I am not sure how obsessive to be about this. I mainly fish a Longbeach 60 from shore or wading. If I dunk it, I will pull it apart, clean and rebuild....no question. But, what about on a normal day when you naturally get a few drops of water from the line that end up getting through the space where the spool meets the sideplates? Should a service a couple times a season take care of any salt buildup? Should the reel get dunked in freshwater? What do you think?
Next time you pull it apart, lightly grease the guts, the click spring and tongue, and the sides of the spool. This will keep you going. Any grease is better than none, but Penn blue or a marine bearing grease will work. You can mix it with reel oil to thin if you want to get it even lighter, looks like you do more maintenance than most out there. After than a light spray down and wipe external with Penn reel cleaner, WD40, Ballistol, Corrosion X, or whatever goes a really long way.
I was reading a thread here lately, where some guys said that in addition to hosing off their reels, they would dunk their well-greased reels in fresh water for several hours. Sounds a bit extreme to me, but... If I find the thread, I'll post it back here.
I soak my reels in freshwater every time I use them in saltwater.
Okay, thanks guys. So Keta, do you let it dry assembled or do you unscrew a sideplate? Thanks.
When I do a quick after salt inspection —
On these conventional Penns it is easy —
Pop off the tail-plate, remove the spool, check for any salt buildup or water intrusion within the head or tail sides, wipe it down, regrease.
I use a grease gun with a needle to get a little extra grease around the main, pinion, jack, yoke, eccentric, etc.
Even the top of the bridge gets a light coat of marine grease.
Clamp screws are also greased.
When servicing these reels for myself and clients — for using in salt — the rings get greased underneath, as do the insides of the plates, click spring and clicker, sides of the spool, and every screw thread gets greased as the reel is assembled. Bearings get grease and TSI321 mixed.
Always have marine grease, TSI321, WD-40, small brush, basic tools, spare screws, and a clean rag inside of a clear plastic container that goes with me wrapped with orange tape. Occasionally it has come in handy, for others and myself.
Any time the grease has turned a lighter or milkier color — that is a sign of salt water.
Best,
Fred
Quote from: grekim on March 13, 2018, 02:58:33 PM
Okay, thanks guys. So Keta, do you let it dry assembled or do you unscrew a sideplate? Thanks.
Usualy just shake them out, let them air dry and then store them uncovered.
All my Reels have been given a pre-service with grease on all internal parts. After a salt water trip all rods with attached reels go into the shower with me for a god warm water rinse. Then outside for a drip dry. Then a once a year full service for heavily used reels. Bill
Lol......Bill, I think I've said this one before, but when we do our annual SD trip in July everyone always asks why there are rods in the shower after I do a couple of 1/2 day trips! Then outside to dry, and either Ardent reel clean or automotive spray was....teardown after I get home 😁
Brett
The only thing I would add is I also tighten the drag before rinsing in fresh water. Shake of the excess. Then loosed the drag and leave to air dry. I'm still unsure if that really makes any difference to the drag :-\
Okay, thanks. After soaking, I would worry a little about fresh water not being able to escape from under the rings, but maybe life is too short. I have a few LB 60's now and I fish the one that is in worst condition (which is actually quite good), so I will soak and it will probably last 30 more years anyway. The other reels that I fish in saltwater are Mitchell 302's, 306's, and 402's so I guess the same would apply to them.
Quote from: Tiddlerbasher on March 14, 2018, 11:45:48 AM
The only thing I would add is I also tighten the drag before rinsing in fresh water. Shake of the excess. Then loosed the drag and leave to air dry. I'm still unsure if that really makes any difference to the drag :-\
Yup!
Lee - is that 'Yup' it does make a difference - or 'Yup' your not sure either ;D
Yup, it helps keep water off the drag stack.
As you say, it is inevitable that seawater will get behind the spool despite whatever is done to make it water tight. If you have free spool then you have water access. The quick and easy way to deal with the seawater is to flush it out with freshwater.
