Originally Posted by bonnar_bloke
Hi Solman,

The best advice I can give you is that you send the sole plate and reel off to be sharpened but painting the reel prior to sharpening and then paint the sole plate after it returns from sharpening, this way the paint won't get damaged on the sole plate should the bed knife have to be removed for any particular reason.

Ensure you have new RLS5 Bearings on the shafts of the reel prior to handing it over as the bearings are used in the sharpening process.

As far as the roller pawls are concerned, any motor oil will suffice. Don't use grease as it will cause the pawls to gum up and not move freely which in turn will create issue for your rollers correct function backwards and forwards.

BTW that clutch is going to look fabulous spinning in the sun. I feel you'll require to paint it in a UV resistant clear so that the ally doesn't oxidise as it will and thus will look dowdy rather quickly.

I'm really looking forward to the end result.

Cheers,
BB.


thanks BB for all the tips. good idea about the clear coat i was already regretting to republish it all the time lol

i got a bit more work done today. I started working on the rear roller, and wouldn't you know it after hours of sanding and cleaning i go to prime it and dead set the first bit i spray i found a crack in the roller smirk

[Linked Image from i45.photobucket.com]

is this something to be concerned about? if so should i get it repaired or just source another?

here are some more pic's...

[Linked Image from i45.photobucket.com]
[Linked Image from i45.photobucket.com]

i also worked on the centre pieces, the finish didn't turn out great as there was a fair bit of rust on them which caused some pitting. I didn't want to over grind them just to achieve a smooth surface. I painted them in some galmet i had lying around, again not a great look but hey at least it will help to prevent rusting the the future.

[Linked Image from i45.photobucket.com]
[Linked Image from i45.photobucket.com]

the finished pieces mate nicely together now, which awesome considering i use a large mallet to pull them apart. Ill replace the screws holding it all together as the rust caused the heads to completely wear off, i had to use vice grips to undo it.