia refurb
I no longer live in the Bay area, but rather in somewhat of a hamlet in western Washington. Not so many choices in powder coat folks, though the work done for me so far has been good.
I am still wondering, given that the original chairs were nylon dipped and not powder coated, how will powdercoating them hold up? Lots of flex in these chairs. Who does the nylon dip? Appreciate any info.
Powdercoat
Chairs can be dipped in the nylon or they can be powdercoated with it:
http://www.arkema-inc.com/technical-polymers/rilsan-fine-powders/rilsan-...
You could contact Parker...
You could contact Parker Knoll about the chairs? They might be able to help.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Parker-Knoll-Harry-Bertoia-Dining-Room...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Parker-Knoll-Harry-Bertoia-Dining-Room...
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