I see that the most recent post is pretty much the exact same question as mine but I registered for this forum for the sole purpose of asking about my Speed King so I'm going to ask it anyway Cool Dude
So I too just bought my first Speed King on eBay and upon first receiving it, it just didn't seem to live up to the hype right away. It feels very... sloppy? I've heard people say that it should sort of feel that way, but mine is also not very 'springy'. I don't feel much resistance or bounce when I push down, even after fiddling with the screws in the bottom of the posts. I basically have to push my foot down, then pick it up, and repeat to make a full stroke. I took some pics this morning, albeit not very good ones. They're from my cell phone and were taken in a bit of a hurry. I'll try to add more later...
http://img508.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=speedking01.jpg
By the way, if anyone has any idea how old this might be, please feel free to take take a stab at it. I'm a layman when it comes to these things, and new to vintage gear in general. The footplate says WFL but the little caps facing outward at the top of the posts say Ludwig. I know they were sort of associated at some point but from my reading up it seems there was a WFL version and a Ludwig version, so I'm not sure why mine has both names.
Anyway, I really wasn't too shocked at the condition of my pedal, seeing as I paid around $20 for it (I guess you get what you pay for). The beater that came with it was bent forward for some reason, not sure if it could have been made that way for some reason. Also, the little toe clamp on the bottom doesn't seem to screw down far enough to clamp on to my bass drum hoop, so I've had to put a small piece of wood under the screw to make it fit (although loosely).
But other than those things the pedal is actually in decent shape, and I don't want to give up hope that I may be able to restore it, although I've really never done anything like this before. I may try to use some of the suggestions from the previous post; remove the screws on the bottom and remove the springs, put them in paint thinner? Then clean out the inside of the posts with a cloth (would a pipe cleaner work?). I've heard several things about re-greasing/oiling the insides. Motor oil? 3-in-1 oil? Some other kind of lubricant? And do I need to 'fill' the posts completely with lube, or just a little bit? Would it be possible/necessary to replace the springs altogether?
I'm probably starting to ramble, but any suggestions will be mucho appreciated! Thanks!