The Parking Meter Page
Parking Meter Restoration Tips

I often receive email from folks looking for advise on how to go about restoring their parking meter. While I'm certainly no expert, I've already done a parking meter restoration, and maybe some of what I learned will be of use to you. Perhaps even save you some time and headaches. The following tips apply specifically to Park-O-Meter brand meters, but some items would probably be useful regardless of brand. Tips are grouped into three categories: the parking meter housing, locks and keys (including winding cranks), and the mechanism.

Housing:
If you plan to do a first rate restoration, you'll probably want to refinish the housing. Start by completely disassembling the housing. Remove the mechanism, the locks, all glass, and unpainted pieces (usually made of stainless steel). To really do it right, remove the hinge pin and both doors. The hinge pin is held in place with a hex-head set screw accessible from inside the housing. If your meter is an automatic, also remove the rubber boot where the winding crank goes into the back of the housing.

Once you have the housing apart, either sand it thoroughly or use some form of chemical stripper to remove the old finish. Don't sandblast the housing components; there is a good chance the heat generated by blasting will warp the thinner parts of the housing, and the doors won't fit properly afterwards. If you use paint stripper, you'll want to sand everything after removing the old finish. Once that's done, you're ready to repaint.

Aerosol paints are fine. Just use a good quality paint such as Krylon. You'll get a better final finish if you apply a coat of primer first. I recommend a light grey primer. Once the primer has dried thoroughly, sand it lightly. Then either use compressed air to blow any dust off, or wipe everything down with a tack rag (available where automotive paints are sold).

Several original colors were used over the years including light grey, silver or aluminum, light blue metallic, and a dark grey metallic. Regardless of the original color, you should be able to match it closely with aerosol automotive touch-up enamels.

It's better to apply several light coats than one heavy coat. If done right, you can get great results with a spray can.

Once you have the meter painted, set it aside to dry thoroughly while you work on all the pieces that attach to the housing. Clean both sides of all glass. Clean and polish any stainless steel components, including fasteners. Jeweler's rouge and a cotton buffing wheel on a bench grinder can work wonders on stainless steel and unpainted aluminum. For any plastic pieces such as Lexan windows, Novus makes several grades of polish that will clean and remove scratches.

Glass windows were probably sealed originally with some type of putty. I might have been window glazing compound. At any rate, you can get butyl rubber putty tape at an RV dealer that works great as a replacement. Lay it in the groove surrounding the window openings, and install the glass. Work your way around the glass, tightening the retainers evenly. The putty tape will squeeze out from under the glass into the window opening. You can trim the excess from the outside with an X-Acto knife. Do the same thing with the small round windows that show the last couple of coins inserted.

Locks & Keys:
Don't bother trying to contact the manufacturer for keys. They probably won't provide them.

If your meter is already unlocked, you can remove the tumblers from the top lock and use an uncut Chicago key blank to lock and unlock the meter.

For coin box locks (usually Ace locks), if your meter is already unlocked and you just need a key, remove the lock and take it to a locksmith. He might be able to make a key to fit it. Or, if you're not just married to the idea of using original locks, your locksmith can probably sell you a new lock that looks the same for ten to fifteen dollars.

If the coin box is locked, you'll have to take the whole meter to the locksmith. You can let him try to pick the lock and make a key, but more then likely he can drill the old lock out and replace it with a new one at a lower cost.

If your Park-O-Meter is an automatic model, it will eventually need to be wound. You could try to get a new winding crank, but if you have a way into the top of the meter, you don't need a crank. Open the top of the meter and locate the winding stem on the back of the mechanism (facing up when the upper housing is open). It's about 3/16" square, and has a slight taper at the end. Use a small crescent wrench to wind the meter COUNTERCLOCKWISE. If you use a small enough crescent wrench, you can do this with the mechanism in the housing. Otherwise, remove the mechanism to wind it.

Mechanism:
If your mechanism appears to be working properly, it's best to just give it a good cleaning, unless you really understand how it works. A little degreaser or WD-40 goes a long way in cleaning dirt, grime and oil from all the gears, levers and shafts inside the mechanism. Fortunately, the works are fairly well exposed, and you should be able to get to just about everything without disassembling the mechanism.

If you really want to do it up right, you can take the mechanism apart, and clean & polish all the parts contained within. But be forewarned: some parts are really tough to figure out how to install without another complete mechanism to refer to. But if you think you're up to it, give it a try. Just go slow, and pay attention to how things fit when you take them out. Make sketches or take Polaroids to help when you go back together. Don't depend on your memory here. It's not worth it.

Before you start taking the mechanism apart, run the mainspring down. If you look at the front of the mechanism, you can figure out how to trip the coin accepter with a small screwdriver. There is probably a better way to run the mechanism down, but this works. When you remove the mainspring assembly, just clean the outside of the drum and carefully set it aside. Don't try to take the mainspring apart! Trust me...

Now, if your mechanism doesn't appear to be working properly, you have a few choices. You can just clean it up, put it back in, and have a non-working meter. Or you can try to figure out what's wrong and fix it yourself. Or, you can have someone else fix it. Remember, the mechanism is really just a coin-operated clock. If you can find a real, live, honest-to-God clockmaker, he can probably fix it. He can probably even make replacement parts for a lot what's in it. But, it may not be worth it to you. Another possibility is to become friends with the folks who maintain the parking meters where you live. If you're lucky, there is still someone around who remembers how to work on mechanical meters.

The Parking Meter Page Parking Meter Restoration Tips

The Parking Meter Page
Parking Meter Restoration Tips