New Addition - Before and After ...

[reelsmith.]

Here are before and after pictures of a reel I got from the recent Lang's auction.

Before shots are as pictured in the auction.









This was definitely a bit risky, but I've been successful removing pitting from aluminum reels in the past ...and I've been unsuccessful too !

Unfortunately, the "T" in "Thos" was Toast.

I started with pumice stone, which removed the pitting, but added light scratches. Then I finished it off by wet sanding with 3000 grit paper.

Its not perfect, but its darn nice and I am thrilled to have it.

The reel is a tiny #4 size reel and are crazy tough to come by. Until this auction I'd only seen one other.

In 1914 this reel was $8.00, while the smallest (#3) size raised pillar nickel silver and hard rubber reel was $6.50.

That says something about aluminum at the time.

Dean.

[Bill Muth]

Outstanding restoration Dean, top notch!

[Midway Tommy D]

That turned out really nice, Dean! I have to say, though, you've got way bigger gonads than me using a pumice stone on a reel that nice. I'd be scared crapless

[reelsmith.]

Hey Tommy.

I should have been more specific. I’m not brave enough to use a stone !

I used pumice in powder form, mixed with water to create a paste, then applied the paste to the end of a felt block and lightly went over the plate in a circular motion.

The click switch gets in the way of the circular motion on the back plate …so improvised and crossed my fingers !

It’s not a process for the faint of heart.

Dean.

[reelsmith.]

Outstanding restoration Dean, top notch!

Thanks Bill !

It was a bit nerve wracking, but turned out great.

Dean.

[Midway Tommy D]

Hey Tommy.

I should have been more specific. I’m not brave enough to use a stone !

I used pumice in powder form, mixed with water to create a paste, then applied the paste to the end of a felt block and lightly went over the plate in a circular motion.

The click switch gets in the way of the circular motion on the back plate …so improvised and crossed my fingers !

It’s not a process for the faint of heart.

Dean.

Whew! You had my mind bouncing off the walls, there for a little while.

[RonG]

Oh yeah, we've all seen the pitting in these wonderful early aluminum reels and wonder should I fix it or leave it alone. It looks like you've come up with a cure for the pitting disease that worked out well for this little fly reel. It turned out nice and doesn't hurt your eyes like the first photos.

[Nick in NY]

Wooo! Going to team you up with John E. NICE JOB! I've never shyed away from nickel or silver as they can be worked but hard rubber is another story. Maybe a damp q-tip with the fine pumice at another time around the black/rivits otherwise still a great job!

[kyreels]

Great results Dean. I have always used the aluminum oxide polishing compounds and just worked like hell, but it would take forever to get out most pitting. The rubbing compounds (paste and liquids) used on automobiles come in 1000 grit as the coarsest I could find, and would work reasonably fast. They use either aluminum oxide or titanium oxide or some small grit. It would be interesting to know the grit number for the pumice compound you used. This would make a great article for a new Reel Restoration section.

[bamboocollector11]

Well done as usual Dean!

[Paul Roberts]

Oh my! Very pretty.

[Stef Duma]

Great job Dean, very brave, to quote Kipling from Gunga Din, "You're a better man than I am"

[Paul Roberts]

Beautiful!