Kelsey Excelsior Model U 5x8

I was recently given a pretty rusted, worn-out 5x8 Model U Kelsey Excelsior Letterpress, and have been working to clean and restore it. I have just completed removing all the rust and oiling it so that it moves smoothly, and need some advice moving forward.

I believe I am at the point where I can to order parts and reassemble. So far I have been using the “Kelsey Restoration… where to start” discussion as a guide. I used the vinegar and lemon juice solution which worked great, except two springs broke and some of the paint peeled up. My question regarding the paint is should I repaint it? I am afraid parts will rust if I don’t, but it’s just here and there where the paint is missing and I don’t want to have to remove all of it and repaint if it isn’t necessary.

As far as parts go, I am not entirely certain what I need, as I have never seen a complete, working Kelsey press. I have been looking at excelsiorpress.org to try to figure this out. Rollers, obviously, a chase and long chase screw, a new platen back spring and chase latch spring (both broke in the vinegar solution), and I believe that is all. Do I need to keep these roller bars, or is that included when I order rollers? Also, one of the protruding bits of metal that holds the tightening screws broke off the chase bed. It seemed very sturdy and I did not even notice it until I removed the chase bed, and I would rather not replace this unless it will pose some other problem. I could not seem to attach photos to this post, but I posted images at http://mburkeart.tumblr.com/post/44905110063/progress-next-step-order-pa...

Any recommendations as to where I may find these parts would be extremely helpful as well. I apologize for the super long post but this is my first press restoration, and I really want to make sure I do it right. I am very eager to start printing!

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