Repairing Glass Globe Bases
Several months ago a good friend of mine and fellow collector, Dave Bowers, who lives not far from me, brought a Cities Service clover shaped globe by for me to look at. He had repaired the heavily damaged base and wanted me to sell it for him. I was greatly impressed by the repair Dave had done on the base. For years I have been asked by countless collectors, “what is the best way to repair a broken glass base?”
I have seen many different base repairs in my years in the hobby which includes using Bondo, fiberglass, plaster, epoxy, resins and other types of repair material. Some of these were great and some of these were not so great. Years ago, I met a gentleman who looked at a damaged White Eagle I had sitting on a shelf and he told me he could repair that globe with resins and I would never see the repair whether the globe was lit up or not. I did believe him, but he was too involved in his own hobby to spend his talents in ours.
No doubt there are people out there who can repair any damaged glass, whether that is a base or a bb hole, and their work is good. The problem is they are in such demand that our hobby has had very little luck in finding such people. There was such a lady I corresponded with years ago but she got too busy working with museums and became unreliable. That was too bad because she was incredibly talented.
Years ago I wrote an article and stated that someday globes could be repaired with actual glass and that you would never know they were broken, such as filling in bb holes, broken bases, cracks, etc. That day is not here yet but someday it will be.
So, Dave’s method may not be the best but until someone finds a better way it’s a workable option and looks pretty darn good.
I am sure other collectors have tried this method or a similar way but I thought I would share this technique with PCM readers. Now, to be clear, I have not tried this process myself but plan to do so very soon.
Follow the photos here of the NOS original paint Bristolville Oil and Gas globe from beginning to end. I forgot to photograph the globe showing the broken base before we started but can easily picture a very long base chip as I’m sure you have seen many! This globe was a perfect example to use for this repair. Circa early 1920s, along with about four other Bristolville one piece globes, it was pulled from an old building in Bristolville, Ohio, back in the late 1970s/early 1980s, if I remember that right. I believe the globe was damaged during the extraction from what I recall. The globe was never used but the base was damaged about one quarter or more inch high and about eight inches long. The globe would still stand on its own, and the chip was not high, just very long. It was such a shame to see the chip there on such a great piece. Yes, you could put it in a collar and that would take care of the problem, but I wanted to do something better.
So I gave the globe to Dave and about three weeks later he gave it back to me. The base was repaired. I let it dry for a few more weeks, painted the repair white, and lightly sanded it to smooth it out more, then used friction tape to wrap the base of the globe.
Here is what Dave did. First, he used a special Dremel tool to very carefully rough up the damaged edge of the base so the epoxy would stick to it easier. Then the base was cleaned with alcohol. Dave used “Pam cooking spray” to spray the good part of the base so the plaster would not stick to it. Basically, Dave took some Plaster of Paris and made a mold of the good side of the base. He used cardboard to “dam up” the plaster as it formed around the good base. Keep in mind he had to do the outer edge form of the base as well as the inside edge form of the base. Plaster of Paris hardens in about an hour according to Dave. Once dried you basically shift the plaster mold around to the damaged side of the base. He also had to place some “Pam” on the newly formed molds so the epoxy would not stick to them and could be removed later. The inside forms are held into place naturally, the outer forms can be held on the base by any simple means. Next, Dave got some of that clear drying epoxy that you mix together and poured that into the plaster molds. Once they are filled to the top edge, make sure they are filled evenly with the base line of the good part of the base. After drying several hours, Dave removed the plaster forms and was now ready to work with the finished base. At this point not much sanding was needed. You will be amazed at how perfect the repaired base looks. It looks perfect because it’s a duplicate of the good base!
As I stated above, I let the base dry for several more days as it was still malleable when I got it back. Then I painted it white, mixing in a little black paint to give a more grayish tint to match the old glass better. Then, I bought some friction tape from my local hardware store and wrapped the finished base of the globe just like it would have been done when the globe was new. This covers up any color difference in the new versus old base and also the faint lines where the glass and new epoxy meet. Not all companies used friction tape on their bases, yet many did, from three piece glass to one piece. I have several in my collection with friction tape on bases. So your globe, especially one in NOS or near mint condition, will look just as it did leaving the factory a long time ago!
This repair would work on any one piece or glass globe. Fixing a $150 glass frame would probably not be worth the trouble but rarer and older globes would.
I hope I didn’t miss any steps here! I plan to try this out for myself in the very near future and I’ll let you know how it goes. Also, I feel the value of the globe would increase quite a bit on a repair job done this well. This also opens up opportunity to buy broken base globes at a great discount if you now know you can make it look great and help its value at the same time!
Now, if we can just figure out how to repair globes with holes or chunks out of their sides!
By the way, Dave may be willing to fix your globe if you are not in a hurry. He’s a very busy guy but enjoys doing such repairs. Just let me know and I’ll put you in touch with him. If not, try it yourself and please let us know how it goes. Good luck!
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