At Oakland Signcraft, we enjoy bringing things back to life and often learn some interesting stories along the way!

One of recent Projects was the restoration of a classis Dinner Farm Bell. We learned it is a Size #2 Bell, which has about a 15" Diameter. It had a lot of flaking paint, some corrosion and all the fasteners were corroded beyond use.

We started by Sandblasting everything to remove the Rust

After that we gave it a coat of Epoxy Powder Primer Coat. This helps smooth things out a bit and is critical for long life

Lastly a Top Coat of Powder Coat, We chose a Satin Black for the Bell Frame and a Whiskey Bronze for the Bell and some new stainless hardware. It looks Great!

We always like to learn some of the history behind our Projects. We discovered this was a Class 2 Bell, that's the size. It was manufactured by the CS Bell Company in Hillsboro Ohio, somewhere between 1890 and 1920, so for sure over 100 years old. The CS Bell company was founded by Charles Singleton Bell in 1875. Ironic that the largest Bell manufacturing company in the US was started by a guy named Bell. I guess his lot in life was chosen early! One of his accomplishements was the devlopment of a unique metal alloy. This gives the bell its clear crisp tone and was trademarked with the name of Crystal Metal. This cast into the frame and an indicator of the authenticty of the bell and can be clearly seen in our bell. In Hillsboro Ohio there remains a summer Festival of Bells to celebrate the heritage. Its always fun and interesting to learn about what we are working on. If you have a Bell or another unique item you woudl like tio see come back to life, let us take a look!