Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion OLD globe frame

OK, I am new to this hobby and I need some advice so I dont destroy my globe. This frame has the snap ring holding the glass lens in and I need to disassemble so I can start prepping for sandblasting. Are there any tips on getting this snapring out? This frame is covered in many coats of paint and the glass lenses are extremely rare and old and to break them would REALLY mess things up. Is removing the snap ring as easy and doing a little paint scraping and carefully pulling it out with needle nose pliers?

thanks in advance

I was removing a snap ring a few days ago and it went flying and landed on the other lens I had just removed. Luckily no damage. So I am not going to give you any advice. Wait and see what Jarvis says, he is the expert.

A picture of it would be nice...

So we could see what you are dealing with. There is alot globe guys here that can help you out!!!


Randy

I'm not a globe guy. That being said, I would spend a couple of bucks and buy myself some "real" snap ring pliers if you don't have a pair.

You guys are funny.

Bigtom,
Lets start with the rings. Are they painted in? Meaning is there a ton of paint on them to the body or the ring to the lens?
If not, Lay the globe on a big bath towel. This keeps even pressure on the other lens while you are working on it. I use a small screw driver and start at one end. It's best to have another set of hands as i have seen these thing fly! Flip over and do the other side.

Installing them are a little more difficult. There is an alignment mark on the bottom of the glass and a dimple that sticks up on the body. These have to to aligned up. Be careful the blaster doesn't warp the body. When you lay the lens back in place it should not rock very much at all. When someone drops one it really racks one and if the lenses rock then when the snap ring goes in you take a big chance of cracking a lens. If the bottom "v" cut in the lens doesn't align up with the dimple on the body you will snap a lens. When the lens goes in it makes a good snapping sound... which will about scare the dodo out of you but after a few it won't bother you any more. LOL
Good luck.

Getting the snap rings off a metal body still scares me when i do it. The biggest thing is take your time when taking them out, and use both hands. What works for me is I use a butter knife I know its sounds stupid but it works for me. Anyway I get one side where the two ends meet to start coming out and i hold pressure on the rest of the snap ring with my other hand. This keeps it from flying out and landing on the lens. Jarvis or Roger probably has a better way this way just works for me. Good luck and take your time

see i knew jarvis had a better way LOL

When replacing the ring I wrap the end w/ a few strands of Dental Floss & wrapped around a finger to EASE it into place [I hate the Snap sound], then remove the Floss. Dental Floss also works on getting ring out [never felt good using a screwdriver].
I have scratched ID marks [1 & 2 or A & B]inside bodies & tape'd corresponding letters/#'s to the lens that came off that side for later replacing.

When you lay the lens back in place it shouldn't rock at all.
I think this what John meant to say.

So WE can see what it looks like BEFORE you removed a Snap Ring!
NOT LOL

Yes did... i for got the "not" and went back and put it in right after the fact. LOL
It's hard to get one not to rock at all. the ones i have done have just a little movement but zero is the best.

I like to lay the globe on a couch or soft surface so the bottom lens doesn't get broken.
I use a very small flat screwdriver and start prying one end of the snap ring from it's seat on the body. I cup my free hand over the ring so it can't get away. Once the end of the ring is out enough to get a hold of, pull it towards the center of the globe and rotate it out of the body. It's usually very easy.
Something you need to watch out for is a lens that fits sloppy in the body will sometimes allow the ring to drop between the edge of the lens and the body and become wedged. If that happens you can chip or break the lens trying to get the ring out.

[img:center]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t17/ksutom/globedetail2.jpg?t=1296926129[/img]

[img:center]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t17/ksutom/globedetail1.jpg?t=1296926204[/img]

[img:center]http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t17/ksutom/globe.jpg?t=1296926250[/img]

Well, here she is - the cherry for the top of my project. There are a few spots of paint on the snap ring, but none that covers it completely onto the glass lens. IMO it is mostly left over dirt and grime.

I had a thought, I think that when the time comes, I will just silicone the glass back in. Will it be totally original? Nope, but I cant think about the sick feeling in my stomach if I crack one of these lenses.

Thanks for the info. I am going to wait for a bit until I hear any other warnings before I pull the snapring.

That is a cool looking globe.

With all that old paint on the globe body, I would use some paint stripper to remove the biggest part of it first! JJ was right in that you don't want to warp it with the sand blaster! Also, mark the lenses so that you put them back into the same sides. All lenses don't fit into a globe body the same and that goes for side to side applications. When you're ready to reinstall, look for that rocking motion and be careful if you find it. I have spent a couple of hours work on a globe body in order to get the lenses "balanced" into the frame. As for using silicone, thats OK but you don't get the same look as with the rings but better to be safe if you don't feel confident installing them. Theres lots of tricks and Dick Bennetts dental floss is a very good one. Good luck and put some pictures up when you have finished the project!!---KEVIN

UPDATE:
I noticed that one lens shimmied just the smallest bit, so I very gently started at the snapring with an old worn down flat head (so the sharp edges didn't cause any undu pressure - did it make a difference? Who knows) and the first side came right out. You know that wasn't the case for the other side. After a few love taps from the out side, some perspiration and persistence I get the pain in the backside lens out too. This globe sat somewhere 1/4 buried in clay, because I had to soak both lenses in plain hot water for about an hour each, then softly brushed with a toothbrush until all the nasty came off. THRILLED with the results! The frame is sitting with that orange paint stripper on it and the original color was actually a darkish royal blue. I'm pretty excited about the results thus far.