I am afraid to soak them in anything because of the the plastic around the rollers.

Liquid ultra dish detergent, and a baby bottle nipple brush.

Thanks much.  I was headed in that direction (thinking Simple Green), but wasn't sure.  I also see different approaches to lubing them after they dry.  Some use Reel X and some use Super Lube.

Simple Green is fine. Whatever you use make sure no residue is left behind.

As for lube, I use oil only. Grease can make them inoperable in colder temps. If by chance a roller gets out of the cage, a coating of oil applied to it will make it tacky enough to get it back in the cage and stay there.

Soak in Simple Green hot water bath, rinse lightly, allow to dry thoroughly and apply light oil conservatively.

Thanks much.

Reel Mechanic sells a great book on servicing your reels. In it he suggests to use reel scrubber safe for plastic and metal cleans & degrease leaves no residuals, then coat lightly with reel grease. Buying that book was the best money I ever spent. Hope this was of some help.

where can i get this book?

Thanx!

Just go to his web site www.*** then look in his store.

Got the same book and some of his grease/oil. With the help of the book I was able to strip the reel down and re-lube for the first time. It may take awhile to do your first reel as you read the book simultaneously, but the rest of the reels were a lot easier once I knew what I was doing. It has been a great reference since as well.