Avet JX uneven drag. Help

[nlam004]

Got a brand new JX.  Anyone know what the issue is with this reel?  I own several and service my own reels.  I have not encountered this before.  





Thanks Nick

***UPDATE POSTED ON PAGE 3***

[Alto Mare]

Well obviously something is wrong, sounds like an assembly issue to me.
Since the reel is new, I would send it back on their dime, unless they don't mind you opening it up to take a look.
If they agree, I would take it apart and make sure everything is set back in place as it should be, that would determine what's going on.
Those are not hard to work on...Good luck!

Sal

[Dr. Jekyll - AKA MeL B]

1. feel your carbon fibre and brake disk for uneven surfaces

2. have you greased the fibre?

let us know.

btw you could go Sal's suggestion to send it back since it's new but at the same if it was me i'll do my best to locate what's the cause of this "grinding" noise but that's just me.

[Keta]

If it was mine I would take it apart and look but it is an Avet problem and they should be made aware of it.  Send it to Avet.

[nlam004]

Sigh. Pain in the butt.  I did take it apart and everything is in place.  My guess is that for some reason, the axis of the pressure plate and spool must be off despite all the pieces being in place.  I'll give Avet a call.  Thanks guys

Nick

[mike1010]

I hope Avet gives you a detailed explanation.  It seems to me that to produce something like that, at least two of these components must be damaged:  spool, brake disc, pinion, pinion bearing, head plate.

[sharkman]

Could it possibly be the spool shaft warped.  In the second video it looks like the gap between the spool and side plate get loose and tight. 

[Dr. Jekyll - AKA MeL B]

op before sending it to Avet, do you wan to try to figure it out one more time?

[the rockfish ninja]

Seems like some warpage of some type, a shaft or a plate. I've never had any problems with my Avets so hearing about quality issues with them is news to me, but being new i would definitely contact them and/or get a replacement. I will say that the Alan Tani suggestion of lightly lubing the carbon fiber drag plate not only increases your drag but helps it to be a more smooth drag than when they are dry out of the factory.

Don't know if that will correct your problem but sometimes that kind of issue can be from even the slightest warp or thickness variance of that fiber plate, so maybe a simple replacement of that can correct it.

Good luck.

[nlam004]

I got off the phone with the folks at Avet and I'm probably going to send it in.  This issue is only noticeable at settings where the drag is barely engaged.  At heavier settings, the pressure drowns out and isn't noticeable.  Nevertheless, I like my reels butter smooth with no start-up energy or drag issues so back to Avet it goes. 

[SoCalAngler]

Avet will make it right.  

My guess since they now glue the drag to the spool is something, maybe even a air bubble, got between the spool and glued on drag washer making a high spot. In the video you can see the sticky point seems to be on the same spot of the spool, as one wrap of the braid comes off the spool it looks like it sticks at the same point each rotation.

Under light , moderate to heavy drag the high spot is flattens out but at minimal drag the high spot is causing the uneven feeling. My bet is Avet will replace the spool with a properly glued on drag washer and all will be fine.

Shark Hunter this is not a new designed Avet reel, not a Raptor or the G2 line of reels, so what makes you feel these reels have, in your words "way too many problems". Or is it you feel any new reels from Avet have more out of box issues than other manufactures?

I'm not trying to flame you SH but a reel designed 9-10 years ago after the most recent changes to the non Raptor JX line is not exactly new.

[nlam004]

I was looking for high spots, uneven wear, and warped trajectory on both the pressure plate and spool and couldn't find any with my naked eye.  Even with a high spot on the drag washer wouldn't it still have an even contact with the pressure plate at that particular spot?  That's why I figured both were warped or were on different axis.  I know Avet will probably fix the problem assuming they consider it a problem at all, but they've already confirmed the shipping will be off my dime and I can only imagine the service will also be as well.  I like their products specifically because of how easy it is to work on them, but the customer service in this particular scenario isn't exactly above and beyond. 

[Shark Hunter]

Mark,
I just hate seeing the problems people have with these reels. Out of the Box or bearing issues.
Just about every Avet Thread that pops up here is related to a problem, not a praise.
These are Made in America and They could sell a lot more if the product was simply made better, or maybe the quality inspection at the end of the line would have caught this.
I know this reel isn't a new design, but it is still new.
These reels aren't cheap.
I just want to See an American Made Reel that has the Capacity, Style and Function to be the "One" that everybody wants.
I really want an 80 wide two speed, but am scared to take the plunge.
This is just my own perspective and opinion.
Daron

[SoCalAngler]

Daron,

I respect your opinion but in this case I think your a little off base.

For a couple of years I worked at then managed the largest Avet retailer in the world at the time, they may still hold this title but I no longer have this type of info. This was several years ago but I made face to face sales of hundreds of Avet reels in their store. These were not internet sales but from customers that I sold reels. At that time we also sold Penn, Accurate, Okuma, Diawa and a few other manufactures. The out of the box failures from one manufacture to another were about the same. Not one in my memory stands out from the other even though we sold way more Avet reels than others.

If there was in fact an out of the box issue with reels I sold I would of heard about it from the customers I sold them to because I saw them many times over the years I worked there and they would want/need the reels fixed. Further more at that time the shop I worked at did in house reel repair so I had a chance to be in or see inside of hundred's of other reels from various manufactures.

I also fish with and have a personal relationships with some of the largest retailers here in So Cal and even though I no longer work in the tackle industry sometimes we still talk shop.

As far as the bearing issues with Avet yes the first year of production they made a bad choice for a bearing supplier. This issue may have slipped to other years do to how many reels the retailer bought and could sell in that time frame. This has long since been corrected.

IMO most of the bearing issues are due to people over fishing these reels. All? I don't think so but I would give that chance about a 10 to 1 rating. Most that come here are not familiar with Avet reels, or maybe with lever drag reels as a whole and don't stay within the recommend drag settings of their reels.

My father still fishes a MXL with engraved side plates down in Baja that does not get enough service IMO but when I do get my hands on it I run a full service....this reel still has the stock bearings. I have a JX 6/3 about 11 years old with stock bearings. I have caught several different fish of a life time with this reel, check my avatar or many of the largest fish I have posted here, most caught with the the 6/3 and the reel still has the stock bearings.

Don't get me wrong I'm not some Avet rep or supporter and at his time I only have 2 in my lineup of about 12 reels I fish. But, to see a blanket statement like this from you made SH I would of thought at least you have fished Avet reels or worked on them personally.

As a side note if it were me SH I would not go with a 80 but I'd look at a TRX30W or a TRX50W. These reels have enough power to stop the meanest fish or may pull you into the shark infested waters where you fish...lol  Don't let that happen. With enough drag you should not need 100's of extra yards of line to get the fish to the beach.

The OP has a drag issue, the alignment issue seems like the right place to look at but if you don't want to start to swap one part at a time until you find the issue just send it back to Avet. Or, if the reel is new get it back to the shop where you bought if from. If it was a online purchase get a return label sent to you when they send you another reel.

[Keta]

I agree, Avets are my second most common reel to repair and I own 10.  The pinion bearings are the weak point but if you don't do a few things they hold out.  Part of a service is to replace them.   I have serviced close to 200 Avets and have never found quality issues.

Avets service department is helpfull too.