Hard Rubber Side Plates

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Trout120-1
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Hard Rubber Side Plates

#1

Post by Trout120-1 »

Is there anything I can use on my Golden West reel to change the side plates from brown back to black ?
Thanks

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steeliefool
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#2

Post by steeliefool »

I've tried various polishes, compounds and found that the only way is wet sanding, then polish. Labor intensive and not good for inscriptions however. I've read the reason for the brown patina is the migration of sulfur, a component of hard rubber, to the surface forming a molecular layer which needs to be removed. Go slow and keep it wet.
Any chemists or material scientists out there?

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Flyfishbill
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#3

Post by Flyfishbill »

I would not sand. Go to https://www.orcaonline.org
FFB

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steeliefool
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#4

Post by steeliefool »

Flyfishbill wrote:I would not sand. Go to https://www.orcaonline.org
FFB
Is there an article or instructions about what to do in this case?

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henkverhaar
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#5

Post by henkverhaar »

Not much I guess. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebonite and https://www.canada.ca/en/conservation-i ... astic.html

This guy claims he has a product that can restore discoloured hard rubber / ebonite fountain pens, but I would wager a guess that this product is just a chemical alternative to mechanically removing the surface layer (aka as 'sanding'...): https://www.lbepen.com/apps/webstore/pr ... ry/1172755

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Flyfishbill
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#6

Post by Flyfishbill »

ORCA are experts on restoring reels. They have articles on how to restore. I believe they recommend a rubbing compound. You can search their web site.

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#7

Post by Rio Grande King »

My Golden West and an early Leonard did the same thing. Used a polish called "Flitz". Damp rag, light finger pressure, and patience did the trick. The plates looked new.

Ken

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SpringCreek
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#8

Post by SpringCreek »

I've used Flitz as well and found it to work better than anything else I have tried.
Then as it was, then again it will be. Though the course may change sometimes, rivers always reach the sea. - Led Zeppelin, 10 Years Gone

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Trout120-1
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#9

Post by Trout120-1 »

I have Flitz !
Thanks !

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#10

Post by greenwell »

Depends how deep the sulphur migration as penetrated most likely the only way to get the
plates back to original black is some hard work with a buffer and this does remove the surface
of the plate to some extent.
I have done dozens of Vom Hoffs over the years and tried all maner of concoctions and
the above was I found the only way to go in the end.
Yes you can use Fritz or other compounds but I think you will find they only remove a
small amount of the oxidisation taking place and it does return quiet quickly
if the reels are exposed to any sunlight.
Quiet a few years ago I went to a property to purchase a 1930s Hardy Cascapedia 1/0
When the owner produced it I was cob smacked, it was like it had just been made yet had been
stored away in a darks draw since the day this guys farther had purchased it.
Jet black and shiny still a true mint condition what a find, and yes the deal was done to the satisfaction of both parties.
So the tip is keep those Ebonite reels out of the light if you want them to retain there original colour.
Chris H
Barny Reels

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#11

Post by SpringCreek »

You are so accurate about keeping the ebonite away from the light. I had a reel that I left in a display cabinet exposed to light and it actually developed shadow of the handle in the ebonite. Luckily I was able to polish it out, however, you do need to keep ebonite stored in the dark when not in use.

Jim
Then as it was, then again it will be. Though the course may change sometimes, rivers always reach the sea. - Led Zeppelin, 10 Years Gone

http://www.splittingcane.com

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JohnMD1022
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#12

Post by JohnMD1022 »

I saw a restoration recently on FB where the guy used black shoe polish.

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#13

Post by JohnMD1022 »

I recently read that a drop of
silicon oil rubbed in wii work after a day or so.

Has anyone tried this?

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#14

Post by reelsmith »

I am yet to find anything that works 100% of the time. I *think* that may be because not all hard rubber compositions are exactly the same. Just an unfounded theory.

Flitz works well. Sometimes I apply it by wadding up some 0000 steel wool and then soaking it with Flitz. Working in a circular motion is best. I've also wet-sanded. I haven't found oil to help, in fact, some liquids (including oil) will often times make the reel even more brown.

Best advice is to get hold of a few beater reels and experiment. I've had complete failure with processes that work magic for some of my buddies. Go figure.

Here is one that came out well ...

Image

Image

Dean.

J Gustavsson
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#15

Post by J Gustavsson »

Heres a guy restoring pipe stems made of ebonite (or vulcanite)
https://youtu.be/rpV2l4FADuM

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drbaits
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#16

Post by drbaits »

I was really excited after watching the video posted above! I have tried many chemical ways to bring back that nice black finish to hard rubber and as mentioned above, the only thing that has really worked is to use wet-dry sandpaper to remove that top layer. So, i rifled through our cleaning supplies and came up with Oxyclean spray on laundry spot remover plus a Mr Clean Magic eraser. Note that the video made a solution from powdered OxyClean so there may be a difference, but what came from the spray was a very viscous solution. I did a soak of 1/2 of an E Vom Hofe side plate to get an idea of what the recommended treatment could do. Areas that had been under the free spool lever and bearing cap provided a good indicator of where we wanted to be at the end:



Image

Image

After an hour and a half, the side under the oxyClean was lighter, likely due to removal of old oil in the side plate… no sign of darkening. I then took a piece of Mr Clean eraser and worked on the lower right quadrant for appr. 5 minutes, washing out the eraser with water several times. After a bit of rinsing, there was clearly some reddish material removed but it was also removed from the portion not soaked in OxyClean:


Image

Image

So, i then pulled out some wet-dry sandpaper, lubricated with water, and sanded the right lower quadrant plus some of the untreated right side. As you can see, this treatment brought the color to the same darkness as that under the free spool lever, independent of whether the area was pre-treated with OxyClean:




Image

Trust me, i really wanted this treatment to work, but at least with this version of OxyClean, it did not (at least for Vom Hofe HR ). I will, however beat on this some more by picking up the powder form and making a solution, as Mr Briar used in the video. One treatment, which brings back a bit of shine i have found thats a good last treatment is to rub down with Ballistol


Image

Image

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drbaits
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#17

Post by drbaits »

BTW, this pic host has been totally overtaken by ads, mostly for some “coin”…. I’ll leave it at that

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#18

Post by J Gustavsson »

Sorry for steering you into a dead end road It looked very promising in that video.. . I guess the lesson to learn is that there's no short cut to get the shine back

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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#19

Post by sevilla315 »

I bought a Malloch salmon reel last year to match an Alexander Grant greenheart I was restoring for use.
I tried various polishes but it was pretty hard work. I posted my reel on a reel forum and a guy responded saying that he used an Italian pipe cleaner to restore the ebonite. I was dubious but bought some on amazon or perhaps ebay for about £10.
I was amazed, within about half an hour, it cut through all the built up oxidation and restored the sideplates to black. The metal polish I was using previously like Menzerna was very slow work in comparison and didn't remove as much.
Savinelli stem polish is the stuff

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steeliefool
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Re: Hard Rubber Side Plates

#20

Post by steeliefool »

Where to buy the Savinelli stem polish here in the USA?

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