Cleaning Tips( salt-salt & more salt)

[Tony Malatesta]

Hi guys! Need a little help with the finer details of cleaning old reels. I'm sure this issue has been discussed before but since i've been a member for less than 1 year i haven't come across to much info. I'm aware of the vinager/water mix and using paint thinner for some light corrosion, but my concern is mainly with heavy salt encrusted reels. Any help will be appreciated. Many thank's in advance.

[Brian F.]

Unfortunately, if a reel already has any green on it, there may also be some pitting to the finish. If it is as heavy as you mentioned, encrusted, more than likely there will be some pretty good sized craters left after you remove the green stuff.

I just try to avoid getting into the situation of needing to clean a reel like that by passing altogether. But, if you need to make the best of a bad situation, I like non-toxic stuff. To remove that chalky green junk, I have not used anything other than diluted or straight vinegar but you can also use anything from a sonicator (Steve's fave) to amonia. Using the search function, you can find lots of previous discussions on what others like to use.

[Tony Malatesta]

Hi Brian! I,ve seen this sonicator mentioned before. What is it? And if it works, where can i get one? Thank's! Canadian

[Harvey]

When all else fails, Go to the hardware store, buy a spray can of "Hunter Green" paint and spray the entire reel. List it on E-bay as an un-catalogued model that was made for somebody famous. That way you can recoupe the cost of the paint. Brian is correct. I try to shy away from reels that look like grass is growing on them but a soulution of 50/50 vinagar and water works well and is not toxic.
Here is a link to a lot of ultrasonic cleaners:

http://orcaonline.org/images/pixel.gif?htm
"H"

[SWIM JIG]

cool-thumb yay-banana USA Tony, and all the rest of the reel folks!Stay away from salt incrusted reels, when they get that wat a galvonic action starts to work! unless the reel has no metal in or on it salt will destroy all metal parts! period! when you see that white stuf! it aint snow,its a cancer to all metal! The salt eats into the finish, locks up the gears, destroys springs, desolves screws and other fastners! In reality the reel may make a good sinker! Run , kick , scream , however dont waste your hard earned wages on white powder! I just had a 30S penn, in for service, It belonged to a Ohio Club member that bought it new and used it in Florida this summer for 2 weeks he washed it off after each use! Then the reel clamp fell off, the screws that broke off in the frame had to be driled out, the stanless steel gears were rusty, the springs were gone, and the thing was a mess, after $32.00 at my cost in parts 4 days of soaking in mineral spirts and removing the nice metal eating white powder, replacing the parts and properly relubing its working again, however the finish is pocked marked in that gold finish! Again if he wasent a friend that reel would still be in his junk pile! The same advise stand (KEEP AWAY FROM SALT DAMAGED REELS)! Your Ohio Conection On Lake Erie Col. M. Lorens aka SWIM JIG

[ak-fish]

Almost all of the reels that come into my reel repair shop have at least some corrosion. The best thing I've found is stuff called Salt-X or its clone, Salt Away. Both are non-toxic and appear to have no effect other than to get rid of corrosion. Salt-X, at least, is avaialble online. Another product that works well but requires rubber gloves is CLR, a household chemical found in most grocery stores.

It's not true that the presence of green necessarily means that the metal is pock marked. It often is, but not always.

If your reels are dirty or greasy, it helps to first soak them overnight in straight Simple Green to degrease them. Rinse them clean in warm water and then soak them in Salt-X. You'll be pleased with the results.

[Tony Malatesta]

Thank's for the advice guys. I normally don't buy salt encrusted reels but once in a while(on Ebay) i purchase a reel that is filled to the top of the spool with line and you don't see the salt until you remove it. To late by then and i hate to throw away a reel or use for parts until i've at least tried to salvage it. Canadian

[SWIM JIG]

yay-banana Canadian USA Tony, If the spool is bad, generaly there are replacements avalible, It , in My thoughts would not be fraud if a factory spool was used to replace a bad spool! If you do buy a reel with line on it, and the spool is salt incrusted ie. the lovly white pwder, or sometimes the green stuf, (the green stuf is generaly not salt intrusion, its a grease problem, , (MOLD) or a deteriation of the line or the line presever used in those days, ever see the green on the leather thumb break used on reels around the brass rivits? Also the brass spools will turn green with age, its mostly the air that reacts with the material! Again we use 100% pure mineral spirts and a brass or bronze bore cleaning brush, ie. to scrub the bores or guns! I tried hoppes gun solvent one time, soaked the reel parts of a Pfluger std usable reel in it, the brass gears after a ovenight soak started to turn green! Never done that trick again! ( if the spool is not to bad, you can brush off the white powder with a very fine brass or coper brush,then soak the spool as AK-Fish advised with various different cleaners! Again , in my thoughts, a salt incrusted reel has lost the value as a colector item( Now I am going to catch some flak,) I place a salt eaten reel at a 3 or 4 on the antique colecting scale if its properly cleaned! We claen and lube and repair a average of 3000 reels a year! and when we find that perfect way, you ORCAns will be the next to know! Your Ohio Conection On Lake ERIE Col. M. Lorens aka SWIM JIG

[Ron Mc]

I'm the fan of using vinegar, and diluted with 3 or 4 parts water.

