The surplus wreck Dalton is now refurbished, quite the transformation from what it was :)
The machine was cleaned inside and outside. The brightwork was de-rusted and all outer parts re-painted. With a few small repairs to its mechanism too, it can now be properly called: refurbished.
To complete the refurbishment (or restoration), the front and rear panels were re-painted and new gold decals applied. The number-keys were replaced, and as final-step fitted with new rubber feet.
Panels with decals
After some hesitation, also the front and rear panels were stripped down to bare metal.
These panels have the gold lettering with the Dalton logo. The front decal had been severely degraded, but the rear had fared a bit better. Both in the end were removed to re-paint the panels in gloss black.
There is some variation in the exact shape of the Dalton script logo on machines. Suppliers of these decals maybe made their own cliches for this - or the Dalton company was simply 'vague' on an exact script.
Just picked one design of the mid 1920s and created reproduction decals. The lettering on this front decal should have been a tad smaller, and the second-line should've been slightly smaller than the first. But as Dalton varied their decals too, deemed good-enough.
Decals printed on waterslide transfer paper as previous projects, filled with gold-paint and then applied. More softening-liquid and a lacquer clear-coat will make the film less visible. Viewed from the front it is already quite passable.
New number-keys
The wreck had ended up with the worn and damaged keys. To complete the refurbishment, a new set of number-keys were manufactured. Copies of the designs were modelled in CAD (FreeCAD).
These designs were then 3D printed in FDM with a 0.4 mm nozzle, so fairly rough and fast prints - printing with a fine nozzle or printing in resin would create much finer detail. Even though these are relatively 'cheap-n-cheerful' replacement keys, they do look the part already.
Visible layering at the top-surface was of course sanded smooth and the keys were painted off-white. They were already printed in white PLA material, but an extra layer or two of paint makes them more opaque and also smoothens any remaining layering. The lettering was filled with red and black paint.
There are some minor mistakes in these keys so they may yet be replaced with slightly better copies, but for now they'll do.
(The 'clear-signal' indicator just above the keyboard here shows that 4 digits have been entered. This indicator was also given a new, laser-printed legend and the yellowed celluloid window replaced with a clear acrylic reproduction.)
New feet
From images in contemporary publications, these Dalton Super Model machines would have come with rubber feet.
These feet were a little larger than the metal 'stub' and look as if less than half their diameter in height. The 'stub' at ~23 mm diameter, the factory-fitted feet were likely one inch diameter and, say, perhaps 7/16" in height.
Online there's a wide range of rubber feet - a set of 25 mm x 10 mm feet were sourced and screwed to the machine. It sits very solid, no skidding! It also transmits the sound very well into a table; definitely louder than the makeshift cork feet. Dalton's are loud machines. (Cork could've been a good choice for feet after all!)
Refurbished Dalton Adding Machine
This is the simplest, lowest cost 100-dollar 'Special' of the Super Model range. As such it is a fairly common and perhaps not very interesting machine. Indeed, these Daltons are today not very desirable or valuable; it's debatable if this was 'worth the effort'
Nevertheless it's historic digital-technology and an example of the state of office automation of 100 years ago. More than a photograph or document, it can be experienced and operated. As such it perhaps is worth preserving - plus of course that it simply was an enjoyable project!
(As always; after completing the process, then there is the insight in how it should have been done. A next Dalton refurbishment will be done better ;-)
