I have you guys to thank/blame ;D It finally happened...someone from work dropped four reels on my desk and asked if I could do anything to fix 'em...now I'm putting my own reel on the back burner to clean these old warriors up....fun times.. :D Left to right...Shakespeare Criterion, Pflueger Temco Surf Casting, (my own Squidder 140), Hendryx Patented Mar. 1870? and July 1888?, and an unknown stamped aluminum fly reel...
(http://i.imgur.com/NpXpXjQ.jpg)
i've got a wet tumbler that uses stainless steel pins, dish soap and lemi shine to clean straight case pistol brass. i'd be tempted to dump one of these in just to see what happens. :-\
That's a heck of an idea!
Alan the old brown Pflueger is a basket case and a good option for the tumbler...it's chrome over brass....and the spool is mostlt brass now....