Here's where I put up my ammonia flag. Ammonia will crack yellow metal - keep it away from brass and copper alloys (Ni-silver).

[Brian F.]

...Ammonia will crack yellow metal - keep it away from brass and copper alloys (Ni-silver)...

Hmm, I may have forgot you warned about this but seem to recall a lot of people saying they used ammonia on their reels over the years. Anybody have this happen to one of their reels?

[Ron Mc]

I'm a metallurgist, P.E. TX no 75665

here's the result of a quick ebay search that is well documented:
http://orcaonline.org/images/pixel.gif?scc.htm

and the classic reference
http://www.matter.org.uk/matter_glossar ... _(cracking).html

Stress corrosion (cracking)

The failure of a structure subjected to the combined actions of stress and a corrosive environment. Failure can occur at much lower stess levels than those in 'inert' conditions.

SCC was first recognised in the 19th century in the form of 'season-cracking' in which a-brass cartridge cases were noted to fail during the monsoon season in the tropics. Here, the residual stresses in the cold-worked brass combined with traces of ammonia in the environment to cause failure.

they found that the ammonia came from beeswax used to seal and lubricate the cartridges.

http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byauth/m ... cerns.html
http://www.timegoes.com/scc.htm

also, take a look at every cracked ferrule on every Montague cane salt water rod - on these the ammonia results from biological rot of the cane

[Brian F.]

Oops, sorry you had to bust out the badge

Bee's wax has ammonia, hmm? I've talked to another member about trying to preserve a polished finish in my part of the woods and a very light coat of bee's wax was suggested.

The problem is that I live about a block from the ocean on the windward side of the island. Although I love the smell of salt air in the morning (so to speak), there's enough that drifts into my home naturally to oxidize some of those german silver reels pretty quickly. That would'n't be so bad but the effect is not even. Since they are in a case, the air just settles down and discolors everything facing up. What could I use, after polishing, to preserve that finish I worked so hard on to achieve?

[Ron Mc]

clear lacquer - Krylon.
If you'd rather wax it, try Butcher's Bowling Alley Wax.
I checked Butcher's msds - mineral spirits and turpentine, no ammonia.
Also safe for your cane rods and their ferrules. (there's even a vendor on ebay, but he prolly don't ship to foreign countries).

BTW, check out James Moss' photos on SCC - clock parts are enough like reel parts you should see some things you recognize. The barrel cracking he shows looks just like a cracked Montague ferrule.

[SWIM JIG]

cool-thumb USA Ron, You have done a service for all of ORCA, why dont you place a artical in the REEL NEWS? heck I dont know why folks insist on using amonia tainted cleaners and waxes! I still like 100% pure mineral spirits, No additives! If there is oil solvents in the fluids it can melt or destort plastic parts or melt those nicw expensive hard rubber reels( whats their names vo Hofs and Pflugers? etc. As for wax, Ron, we have found pure Caruba wax works best, it wont hurt wood, or for that mater the windings, its fabulus on firearms, and finger prints wont eat thru it! also when it drys it leaves a nice white inhancmennt so you can read all the leters! want it off? use a soft tooth brush presto its gone! Three things in my thoughts ruin metal. Amonia, salt, and acid! or a strong base caustic like lye! On another subject Oil and greese can help or destroy! The safest and most durable oil we have found to date is Marvel oil. the best lube is zebco hot sauce, a bit expensive however out last all other lubs including that stuf called ( BUL SHOT) it gets hard and stringy. While on the subject of cleaning, we advise against using anyform of Ultrasonic cleaners, that high pitch vibration will cause prnmature fractures! The old way jewlers used a powever cleaner, was by a fast stiring blade simlar to a milk shake maker, put the parts in a wire basket turn on the power and away you go! works every time! I love it when brass gears are clened in ULTRA SONIC, yup some shopes use um! Then we sell more brass gears when the deteriate! Not realy, as I belive in not selling parts that could be reuesed, however they do fail with ultra sonic cleaning! Before the flack starts, let me get on the Flack jacket! your Ohio conection On Lake Erie Col. M. lorens aka SWIM JIG

[Ron Mc]

Milt, most jeweler's cleaning solutions, for use in ultrasonic, use ammonia, because it doesn't hurt gold or silver, and it sterilizes. Bronze gears? Yes, bright, shiny, sterile, cracked.

I've brought this up before about ultrasonics - use aluminum pans or paper cups - don't use glass containers, because with an ultrasonic, the glass will scratch the fool out of your parts.

[Ron Mc]

conservationist list of references regarding SCC, yellow metals, and metal polishes