1951 French Doperr no.2 spin reel strip, refresh, and restore. Completed!

[Woodbilly]

Hey, all!!

A very special strip on the bench!

I've acquired a 1951 French Doperr no.2 spin reel.
3.5:1 ratio

It was in good shape overall, but non working.

This old girl had definitely seen better days.

It had been messed with before, down the line, and was complete, but with some hardware chewed and some completely loose, within body.

The reel was stiff and working improperly. The a/r bait runner trigger was not functioning and the spool was hanging on retrieval.

After cleaning grease and washing, body was very nice with only a small nick at the butt end, where non rotating shaft bushing nests and a few factory casting imperfections.

Handle knob had some pretty good dings, too.

The bail arm  actauted property,  but had been previously slightly bent.

It was a small tweak and did not scrape the spool, so I left well enough alone, since I definitely did not want to break it off trying to straighten it.

I couldn't separate the arm and mounting post, so left it, too.

This one has an Argent gray finish on the spool and the beautiful alloy body, albeit dull.

I left all finish and polished all brightwork and alloy body parts.

I tried to remedy any slot scruff,  but some of the worse off micro screws, I left, as is.

They didn't have much meat left and I could still turn em as is, so I didn't risk ruining them.

Also, smoothed nicks on handle knob.

Stripdown took about an hour and everything cleaned up nicely.

Reassembly about the same amount of time.

Very different in it construction and function.

The baitrunner trigger is very cool and right at fingertips.
Pretty awesome.

AR click is very distinct and drag click is quite subtle, but sweet.

Loving this rare beauty and its very mechanical function and feel!

Can't wait to give it a trial on some big crappies!

Peace!

[Woodbilly]

More pictures

[Midway Tommy]

Man, you come up with some cool old hard to find expensive examples. 
 I've always wanted to get a Doperr, thought they looked really cool but refused to shell out the centavos required to get one.
Well done! 👍

[Brewcrafter]

Cool old reel, never have seen one before.  I am guessing that the design of the spool with the slots was to allow the lines of the time a better chance at drying between uses? - john

[Woodbilly]

Man, you come up with some cool old hard to find expensive examples. 
 I've always wanted to get a Doperr, thought they looked really cool but refused to shell out the centavos required to get one.
Well done! 👍

Been looking out for one for several years, now.

Found this one on ebay and had to shell out $375 usd even with issues, but worth it. IMO

I had my ebay set to alert me when one was listed. Pretty sure, I snagged it immediately after it was listed. Sorry, not sorry. Lol

It won't be a goto reel for my fishing because it is a bit bulky and heavy, but I am definitely gonna catch some crappie with her.

Worth the carpal tunnel. Lol

[Woodbilly]

Cool old reel, never have seen one before.  I am guessing that the design of the spool with the slots was to allow the lines of the time a better chance at drying between uses? - john

IDK, but that sounds reasonable.

It also takes some weight away, but may just be cause it looked so dang cool.

[foakes]

Nice work!  Never had one of those apart before.

Good to see how they function.

Best, Fred

[Woodbilly]

Nice work!  Never had one of those apart before.

Good to see how they function.

Best, Fred

Yes, sir! Thank you

[Donnyboat]

Surprizing Fred, not many reels n models that have`nt gone through your hands, ay.  nice pictures & service thanks for posting, cheers Don.

[Swami805]

That's a beauty and cleaned up nicely. I don't think I saw one part that wasn't metal?  Also the economy of parts, not a lot of them which is a good thing

[oldmanjoe]

Classy looking reel for sure !    What is the lever for ,rotor lock for drag ?

[Woodbilly]

Thanks for comments.

Yes. Pretty basic, but well built.

The finger trigger is the a/r switch.

I threw up a video of the Doperr in action.

https://youtube.com/shorts/79M73QnHInQ?si=Qmzz7swdb2dJHy7k

[Midway Tommy]

Nice video! Adds a nice perspective to the reel. 👍

[Brewcrafter]

Cool video.  I would almost call it an art deco reel.  So neat. - john

[Midway Tommy]

Cool video.  I would almost call it an art deco reel.  So neat. - john

Yes, it has had that reputation for quite a long time.