Alan or anyone,
I'm interested in buying an ultrasonic cleaner, their are so many different choices (price, brand, size) any input would be helpful.
Thanks
Rick
im looking into getting one of these in the future as well. this is where some home work will pay off, as well as input from Alan and other reel tech's.
i hardly ever use my ultraconic cleaner anymore. i basically stick to repair. cleaning is not part of the program.
so at the risk of sounding like i'm harping, you really need to keep your gear clean. even if it means sneaking it into the back of the dishwasher when the old lady is not at home. i used to clean reels that come in, but i've given up. if they are send in gunked up like that, my cleaning them will make absolutely no difference in the long run.
alan,
doesnt using an ultra sonic cleaner get the old rust and gunk out of a reel though?
honestly, they work pretty well. here's a 1 gallon version.
http://www.amazon.com/SharperTek-Digital-Gallon-Ultrasonic-Cleaner/dp/B001LFDP3C 1 gallon is the minimum size that i would get now. i actually bought a half gallon ultrasonic cleaner from a local dentist for $40. it really is too small. figure in the cost for extra time that you will spend to clean the reel, and it will take extra time.
(http://alantani.com/gallery/1/1_25_11_09_5_30_48.jpeg)
yeah i hear ya on that alan but for clients it may be worth its while if i get reels in that are badly abused and never cleaned and convintional methods do not work.
Hi all,
Just a reminder, don't use any flammable liquids in the ultrasound! Also, Choose a mild soap(I use simple Joy brand dish soap) or you run the risk of etching or staining your reel parts. I believe Alan has an oops with this?
Tight lines
Tom
yeah, i used laundry detergent which contains sodium carbonate. it's mildy corrosive and not an issue for a normal wash cycle. leave it overnight and it will eat through the anodizing. now i just use green soap.
got a question for you alan will that 1/2 gallon ultra sonic cleaner be just fine for low profile baitcasters?
yes, but if you're going to make your fortune this way, you will need a larger capacity cleaner. also, as your fame and fortune grow, you will be pulled in the offshore two speed market. it is a natural flow of events. alan
me famous :o i dont know about that Alan ive got a long way to go before i get there ;) sooner or later though i figure its bound to happen the off shore reel market that is.
Nice ??? If you are interested you can visit the www.leelaelectronics.in (http://www.leelaelectronics.in) and browse many ultrasonic cleaners. Not just ultra sonic autopart cleaners but you will find many types of ultrasonic cleaners like table top cleaners , larger ultrasonic & other applications
Sorry to resurrect this old post. After searching for months, I think I finally found what I'm looking for. I bought a used Fisher FS110 Ultrasonic Cleaner. It has nearly a 12X10X6 bath (11Quart capacity) and should hold 2 coffee cans full of parts. It's got 4-100watt/40khz freq. transducers, draws 3.3amps, and has a drain, lid, SS reservoir, and analog 60min timer. Bought it from a private seller off of Ebay for $190 and it arrives in 3-5days. I'm hoping this will speed up my service times, since cleaning the parts is prob the most labor intensive and time consuming part of my 5 step service process. I hope it comes with the cord, and the transducers are still working good. At $200 it was worth the risk. I can't believe how hard it was to get someone to ship one of these to me here in HI.
Great John! I'll send you a 55 gallon drum of parts and you'll ship them back to me ;D. Let me know how good it does for you.
Sal
Let us know how it works out John. Fred uses one and he is a reel building machine. ;D
I would talk to him before you fire that bad boy up. ;)
I bought one similar to the one above from Amazon. I have Amazon prime so I did get it there. It just takes too long and I can get them clean in my parts washer using kerosene and Gunk cleaner. The mix is 4 parts kerosene to 1 part Gunk. The Gunk concentrate is some strong stuff. It removes oxidation, corrosion, and the green stuff in just a few minutes using a soft brass brush. Blow everything dry and go back to work in 5 minutes.
Quote from: handi2 on December 13, 2014, 04:36:39 PM
It removes oxidation, corrosion, and the green stuff in just a few minutes using a soft brass brush. Blow everything dry and go back to work in 5 minutes.
Wow! you mean cleaning the stuff is not work? ::) Dominick
The cleaner doesn't necessarily help speed things up, but helps cleans really cruddy reels to my satisfaction.
If it's a Dam Quick spinner, Fred is your man. Post it up in the historic reels thread.
It is a casting reel. I am posting pix now.
How do the ultra sonic cleaners work?
