My SL30SH Freespool kind of sucks...

[sundaytrucka]

Not knocking the SL line itself, I had a 20SH before and loved it.

My problem is that I am getting about 3 seconds of free spool (spool "cap" is not threaded on tight, so that is not the issue). Reason I am asking, is that I took the reel apart for cleaning, checking, and greasing, and when I removed the pinion gear/yoke assembly I gave the spool a spin and got 17 seconds of free spool; which I would be more than happy with...spool bearings seem pretty good to me. So it seems as though the pinion gear is what may be slowing the spool down. (As mentioned, I had a model before and never had this problem.)

I greased inside the pinion where the shaft passes through and no change...Should I clean the shaft/pinion off and add something like reel-x or similar "speed" lubricant? Spool spins and casts smoothly, no apparent binding, just not very long. 

Thanks for any input. -Scott

[sundaytrucka]

Ok, found the issue!!!

Pete, of Just Fishing, told me to check the bushing under the spool "play" tightening cap; take it out and see if free spool improves. Sometimes the bushing swells and the ID shrinks, rubbing on the shaft and slowing the spool. Took it out, checked free spool, and this was not the issue.

He mentioned if the bushing was not the problem. than it was the pinion gear. He said the ID of the pinion can vary, sometimes gently hug the shaft and slow it down; instructed to bore out the pinion gear slightly, and that should free up the spool shaft.

I bored it out with a 9/64 bit, reinstalled the pinion/yoke and free spool went up to 12 seconds, compared to 3 sec!!!

Very happy with the outcome and free spool ability for non-lubricated spool bearings. Can I get more? Sure, but I don't need a rocket just for the purpose of saying I do; not what the reels purpose needs.

-Scott

[Bryan Young]

Ok, found the issue!!!

Pete, of Just Fishing, told me to check the bushing under the spool "play" tightening cap; take it out and see if free spool improves. Sometimes the bushing swells and the ID shrinks, rubbing on the shaft and slowing the spool. Took it out, checked free spool, and this was not the issue.

He mentioned if the bushing was not the problem. than it was the pinion gear. He said the ID of the pinion can vary, sometimes gently hug the shaft and slow it down; instructed to bore out the pinion gear slightly, and that should free up the spool shaft.

I bored it out with a 9/64 bit, reinstalled the pinion/yoke and free spool went up to 12 seconds, compared to 3 sec!!!

Very happy with the outcome and free spool ability for non-lubricated spool bearings. Can I get more? Sure, but I don't need a rocket just for the purpose of saying I do; not what the reels purpose needs.

-Scott

Very good Scott.  I tend to replace the bushing in the end cap with a bearing so that the bushing is not a factor.

[SoCalAngler]

Also don't grease the spools shaft. Clean the shaft and use a Q-Tip to clean the inside of the pinion. Lube both with Corrosion X if you got it, I use TSI, the you should get some more freespool. You should remove a sheild, clean out the old grease out of the spool bearings and lube then with the X. This should reduce bearing problems down the road.

[Dr. Jekyll - AKA MeL B]

just in case that one day you'll need and/or want a rocket, polished the inner part of the pinion since you drilled it and polished the part of the shaft where the pinion rests when it's in free spool.   

[sundaytrucka]

Very good Scott.  I tend to replace the bushing in the end cap with a bearing so that the bushing is not a factor.

Thanks Bryan. What size/dimensions is the bearing you use to replace the nylon bushing under the spool play cap?

Does the bearing size allow it to fit snugly in place of the nylon bushing or do you fit it in the cavity behind the bushing, within the side plate?

Also don't grease the spools shaft. Clean the shaft and use a Q-Tip to clean the inside of the pinion. Lube both with Corrosion X if you got it, I use TSI, the you should get some more freespool. You should remove a sheild, clean out the old grease out of the spool bearings and lube then with the X. This should reduce bearing problems down the road.

Thanks for the tip SoCal. I did the cleaning of the grease from the pinion and shaft, got an additional 1.5 seconds of freespool; the grease I added earlier was slowing it down. Picked up some Corrosion X today, so once I lube the spool bearings I should be set with more freespool than I can handle pretty soon.

just in case that one day you'll need and/or want a rocket, polished the inner part of the pinion since you drilled it and polished the part of the shaft where the pinion rests when it's in free spool.   

What do you use to polish the parts? A dremel with specialized bit? I guess I am building a rocket now, lol.

[Bryan Young]

Very good Scott.  I tend to replace the bushing in the end cap with a bearing so that the bushing is not a factor.

Thanks Bryan. What size/dimensions is the bearing you use to replace the nylon bushing under the spool play cap?

Does the bearing size allow it to fit snugly in place of the nylon bushing or do you fit it in the cavity behind the bushing, within the side plate?

[/quote]
The bearing is the same size as the bushing...3 x 10 x 4 mm.  I open, clean, and treat with TSI301 as with the other 2 spool bearings and the spool spins great.

[Dr. Jekyll - AKA MeL B]

scott, with what i have which is a cordless drill, i just carefully insert the other end of the shaft (LH) and polish that part of the shaft where the pinion rests at free spool using firts an 800 grit and then work my way up to 2000. after this process i polish it with a good metal polishing agent. as for the inner part of the pinion same thing but i use a drill bit that is one size smaller and to finish it off i put cotton with "chemical" on the bit to polish. hope this helps...

BTW my life will be much easier when i get back home.   

[Bryan Young]

I presume that you you took out the brake blocks.

[sundaytrucka]

scott, with what i have which is a cordless drill, i just carefully insert the other end of the shaft (LH) and polish that part of the shaft where the pinion rests at free spool using firts an 800 grit and then work my way up to 2000. after this process i polish it with a good metal polishing agent. as for the inner part of the pinion same thing but i use a drill bit that is one size smaller and to finish it off i put cotton with "chemical" on the bit to polish. hope this helps...

BTW my life will be much easier when i get back home.   

Thank you for the info. I will attempt to polish up some of my reels parts when I get all the materials and have the reels apart.

I presume that you you took out the brake blocks.

When I purchased the reel, used, it did not come with the spool brakes unfortunately. Do you think the reels freespool is better served with or without the spool brakes? I am looking to buy some (probably from Daiwa directly), to compare with/without difference, and I really liked the way my old SL casted, that one had spool brakes installed.

Thanks for the info on the bearing size Bryan.