New (to me) pro gear 545

[Three se7ens]

Ive had my eye on one of these for a while, and finally came across a deal I couldnt beat.  Picked it up off ebay for a good price, and there was a bit of corrosion on the body.  But once I received the reel, it was in pretty good shape except the one spot under the freespool lever.  This winter, Ill break it all down and fill the corrosion spot and cerakote the whole reel.  Im the mean time, Im gonna fish it as much as I can. 

I opened the reel up, and was pleasantly surprised.  It was dirty and a bit salty, but it looks to have had an alan tani service the last time it was cracked open.  Nearly all of the grime wiped right off, leaving a reel that was in pretty good shape.  A little minor corrosion on the inside of the head plate, but the only bad spot was the one spot under the freespool lever.  I cleaned it up, and put it all back together with a few additions.  Original Penn steel main gear, 3.25 ratio and matching pinion, one of my stainless drag stars and handles, and an eva knob from fishincomfort on ebay.  Still have plans for a SS bridge, gear sleeve, and double dogs, but the bridge and gear sleeve I had didnt fit properly, so Ill have to do a little work before I can put those in.  I did use one of my 113H insert drag kits in this reel.  Im sure it can make way more drag than the 80 lb braid Im using is up for.  Which btw, worked out perfectly.  I had 330 yds of 80 lb braid off an old reel, and it was a perfect fit for this reel, and its intended use. 

[Rancanfish]

Yes, sweet little reels. Surprisingly I got rid of the only one I ever had.

[STRIPER LOU]

Those are nice reels Adam. Keep it well greased inside and out and of course some Corrosion X and you'll be good to go. I was lucky to find a couple of them. One is mint and the other close. Its a strong reel!!!! I like to use mine for Diamond Jigging.
................Lou

[Three se7ens]

Im looking forward to putting some fish in the boat with it.  Should be perfect for fishing the reefs here.  

I ran into a few little hiccups when I was putting it together, so I couldnt use my stainless bridge or gear sleeve.  I ordered some more material to make another ss bridge for this and my 113HLW.  Ill put the stainless sleeve in with that, and double dog it then.  Already put in a Penn steel main gear/pinion with my insert drag kit.  

edit:  I tested the drag tonight.  I gave up at 48 lbs of drag, and I still had more than half a turn left on the drag star.  Above 35 lbs I was struggling, but the drag felt incredibly smooth letting out line at 30 lbs and below.  Perfect for the heavy reef/bottom fishing I plan to use it for.  80 lb braid, and as much drag as it takes to get the fish off the wreck. 

[eldoradoman]

I love my 545.  I was just wondering if you were you able to get a double dog system and gear sleeve that works in this reel?  If so I would love to know where to get one.

[SoCalAngler]

I love my 545.  I was just wondering if you were you able to get a double dog system and gear sleeve that works in this reel?  If so I would love to know where to get one.

Well some of us have built our own double dog system and the sleeve you can get from Black Pearl on this web site.

http://alantani.com/index.php?topic=9544.0

[Three se7ens]

So I opened up the reel after that last drag test, and found a mess at the top of the drag stack.  The top carbon fiber washer completely sheared off all its teeth.  The rest of the cf washers were fine, and all the metal washers, and the insert itself were undamaged.  Still functioned normally, and I would have never known without opening up the reel.  Thats still an absurdly high drag number for a reel of this size, and way more than I ever plan on using.   I also noticed the metal keyed washers left a pretty good mark in the brass sleeve I had in at the time of the test. 

The stainless sleeve wouldnt quite fit on the progear bridge, so I found a 113H bridge that already had a beveled edge like the progear one, and put the stainless sleeve on that.  Im going to top it off with a single titanium dog for the time being.  Im undecided how Im going to do the double dogs, but I really want something with the dogs mounted on the bridge.  The black pearl double dog bridge for the 113H looks promising.

[nelz]

Are you looking to part with the original handle?

[coastal_dan]

Reel looks sexy with that star and handle!  Nice combo for sure.  What drag #'s are you planning to actually fish it at?

[Three se7ens]

Reel looks sexy with that star and handle!  Nice combo for sure.  What drag #'s are you planning to actually fish it at?

I really like the handle, but I actually changed out the drag star to the Newell style.  Ill put up some pics once I get it all back together. 

The reefs here are full of very tasty(but not so large) black sea bass that dont regularly take line on even light setups.  But there are mixed in with large and stubborn fish that take pretty heavy drag to get clear of the reef before the break out off.  I have spinners with 55 lb braid for the lighter stuff, and I have this spooled with 330 yds of 80 lb braid, with a short mono topper(80 lb at the moment, but can easily change on the water) for the heavier stuff.  In addition, Ive been wanting to get away from spinners for bottom fishing, because you get so many bites on the drop, and its hard to feel with a spinner.  When we get into thick black sea bass, you will have a fish on before your weight hits the bottom, all day long. 

Nelz, I think Im going to hang onto this handle.  I still like it, and it may end up on a 113H.  I just wanted something heavier and stronger for my PG.

[Three se7ens]

Got it put back together today.  The stainless sleeve wouldnt fit on the progear bridge, so I went with a 113H bridge that had a beveled edge already.  Gear sleeve fits perfect on that, and no grinding was necessary on the bridge to clear the spool.  Made a new dog out of 0.1" thick titanium, and replaced the damaged drag washer.  All back together now, with a 3" x 3/16" thick Newell style drag star this time. 

[Three se7ens]

My pg545 got a little love today.  Black Pearl double dog bridge, stainless gear sleeve, and stainless gear set, and my insert drag kit with a prototype of the new drag washers I'm testing. 

Cant wait to get this reel out to the reefs to do some real testing. 

[Maxed Out]

My pg545 got a little love today.  Black Pearl double dog bridge, stainless gear sleeve, and stainless gear set, and my insert drag kit with a prototype of the new drag washers I'm testing. 

Cant wait to get this reel out to the reefs to do some real testing. 

Now you're talking !! It's been a long journey for your 545 Adam, and adding the DD bridge is a must with all that drag you're going to have. looking forward to your test results.

[Three se7ens]

My pg545 got a little love today.  Black Pearl double dog bridge, stainless gear sleeve, and stainless gear set, and my insert drag kit with a prototype of the new drag washers I'm testing. 

Cant wait to get this reel out to the reefs to do some real testing. 

Now you're talking !! It's been a long journey for your 545 Adam, and adding the DD bridge is a must with all that drag you're going to have. looking forward to your test results.

This reel starts off as a pretty amazing piece of equipment.  Basically a narrow Jigmaster with the internals of a 113H.  Not unlike the jigmaster Magnums.  But these upgrades take it to a whole new level. 

[theluckpusher]

another big advantage the Pro Gear 545 has over a Jigmaster Magnum (besides cost) is the one piece frame that is better for Braid line --- there is nothing for the line to get stuck on!!!