I'll change my post from above now. I wasn't using enough cleaner in the Ultrasonic cleaner. With full strength purple cleaner it's doing wonders now. So much I bought another identical unit to keep full of Simple Green. The parts are coming out better than ever before.
All these cleaners do is emit sound waves throughout the cleaning fluid to clean and remove dirt and grime.
So far I have been happy with the performance of my cleaner. I keep it full of deionized water and put my reel parts in glass jars or metal or plastic coffee cans with either simple green, purple engine degreaser, or a strong ospho-based marine cleaner. I typically dilute 1:1 and its looking like 15mins in the cleaner seems to do the trick. So far I've only tested it out on the smaller reels, but I'm sure it should do a good job on the larger reels as well.
Keep it up John and Keith and I will have to buy one of these bad boys!
I know Fred uses one too. Seems like the ticket to get your parts cleaned quick and efficiently.
I'm really getting tired of going out in the driveway with a can of Brake Cleaner and a toothbrush! ::)
My old L&R bit the dust. My ONLY requirement for an ultrasonic cleaner these days is for cleaning bearings so a small unit would be sufficient. What brand and model would be ideal for this purpose without breaking the bank? Thanks.
I've been using a Kendal, not a Commercial machine, but a smaller machine, and its been doing very well.
Mine has a heater, and timer to 480 seconds.
I've filled the machine to the recommended fill line with water. I have small glass jars that I've designated for chemicals. Two jars for Simple Green, and two jars for Acetone. The jars with Simple Green are designated for plastic, and painted parts, and the Acetone is for metal parts and bearings. I run all parts through the Ultrasonic for about twenty minutes. The parts in the Acetone are placed out to dry on a paper towel, and the parts in the Simple Green get brushed with a med bristle brush, rinsed with tap water and dried. Then bearings are spun and hit with compressed air. If a bearing doesn't spin like I want then I hit them with aerosol brake cleaner a few times, until I'm satisfied or replaced.
I've been keeping busy with about 8-12 reels a week since early November, and the cleaner has held up well.
Jeremy
Quick update on the use of my ultaso ic bath/cleaner...
I have been toying around a bit with my procedures, and am currently filling the bath with 1:3 (or4) Simple Green/water mixture. I use a large metal basket to soak and clean larger parts on larger reels (side plates, spools, bridges, etc), and am putting bearings in a glass jar containinf mineral spirits, all brass/bronze/copper parts are put into a jar containing vineger, and remaining small parts go into a jar with str8 simple green. I run the cleaner fir 15mins w/o heat, then strain through mesh rinse in freshwater, then all to air dry. Bearings are shot w/brake cleaner, spun, and dried w/compressed air. Heavily corroded parts, or those that still contain any old residue, are brushed w/ a toothbrush, nylon brush, and/or a brass brush or fine steel wool, and re-rinsed. Sometimes I use quetips, pipe cleaners, or brake cleaner to get into tight spaces. The sonic cleaner has been doing a fune job of loosening up crud, and caked on stuff, and corrosion/salt deposits.
A word of warning...
thin copper parts, or thin lightly corroded parts can get damaged in the cleaner. I have had some small dog springs, and thin parts come out of the cleaner with cracks ir holes in them. Guess this is one way to find out if these parts have micro defects in them that warrent replacement. Overall, I am happy with the performance. There have been several small reels, or some not in rough shape, that only required a quick 15min stint in the bath and a rinse. The other ones that needed additional treatment still appeared to benfit from the cleaner. I think this is a useful tool to ensure truely clean parts, and it can save me significant time, but certainly isn't adding service time to my work.
Thanks for the update...I would really like to get one of these at some point; but I need to do further research on mixes and the technology. It would certainly save some time over these 2-3 day simple green soaks. Thanks for sharing!
John, how did you finally narrow your choice down? It realy seems like the list on EBay goes for days.
Thanks in advance, Brendan.
Quote from: Brendan on February 24, 2015, 04:06:44 AM
John, how did you finally narrow your choice down? It realy seems like the list on EBay goes for days.
Thanks in advance, Brendan.
Simple. I wanted a basic, no frills, powerfull unit with a large stainless steel reservoir, an analog timer, and no heater. I used to work in labratories, and respect the rugged reliability of the Fisher Scientific brand. I figured that this was the size (11 liter/2.5g?) that would hold 2 full 130 sized reels completely dissasembled, and could hold 2 coffee cans worth of parts, w/o taking up too much space in my workshop (aka the dining room). It was stainless, and had a drain. A little research on the power and number of transducers, also showed this model to be the most powerfull (# of transducers, and power/transducer), of any other used units I came accross in this size. It also had the analog control I wanted.
