Mitchell Reel Forum

What does everyone use to polish Shaft and track of bail.
I have discovered a lot of problems with jerking while reeling in is caused by shaft or track not smooth.
I have been using fine emory cloth to polish both shaft and track.
Does anyone have a better way?

I use white buffing compound on a buffing wheel for the shaft. I use a Dremel tool with a pointed felt buffing pad, again with white compound to polish the track. Then thoroughly clean the shaft, track and housing with solvent and compressed air. Seems to make it turn a bit smoother....
John

I was thinking about Dremel.
I have used light emory cloth wrapped on a small rat tail file, I have noticed the finish is not uniform on all reels.
Once you get it smooth reel operates 100% better.
Have brought a few back to life.

I have tried many different things for polishing/cleaning shaft and shaft seat. Most times just using a fine 0000 steel wool does fine for the shaft. I also use a dremel for cleaning up shaft seat and inside of reel housing. Any good polishing rouge and dental tip for polishing is just the right size to fit into the seat. Don’t go too overboard the shaft and seat have tolerances to allow reel to work properly

If you tear up an old shirt or T shirt for rags the seams where the section of cloth were joined make really good polishing strips with a little polishing paste added.

Treat the 'string of seam' with a little polish, wrap it around your workpiece held in the soft jaws of a bench vice and you will be amazed at how efficient it is when you pull from ends alternately....bit like the old fire-starting trick...and yes , it gets really hot too....great for reel handle shafts too.

Can I throw this in,I’m new here however not new to working on reels,Guns and mechanisms of various sorts,polishing cannot fix a malfunctioning thing of any kind it can only make a properly functioning thing work smoother,so whatever you work on should be working right first,if a bail is twisted it probably won’t flip right until properly shaped no matter how much polish you put on it.This is just a random example of stuff learned on working on Mitchell 300’s. It is one very common problem with them.Also uneven running can be caused by improper thrust washer spacing.
Sorry,who am I to speak,you guys may have more knowledge than me,just thought I would say.