Golden West Resto

[klonder]

Abused(broken and burned, yes burned) when I acquired it, I think I did it justice. The original, non original handle was soldered to the spool shaft, cooking some face plate in the process!! My non original replacement handle had to be filled/tapped and the spool shaft was threaded to attached it. As long as long as you don't look to close, no to shabby!

[Mike N]

Wow. You did a fantastic job restoring that beauty. Do you mind sharing what you did to bring back the luster to those hard rubber side plates?

Thanks

Mike N

[klonder]

Not at all.
Wet sanding starting w/400 grit to do the bulk of the work. Although labor intensive, I've found it the best way to do the job. Fancy plates and inscriptions can be a problem and take longer.
Apparently uv over time turns hard rubber that nasty brown color due to sulphur, a component, migrating to the surface and forming a layer that needs to be physically removed. Def. worth the effort.

[Ron Mc]

Mine with c. 1915 Leonard Fairy Catskill No, 39 and a Rio Chama brown
I first cleaned up this reel for Michael Sinclair, then he sold it to me, at gift price.

[klonder]

They are pretty for sure. I'm working on a casting reel with the same sandwiched aluminum/hard rubber plates.
Be nice to fine an orignal handle for mine.