After I decided...
the main problem was finding a used one for under $450 from a seller that would ship to HI. I looked for cl9se to 9 months off and on (since last summer), and just before XMas I was ready to buy a refurbed one from an outfit in MN, and have it shipped to my parents place, so I could ship it back to HI myself. Just so happened 4 days before I was gonna order found this one from a motorcycle mechanic in CA for $250. Immediately bought it, and it was here in 5 days.
End of story.
Side note:
The only other ones I really liked were the long industrial style ones made to hold gun parts. These looked like they had great baskets, plenty of storage, and good baskets They would also likely be able to serve as a great bath for bluing, etching, finishing, chromimg, stripping, etc.., but way too big for my place, needs, and well outside of my budget. Honestly, I think any of the units with a large enough resouviour to hold your parts would do the trick. I just knew lab grade and simple but powerful would likely last longer, and I didn't want a knock off unit.
I'd better start hitting up some mechanics. Alan gifted one to me and it's going down...maybe I just need to refurbish the unit with more powerful transducers?
by gifted, bryan means that i dumped it off on him because i wasn't using it and got tired of tripping over it all the time.
I hate to bring this up, but been thinking about buying one of the small harbor freight ones with a 20% off coupon to try it. Onboard our ship we have a huge unit, probably 40-60 gallons.
Anyone dared, I know the size issue but I think there are just some pieces I want to try and learn. To me its just part of the game, you just get into the park, dont hit a home run the first time at bat...
I had one of harbor freights large one that lasted me 4 years. That's literally thousands of reels it cleaned. The only thing I hated was it didn't have a basket, it has a flat tray. I think it's hornady that sells an identical unit under their name for gun cleaning. They sell a full tray to fit it for around $15.
From what I have read -- this is the IDENTICAL unit sold by Lyman, the gunsmith and supply company -- comes out of the same factory in China -- just rebadged.
Many reviews state they work very well for small parts and such.
Any Ultrasonic cleaner works on the same principle --
A solid state electronic system driving transducers to transmit a sonic wave pattern through a liquid -- thus depending on the type of solutions -- clean small parts.
If I was buying this unit, I would download the 20% off coupon -- may or may not work if an item is already on sale. Then I would buy the extended warranty for 2 years from HF for $20. These are unrepairable due to the low price -- so if a failure occurs in the first 2 years -- you would get a new one.
With HF, one must be a savvy shopper when evaluating quality -- some things are very good values -- some are just junk.
Use separate containers inside the water reservoir filled with your choice of cleaners. I use purple degreaser for greased metal parts, and simple green for bakelite, plastic, and more vulnerable items.
The reviews are decent -- and worth a try, I believe.
Let us know how it works out, if you get one.
Best,
Fred
(http://i748.photobucket.com/albums/xx130/foakes1/69B37D72-A8D4-47EB-A438-4D87F5A0DA1A_zpsc34elyea.jpg) (http://s748.photobucket.com/user/foakes1/media/69B37D72-A8D4-47EB-A438-4D87F5A0DA1A_zpsc34elyea.jpg.html)
Ship to Shore 95563 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner 95563 alternate photo #1 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner 95563 alternate photo #2
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
Ship To Shore - Item#95563
Read 75 ReviewsWrite A Review
Clean jewelry, eyeglasses and valuables in minutes
Bookmark and Share
Only: $119.99
Sale: $84.99
Qty:
This item may be available at your local Harbor Freight Tools Store
Add to Wishlist View Shipping Rates
Product Overview
Customer Reviews
Warranty
User Manual
Description
This ultrasonic cleaner makes it easy to clean items like jewelry, eyeglasses, waterproof watches, silverware and more! Just fill the cleaner with an appropriate ultrasonic cleaning powder (available separately), mix with water and then just drop in the items to be cleaned. The ultrasonic cleaner works with or without heat and features a clear-view window so you can see its cleaning power in action!
Higher power - 160 watts for more cleaning action
Five preset cycles takes the guesswork out of cleaning
Easy to read digital timer
Heated water function for improved cleaning when needed
Clear view window
Cleaning cycles with LED readouts
Specifications
Name 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
SKU 95563
Brand Chicago Electric Power Tools
AC Volts 120
Application Jewelry, eyeglasses, waterproof watches, tableware, small metal parts
Quantity 1
Wattage (watts) 160
Product Height 7-1/4 in.
