Harbor Freight ultrasonic cleaner, Before & After pictures...WOW!!!

bsdpinball

New member
Joined
Oct 22, 2010
Messages
275
Reaction score
0
Location
Moscow, Pennsylvania
Harbor Freight ultrasonic cleaner, Before & After pictures...WOW!!!

So I bought this thing last night for 21$, I had good things about these but really did not think it would live up the the hype. I am restoring a 1974 United Unique shuffle alley and I need to clean the 30yr old grease from all the steppers and score reels. For the last 2 days I have been dissassembling every reel and taking a toothbrush and simple green to every little piece, then carefully re-assembling it. Clearly this would take about 2 to three days of 8 hrs a day. If there was any easy around this method I wanted in. Anyway, I think the pictures speak for themselves. I do not even have to disassemble the score reels ! I can just remove the coil and switches and drop it in. I can only fit half of it in at a time, so I run each side for 2 3minute cycles,12 minutes total for each score reel, and here is the results.

I can also put a frozen stepper that is caked with grease and will not reset, and when its done not only does it look brand new but the wipers slide effortlessly over the bakelite. AMAZING

before:
GEDC0097.jpg


GEDC0098.jpg


GEDC0100.jpg


GEDC0101.jpg

GEDC0104.jpg
 
These are score reels. All you add to the ultrasonic cleaner is hot water and a 1/4 teaspoon of harbor freights "ultrasonic cleaning solution". I suspect it is just cheap powdered soap. Alternatly you can just use two drops of liquid dish soap. Or you can just use hot water and it still works amazing
 
Just a tip that I've used before is to use a "Sharpe" marker to touch up the black numbers on the reels. Try it on one and check it out being back-lit. On mine you couldn't tell they had been touched up at all.
 
Did that already because of about 7 reels I have done so far I had lost some ink on one of them. I am using it for the thousands reel because that hardly ever gets used.
 
I would test one reel first and make sure you dont lose the screened on numbers. If there is little knicks or scratches in the numbers the ultrasound seems to get under them and lift the paint. just be careful, the numbers on these reels are notorious for coming off easy. Every set I have worked on so far though have been pretty durable.
 
Maybe I will have to give it another try. I bought one a few years ago, tried cleaning some small handgun parts with it, and it didn't do anything... :( Parts were just as dirty before and after. So I returned it. Maybe it was a defective unit or something?
 
It must have been defective, did it make a humming noise when you pressed start ? It should produce a 40 Hz tone.


As far as lubing, I lightly lube metal to metal pivot points. As for nylon to nylon, it needs no lube, just has to be very very clean.
 
It must have been defective, did it make a humming noise when you pressed start ? It should produce a 40 Hz tone. ...

Yeah, it made a 'hum' type noise, and I could see funny little waves in the water.

Maybe I needed a different powder or something? I used their general cleaner, which is what the clueless guy that worked there said worked best for everything...? :confused: I tried cleaning for their time recommended, and that didn't work, so I ended up leaving it in there for 4X as long, still nothing.

Glad to see your before/after pics, though. Makes me tempted to try and give it another shot. Can't beat it for the price, for sure.
 
Back
Top Bottom