What to do after vinegar/CLR/etc?

[dogdad1]

Hi -

New guy here.  I got a bunch of old Penn's (several Long Beach's all the way up to a 16/0) from my GrandDad, and am in the process of trying to clean them up.  Except for things like changing out the drag-washers/lubing/etc, they all are in surprisingly-good working condition for having sat in a garage in So Fla for the past 30+ years.

I started out on the first one stripping it down completely and cleaning and lubing it, and put in new washers and a couple other needed parts.  I used bronze wool and lots of elbow-grease to get all the green off the external chrome surfaces (spool, side-plates, posts, handle, and so on), but I ended up with a lot of the brass showing thru so I went and replaced the parts because they looked so bad.  All in all, it now works smoothly and was a good learning experience for a first-timer.  However, I quickly realized I could probably buy some very nice-condition replacement reels for what I was spending on parts for these (not counting the nostalgic value, of course).  Therefore, I'm going to hold myself back a bit on the shiny parts for the rest of the reels, and just make them work good.  And that's when I found this forum, many thanks to y'all!

In searching here, I see a lot of folks using vinegar or CLR to get off the green, so I did a test on a couple frame-posts with each and the CLR seems to win out as far as speed and ability goes.  But I noticed some little silver flecks on the bottom of the plastic tub I was using for the CLR (it's black so the particles showed up easily), and I'm assuming they're from the cast-off chrome/green, which may or may not be an issue but I don't think so because I probably rubbed off the same stuff when I was using the wool and just didn't see it.

My main question is "What do I do to preserve the affected parts after they get CLR'ed and put back together?".  I am in the FL Keys, so they will again see a corrosive atmosphere.  Will the chrome and brass parts be ok, or continue to corrode, or is there a preservative I can use to protect them before and after use?  I'm guess I'm not after cosmetics anymore, just usability.

I hope that made sense, I'm sure I'll be able to express myself better as time goes along, but since this is my first foray into reel-repair (yeaaahh, my wife says, "Another Hobby To Waste Money On") I am so full of questions I'm probably babbling a bit here.

Thanks in advance!

[Jimmer]

Rinse everything with fresh water to get rid of all traces of acid solution, degrease or clean more if you need to, dry completely,  then coat internal parts with yamaha marine grease to protect from future salt exposure. For external exposed parts a coat of boeshield t-9 will give some protection, If you read any of the tutorials or look through general procedures I'm sure you'll find a lot of coverage on this subject. Good luck - Jimmer

[dogdad1]

Thanks Jimmer, that helps a lot.  So basically, can I say it won't hurt for some of the parts to have a little brass showing (as long as I keep them protected), and they won't continue to degrade?

I should have mentioned that I've been studying any and all related posts on the subject, and because there's so much info I'm only managing to get myself very confused on the subject.

[Jimmer]

There is a ton of good info here, take your time and keep asking questions when you get stuck or need a suggestoin, Tha brassing is just cosmetic as long as the posts, spools etc. are smooth. I've seen stainless posts on ebay if you're worried about the looks, but I don't think function will be affected.

[Norcal Pescador]

I'm pretty aggressive on cleaning pitting and green gunk off my spools: wire brush and steel wool. But all of mine are working reels, not collectibles. I put a coat of Brasso or carnauba wax on my chrome/brass spools if there's brass showing, then spool them up. No issues yet.

[Bryan Young]

For internals, use a marine grease.  Of external, my hands are usually greasy, so they get a dose of grease as well.  I just wipe down the grease with a rag until all is lightly coated.  That should cover it.  CorrosionX also works great for wiping down reels.

[Alto Mare]

You add a little olive oil and eat it .

Oops, sorry I thought you were talking about carrots, lettuce and raspberries.

[Jimmer]

Anyone tried red wine vinegar or a little balsamic yet?

[alantani]

the answer is to strip off all the chrome, polish it up, and have it rechromed.  i need to find a way to do that.   

[Nuvole]

the answer is to strip off all the chrome, polish it up, and have it rechromed.  i need to find a way to do that.   

Try this http://www.focuser.com/anodize.html lol.

I'll be trying Alodine 1132 to patch up some scratches tomorrow, will post up something it it work.

[coastalobsession]

the answer is to strip off all the chrome, polish it up, and have it rechromed.  i need to find a way to do that.   

I Take the chrome off on penn senators and have no problem useing mothers. I get a mirror finish...

[dogdad1]

Wow, thanks for all the good ideas and suggestions.  I haven't forgotten or quit on this, in fact i just spent the better part of today taking-down the 16/0.  Much better than one of the Long Beach's I tried first (maybe I'm getting the hang of it?).  In fact, as soon as I collect all of my notes from the dis-assembly, I'll have some questions (like why different/wrong number of washers, etc) for y'all.

This all brings to mind a side-job I used to have of repairing scuba-gear.  Same basic ideas in that we're putting metals in water and somehow expecting them to last forever, but here there seems to be a lot more individual concepts as to what products do best what and where.  Maybe with scuba we pretty-much had to follow specifics mfgr's guidelines or be liable for a lawsuit if something goes wrong, dunno.

I appreciate all of the talent and comradeship on this forum, allowing folks like me to ask even the simplest questions and learning from the Masters.

[alantani]

This all brings to mind a side-job I used to have of repairing scuba-gear.  Same basic ideas in that we're putting metals in water and somehow expecting them to last forever, but here there seems to be a lot more individual concepts as to what products do best what and where.  Maybe with scuba we pretty-much had to follow specifics mfgr's guidelines or be liable for a lawsuit if something goes wrong, dunno.

well, nobody dies if we screw up! 

[dogdad1]

Hopefully the fish will if we don't.