Product Length 11-3/8 in.
Product Width 9 in.
Shipping Weight 6.55 lb.
Accessories Included Parts basket
Ship to Shore 95563 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner 95563 alternate photo #1 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner 95563 alternate photo #2
2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
Ship To Shore - Item#95563
Read 75 ReviewsWrite A Review
Clean jewelry, eyeglasses and valuables in minutes
Bookmark and Sharej
Only: $119.99
Sale: $84.99
Qty:
This item may be available at your local Harbor Freight Tools Store
Add to Wishlist View Shipping Rates
Product Overview
Customer Reviews
Warranty
User Manual
Description
This ultrasonic cleaner makes it easy to clean items like jewelry, eyeglasses, waterproof watches, silverware and more! Just fill the cleaner with an appropriate ultrasonic cleaning powder (available separately), mix with water and then just drop in the items to be cleaned. The ultrasonic cleaner works with or without heat and features a clear-view window so you can see its cleaning power in action!
Higher power - 160 watts for more cleaning action
Five preset cycles takes the guesswork out of cleaning
Easy to read digital timer
Heated water function for improved cleaning when needed
Clear view window
Cleaning cycles with LED readouts
Specifications
Name 2.5 Liter Ultrasonic Cleaner
SKU 95563
Brand Chicago Electric Power Tools
AC Volts 120
Application Jewelry, eyeglasses, waterproof watches, tableware, small metal parts
Quantity 1
Wattage (watts) 160
Product Height 7-1/4 in.
Product Length 11-3/8 in.
Product Width 9 in.
Shipping Weight 6.55 lb.
Accessories Included Parts basket
So I picked up that one at Harbor Freight this morning. I was going to pick up the generic, basically jewelry one because I only wanted to clean a few parts, small parts at that. We'll next thing I know, I use the 20% off coupon and I see this one has a heater so off I went. I read the reviews, interesting as always, best highlight was it does not work like a commercial unit, well guess what its was $70 after discount, welcome to Harbor Freight.
I just wanted to try it with a few things and get the feel for it, I think I will be shopping for a better unit down the road because I can tell its handy.
First off, dont know me, I literally just threw some parts in it and liked how they came out. If I could figure out how to shrink pictures properly I bet if I used my nice Nikon you could see a difference in the parts. I was leaving to look at a center console for my brother today, so I literally threw a reel in (with mono, its going to be taken off and renewed anyways) and had the wife cycle it a few times when I was away. The most annoying feature was that it only runs for 480 seconds, to bad it wasnt easily changed, why it cant constantly stay on I dont know, duty cycle maybe lol. The heater will stay on for 45 minutes, it gets warm, but not hot but again $70. I know this, when I use it in my garage which is 45F today, it was steamy hot, of course due to some action too. I will do the spool later after I take the line off.
So here are some pictures, not sure if you can see or not... I was happy but also wonder if its the same as my neverdul but I can see crap out in the simple green solution. Also trying the Dawn bit too...
What a week of learning :)
I wanted to just clean a couple of end plates. This was dropped in, with heater already running, dropped in 1-8 minute cycle and then removed.
This is stuff that didnt come off with just a paper towel.
So I think I need to learn a little more before I use the ultrasonic unit, yes there is a learning curve I bet.
How come I can drop Penn handles in, then I think it was Okuma handle's in but then drop in a Daiwa Seagate handle and the knob looses its black color and becomes white?
Just using simple green...
Simple green will discolor some items if left very long at all. Black is the worst, it will oxidize it. I pre clean everything with solvent, to remove grease, then use us cleaner to get tight spots. Just a few minutes then check them. If need longer, use dawn dish soap or era laundry soap. the era is good for green stained reels from pond scum.
Quote from: CEShawn on March 28, 2015, 07:16:13 PM
So I think I need to learn a little more before I use the ultrasonic unit, yes there is a learning curve I bet.
How come I can drop Penn handles in, then I think it was Okuma handle's in but then drop in a Daiwa Seagate handle and the knob looses its black color and becomes white?
Just using simple green...
The shimano rubber handles are prone to degradation if left in solvents (they become tacky), and older penn internationsl handles (with UV damage can lose their outter coating in solvent/ultrasonic bath. Also, thin or cortoded copper parrs can get damaged in powerful ultrasonic cleaners.
I've got one coming from my tool guy, did side work for a trade. How do these work? Fill tray with water, put tub with simple green for example, and parts in the water, turn on, magic, and done? I honestly don't know lol