So, why not embrace the inevitable and make drain holes and flushing holes in the side plates? Or, just perforate everything? Not a Penn, but you get the idea:
(http://www.raingarden.us/snap/SPFSe.JPG)
-steve
Quote from: oc1 on March 14, 2018, 07:00:48 PM
As you say, it is inevitable that seawater will get behind the spool despite whatever is done to make it water tight. If you have free spool then you have water access. The quick and easy way to deal with the seawater is to flush it out with freshwater.
So, why not embrace the inevitable and make drain holes and flushing holes in the side plates? Or, just perforate everything? Not a Penn, but you get the idea:
-steve
Forget seawater, Steve. What about sand, seed pods, fish scales and insects? ;D :o ::) :P A child could lose a finger playing with that!
All in good fun... hope you don't mind, Steve.
/Joe
oh... I forgot.... You can also grind pepper corns. Just hold it over your salad and crank. :)
-steve
Quote from: oc1 on March 15, 2018, 04:02:04 AM
oh... I forgot.... You can also grind pepper corns. Just hold it over your salad and crank. :)
-steve
You are a great sport Steve. Very funny. Dominick
Actually, Steve could probably turn a pepper grinder into a reel😁
He's done more difficult rebuilds than that.....and he could probably get a smooth drag at the same time! Catch, spice, season and grill....
Brett
Quote from: Bill B (Tarfu) on March 14, 2018, 03:00:38 AMAfter a salt water trip all rods with attached reels go into the shower with me for a good warm water rinse. Then outside for a drip dry. Bill
The neighbors ought to "love" that, Bill - LOL !
BTW - I put my rods in the shower, too, and then take them outside.
Tight Lines
Quote from: bhale1 on March 15, 2018, 04:37:38 AM
Actually, Steve could probably turn a pepper grinder into a reel😁
He's done more difficult rebuilds than that.....and he could probably get a smooth drag at the same time! Catch, spice, season and grill....
Brett
If I were marooned on a dessert island, Steve!
That is neat! Is that a cork spool? Looks like birch bark.
Hau Bush I think but it was lop-sided and a bust.
http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=20986.0 (http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=20986.0)
-steve
Steve is a living national treasure, seriously.
Quote from: oc1 on March 15, 2018, 04:02:04 AM
oh... I forgot.... You can also grind pepper corns. Just hold it over your salad and crank. :)
-steve
Steve,
Check these out !
Tight Lines !
(https://secure.img1-fg.wfcdn.com/im/61700806/resize-h800%5Ecompr-r85/1612/16124564/Ocean+Reel+Salt+and+Pepper+Mills.jpg)
So, I have gotten into the habit of dropping the reel into a bucket of H2O (and removing it in a timely fashion!). For a Surfmaster I will pull it open to dry since this is quick to do. What do you think about the 209's and Longbeaches. Should I remove one of the plates every time or is a few shakes good enough? And I also worry about water of any sort in the bearings.
Grekim - You (like me) are overthinking this. As a lad working boats at the end of the day we would hose down our rental rods/reels, and those old Penn's are probably still going 20 years later. Give your gear a good freshwater rinse at the end of a trip. No, don't use the pressure washer. It will be fine. Unless you were surf fishing and dropped your reel into the primordial soup of grit and sand, I personally think pulling sideplates every trip is way overkill (once a year- maybe). Set your gear up the way the wise folks on this forum recommend. But don't stress: that stock Penn "Out of the Box" 30 (or whatever years ago) was not designed to be torn apart every trip, they were made with a "wash and go" in mind. The folks on this forum are the best and are GREAT with advise and upgrades, but the bottom line is that if your reel is working great - ENJOY IT don't stress about it! And now the hypocrite in me is going to go put that great 5 stack CF drag that Alan sent me into my 113H...
Thanks Brewcrafter! Yeah, I think I will pull it apart once or twice a year for the complete regreasing and spray it down after a trip. Gotta keep this fun at all times! One thing I had been doing before the bucket dunk was running the line through a PVC T-pipe in a bucket of water with a heavy pipe fitting to weigh it down. I will post a picture if anyone is interested. But, it got the salt off the line and allowed me to clean the inside of the spool. This helps with the visible part of the spool, not behind as I was originally posting about.