However, the strength and moldability of the substance, combined with the low cost of producing the material, made it ideal for manufacturing. In , Bakelite was introduced to the general public at a chemical conference. Interest in the plastic was immediate.
Bakelite was used to manufacture everything from telephone handsets and costume jewelry to bases and sockets for lights bulbs to automobile engine parts and washing machine components.
Fittingly, when Baekeland founded the Bakelite Corp, the company adopted a logo that incorporated the sign for infinity and a tag line that read "The Material of a Thousand Uses. Over time, Baekeland obtained about patents relating to his creation. By , his company occupied a acre plant in New Jersey. The material fell out of favor, however, because of adaptive issues.
Bakelite was fairly brittle in its pure form. To make it more malleable and durable, it was strengthened with additives. Unfortunately, the additives dulled the hue colorized Bakelite.
When other plastics that followed were found to hold their color better, Bakelite was abandoned. Baekeland, the man who ushered in the age of plastic , died at the age of 80 in Beacon, NY in Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content.
Create a personalised content profile. Also, look for tiny chips on the edges of carvings. Examine the piece with a jeweler's loupe or another type of magnifier, if needed. Generally, an old piece of Bakelite will exhibit some minor scratching and wear, even if it is in excellent condition by a collector's standards and may be quite valuable. Also, keep in mind that Bakelite will not have mold seams that can be present in other types of plastic jewelry.
With some practice, you'll learn to use all your senses to correctly identify Bakelite. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads.
Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Tapping Items Together. Identifying by Weight. The Smell Test. Using Simichrome Polish. Continue to 5 of 6 below. Using Formula Cleaner. Inspect the Piece Closely. Featured Video. Bakelite was the first thermosetting plastic. That means once a Bakelite product is formed, it will not change shape or melt under heat. Plastics formed from other formulas can be reshaped after reheating or will burst into flame if reheated.
Bakelite was first used as insulators against heat and electricity. As ways were found to manufacture Bakelite in bright colors, it began to be used for all sorts of decorative objects, especially jewelry. Although Bakelite was the trade name of the first thermosetting phenolic resin, it was not the only one. Other important trade or brand names include Catalin, Marblette, Prystal, Phenolia and a number of others. Since brand names rarely appear on the products, collectors generally use "Bakelite" to refer to all of the thermosetting phenolic resins, not just to the Bakelite brand products and that's how we'll use the term.
Throughout this article, "Bakelite" will refer to all phenolic resin pieces regardless of their original brand name. One of the keys to identifying original Bakelite is to understand how it was manufactured. Modern hard plastics which are often confused with Bakelite, were generally produced by injecting or pouring a liquid resin into a mold which produced the final product.
In other words, to get a dog pin, you'd pour plastic into a dog-shaped mold. The mold would create all the details of the finished product such as fur, eyes, collar, etc. When the mold was opened, the final piece was essentially ready for sale. Bakelite was very rarely molded into individual pieces of finished jewelry. The great majority of Bakelite jewelry was made by hand from stock shapes of raw material. Bakelite's unique properties lent itself to extrusion casting.
If you wanted to make bracelets, for example, you'd extrude a long tube with the rough shape Fig. Workers would then slice off various widths from the tube, decorate, and polish them by hand. The buckles in Fig. Because decorating was done by hand, special designs and small custom orders could easily be made without the overhead of expensive molds required by hard plastics.
Anyone could buy the raw Bakelite material and small studios and amateurs could afford to experiment with their own jewelry designs. Unlike other plastics, authentic Bakelite oxidizes over the years developing a patina which changes the surface color.
Exposure to sunlight, body fluids, cosmetics and other factors contribute to patinas and color changes associated with normal age and wear. An example of typical color change is shown in Fig. Normal oxidation provides a valuable clue whether a suspected piece is true Bakelite phenolic resin or a look-alike material.
All true Bakelite, regardless of surface color Figs. Look-alike materials such as modern hard plastics, will not leave any color on the swab or will leave a smear the same the color as the plastic blue plastic will leave a blue smear, etc. All the testing products cause eye and skin irritation and should be used carefully; rubber gloves are recommended. Use a tiny amount of material; it doesn't take much. Apply to a small, hidden area such as the back side of a pin or inside of a bracelet.
Scrubbing Bubbles can dull the original finish; Simichrome will leave the tested area with a higher shine; leave the surface virtually unchanged and is the best choice. Most non-Bakelite products are not affected by the products, but you should always be careful and carefully wash and wipe dry all tested areas to prevent any possible long-term changes.
The swab test is effective on virtually all Bakelite. The most common exceptions are pieces of genuine Bakelite that have recently been completely polished or cleaned and the original patina has been removed. Certain colors, particularly black and some reds, can also occasionally give confusing results.
Another easy, simple test is to place a suspected piece under hot water from your household faucet. Hold the piece so an edge is in the middle of the flow.
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