Kaiser-Willys-Jeep Sign Restoration

On March 10, 2010, I won an ebay auction for a neon Kaiser Willys Jeep sign. After talking with the person selling the sign, it was from the Hensz Garage that was located on the West End of Port Jervis, NY. John Hensz owned the garage from the late 1920's up until his death in 1980. While the garage mainly did repair work, John also sold cars. The garage still exists. It is now known as the West End Garage. The garage did blow up in 2009 from a gas tank explosion, but has since has been rebuilt from the ground up.

The sign was not in working condition. The transformer was missing and the neon section for "JEEP" was broken at one of the E's. Because of the missing pieces, the goal was to restore it in a condition where it could be safely displayed. The other goal was to determine the color of the broken "JEEP" section to restore it to the same color scheme as original. I took this sign to Affordable Signs and Neon in Frederick, MD for the restoration. They restored my AMC-era Jeep sign and did a great job.

(* Click on image to see larger versions. *)

One of the E's was broken for the JEEP neon section	Analysis of this neon section showed that the original color was blue.
Putting the plan for making the JEEP neon section on paper	Comparing the plan with the old JEEP neon section
The glass tube is compared to the plan as each of the bends are made.	Checking the tube.
Marking the glass for where the tube needs to bend	Using the torch to bend the glass tube
Applying paint to the new JEEP section of neon	The new JEEP section painted

The rest of the old working neon was cleaned and repainted. A new back board was constructed so the neon can be installed. A new transformer was also used.

IT'S ALIVE!

Photo of the sign in the dark.

The sign came out beautifully! If you are looking to have a sign restored (or even have one made), I highly recommend Affordable Signs and Neon at http://www.signsandneon.com/. They do great work! And I want to thank Charlie and the guys down there for helping me save a piece of Jeep history!