Penn Jigmaster Frame Kits....

Started by Cortez_Conversions, June 04, 2015, 04:02:00 AM

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RowdyW


Cortez_Conversions

Visit: cortezconversions.com
Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.-Sal

thorhammer

Oh my....JIT for Christmas...I sense the market for bare stock jiggy plates is about to get glutted.....

Alto Mare

Tom, I said before that I will have everything you make, but still don't have any of these kits yet. I will eventually, but will need to wait a little longer.   
Today I assembled 3 reels with these kits for a friend and wanted to tell you that these  are  milled to perfection, even better that the standard Jigmaster you did earlier.
I know you include those nice shims with your kits, but I did not have a need to use any on all 3.
Reels are working perfectly.
Good job Tom and  thanks for making these!

Sal
Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.

Swami805

I bought a 99 kit when they came out and finally got it put together last night. All the pro challenger SS parts and a nice black lever from Ted. Used a nos accurate spool and a pro gear handle. Didn't have the right size star from motive have to put that on the list. Here's a picture and one with a cc 146 kit next to it. Both went together perfectly on the first shot everything just drops right in.
The free spool isn't very good on the 99. I used the bearings that came with the kit and I needed both shims to center the spool. Both bearings got a drop of tsi and nothing else, there's a tiny bit of side play in the spool.
Any tips on getting better free spool? Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks Sheridan
Do what you can with that you have where you are

Bryan Young

By chance, did you wipe off all excess grease?  Cortez Conversions kits have a very tight tolerances and even some slight excess grease will impede the spool from spinning freely.
:D I talk with every part I send out and each reel I repair so that they perform at the top of their game. :D

PacRat

Take the pinion gear out and re-assemble it without the pinion gear and give her a spin. Chances are freespool will be great due to the tight tolerances and superb fit. Bone stock Jigmasters have that counterbore on the outboard end of the pinion. The counterbore slides over the bushing when a stock JM is in freespool. This keeps the pinion and shaft really well centered and prevents contact/friction between the shaft and pinion, this contributes to great freespool. When we convert our JMs to bearings we lose this alignment aid; the pinion tilts slightly while in freespool and causes just enough friction that it won't freespool as well as we think it should. Sal has contributed a lot of information about how to polish the spool shaft and pinion which will help quite a bit. Also as Bryan just stated cleaning all the grease residue from the shaft and pinion bore helps also. In my opinion these hot-rodded Jigmasters tend to freespool less than we would anticipate but are fine for practical purposes...they just typically won't freespool for more than 30 seconds. If you can get a minute out of it you have really got her tuned to perfection. I have also found that a stock eccentric jack tends to freespool best. Sometime I will try all my spares until I find the one that freespools best.
Good luck
Mike

Rothmar2

Thanks for that explanation Mike re. the bushing-bearing-pinion alignment. I too found the free-spool to be a little disappointing, but have found improvements by polishing the inside of the pinion, and the spool shaft, and making sure there is no grease on the polished surfaces, only TSI 321. Probably get 20secs now with a good spin. Good enough, but must admit, it would be nice to get double that.
Over-all this does not detract from the quality of these aftermarket parts, and the finished assembled reels. These really will outlast what's left my fishing life.

Swami805

I'll pull it apart tonight and try cleaning and polishing. I'm just looking for 10 sec or so, about what I get out of the 146 kit. The fit and finish of those kits is second to none,never had a custon reel like that go together so easily. Thanks for the help and explanation. I have my first trip of the season next week,hoping to put them both to good use. Sheridan
Do what you can with that you have where you are

PacRat

I just went out to the garage and gave all my ball bearing Jigmasters a spin and this is what I'm getting. These all have the shafts and pinions polished and the bearing shields off with 321. None of these had line on them. I predict they will spin longer with the added mass of a full spool. These were all empty so they represent a good base line for comparison. Each of these will spin in excess of a minute without the pinion. Here's what I'm getting with the pinion polished and de-greased:
CC Side Plates, Tib 501 frame, Newell 501 spool: 18 seconds
CC Side Plates, Tib 99 frame, Newell 99 spool: 10 seconds
CC 99 kit, Newell 99 graphite spool: 15 seconds
CC 146 kit, Penn 146 spool: 12 seconds
ProGear 2500 (99 width): 9 seconds
Each of these reels were checked for freespool prior to installing the gears and all had at least 60 seconds freespool, some had more. This is just one of the steps I take while assembling. Once I establish a base line I know that any drop in freespool is a gear, shaft, yoke or eccentric jack issue and not a frame alignment or excess grease issue.
-Mike

foakes

Good info, Mike --

Thanks for the update and report.

Best,

Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

--------

The first rule of fishing is to fish where the fish are. The second rule of fishing is to never forget the first rule.

"Enjoy the little things in Life — For someday, you may look back — and realize that they were the big things"
                                                     Fred O.

steelhead_killer

I have learned from everyone here different aspects of getting these little jewels to free spool effortlessly.  In my limited experience, and I have only built 10 of these, the issues with free spool can be traced back to a tilt in the pinion from uneven jack tabs against the yoke.  Uneven? Specifically, the height of the tabs or the angle of the bend in the tab.  Put the micrometer to them and see if both are at the same height.  I have found a fluctuation in heights of stock and PC SS jacks.  If they are not exactly the same it will tilt the pinion and bind on the spool shaft reducing free spool.  Now the bad news, trying to get them to be the same height can bring you to your knees.  Small adjustments with a some needle nose pliers is always a little too much or not enough.  I just buy a hand full and find one that is nearly perfect.  Trial and error.  Polishing is good but if you really want it to spin over a 60 seconds look at the tabs.  My 2 cents.

Andy
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PacRat

Andy's giving some excellent advice here. I would like to add to it in that you should never attempt to bend the tabs on aftermarket eccentric jacks as they are hardened and you run the risk of breaking one off...don't ask how I know. Penn jacks can be tweaked but the aftermarket stainless jacks are best stoned with a quality abrasive stone and some means of maintaining parallel surfaces. Also make certain your clutch springs are matched.
-Mike

Alto Mare

#148
 
Something else I've found on trying to get better freespool, besides polishing the shaft and pinion, If you happen to have a scratch awl, try working it on the top of the  pinion a couple of times and see if that helps any.
On some pinions, when these are cut there is a sharp edge left on top,  polishing helps, but doesn't really fully remove it.
The awl does it nicely with very little effort, it's tapered, so no chance on scratching the rest of the pinion .
This is my best method, a scratch awl and the a wood clamp to hold the pinion in position


Also, we've found that some spool shafts are beefier than Penn stock spools, especially the Newell.
Prochallenger' s pinion have tight tolerance, they'll work great with Penn spools, but in some cases won't on some other, unless you really put lots of effort in to it.

Sal
Forget about all the reasons why something may not work. You only need to find one good reason why it will.

swill88