Doing rapid pace resto on a $190.00 Grandma Bear,question about surface pitting.

Using the stove like we did for years using the top for cooking and a humidifier kettle required a sanding and repainting the top each year. I was contemplating a quick coat of stove black when it was at its coolest to keep it looking good all winter. I'm glad I decided against it. Stove polish is almost impossible to remove. I've wire wheeled, sanded and wiped with mineral spirits and even lacquer thinner. Warmed it up and wipe and a rag still comes up black. Since you only need to remove it from the top, you can try a propane torch like you're removing paint. It is not a super high heat coating. It removes much easier from smooth steel than rough cast iron which it is for. Polish also allows water right through and is the main reason why paint is much better. Once you're convinced you have as much removed as possible, I like to use brush-able paint first and let it thicken in a small open container. Then apply it to the top with a plastic auto body filler spreader. Even a piece of stiff cardboard. It will fill the holes easily, allow to dry and lightly sand with a finish sander until as flat as possible before painting. After 2 coats and firing you shouldn't be able to see any signs of the pitting.

That model won't have a factory baffle like the later model III Grandma, so baffle it correctly before using and you'll have a good experience with a much warmer house than you're used to.

Agreed, affects of aging can look normal on a Grandma, but your Honey Bear is another story !

Bark Brown was available from some fabricators on all early stoves before the double doors.
Here's a thread with an article in the employee newsletter from Forrest Paints with the story of adding color to stove paint for Fisher making the first high temp paint other than black;
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/fisher-had-a-better-idea-brown.120797/

The later brown with glass door models is Metallic Brown. (Not Honey Glo) Still made by the same Forrest Paints under the Stove Bright brand.

Brochures and posters only show Metallic Brown on glass door stoves and Inserts and I've never seen a Metallic Brown solid door stove.
Here's a good example of Metallic Brown on a Honey Bear in sun light. Bark Brown is very flat and much darker.



Bark Brown on Mama Bear ready to cure paint;

This stove was painted black when I bought it and I found the brown under the newer coat of paint. The sides at the bottom and legs where it doesn't get hot were in good shape under the new paint. Someone had stove blacked the cast iron door so I continue to black it as needed.



Here is the finished product in my kitchen that heated my house one season (1880 s.f.) but it was a mild winter (2011) or I would have needed to move a Papa into it's place since it was the only heat source.



Notice the fridge behind it about 5 feet away. This is the stove that soured the milk in the door overnight and I drew on the side with chalk where a baffle inside would deflect the heat forward. When first lit, I noticed a drastic smoke reduction and realized how similar it was to the factory baffle in later double door models. With a little fine tuning it was able to heat the area I needed it to.

Yeah, that's an antique all aluminum Black and Decker grinder / polisher. Low RPM but a knotted wheel is the most aggressive and cleans large flat areas quick.



The cup brush and flat wheels in a drill I use for details on the cast iron doors and antique stoves. Finishing a Atlanta Box 27 today.

Here's my next project I scored on eBay last night for a penny cheaper; 189.99 with shipping !



One side lights up, the other side could be as simple as a bulb;

Careful what you buy for handles if you want the correct shape. There are many spring handles close but not the original shape. The original shape is the Large Handle #RH-LDN (nickel) or RH-LDB (brass) from Woodman's. You probably want nickel that was normally used with black doors with aluminum color draft cap edges. Brass was used on "Brass and Glass" or brass plated doors and looks out of place on anything else.