Apparently some moisture got into the trailer storage box (or my race-mates put the straps in there wet after having the trailer for the last month). In any case, now all my ratchets are stiff and corroded and the mechanical action is difficult.
Aside from the obvious "spray lube to teh sprockets, etc" anyone have any good tricks for cleaning these up nicely? The straps themselves are in good shape if a bit damp, but the ratchets themselves are bleh...
When I lived on a dirt road in Michigan (State motto "Salty and dirty cars are good for our economic health") I frequently had to deal with corroded nasty strap ratchets on my car trailer. I would pressure wash as much rust/dirt off as I could and then let them soak in a bucket of used oil for a few days. It extended their inevitable replacement a bit.
Yeah, that's the main goal. I'll keep these for the guys when they use the trailer for races I don't go to, and have a nice set of my own lol
Pull the straps out and soak the ratchets in vinegar
Or pull the straps out and tumble the ratchets in a cement mixer with some tumble media or course sand.
small wire brush and or some emery cloth to clean and smooth the surfaces. Hit with a dry lubricant like silicone. Usually that's about all it takes. Then store them more carefully in the future.
New trailer
I usually just hose them down with WD40 and work them a bit to get the crap out of them, then spray with silicone for lubrication. Works great for the dirt/trials bikes, and those straps get pretty nasty.
You'll need to log in to post.
