Swapping gears Penn 500

[fmin148]

I would like to have a lower gear ratio for a Penn 500. Are there any pinion or main gears that are compatable with the 500 to make a lower than 4-1 gear ratio?

[alantani]

funny you ask!  you would use the side plate for a penn 99 silver beach.  it has a 3:1 gear ratio!  we just had a guy that scored a penn 99 and needs a penn 500 side plate.  you guys should just swap side plates!!!!!!!!!!!

[fmin148]

So the 99 side plate (hard to come by) can be swapped for the 500 side plate. What I want to do is find an available pinion or main gear and swap it into my 500 to get a lower gear ratio. I would like to know if there is a pinion from another Penn reel that would fit into a 500. hmm I wonder if the 99 pinion will fit? I bet that part is hard to get.

[alantani]

the two side plates have different bridges.  the distance between the center of the pinions and the center of the mains are different in both reels. 

[Jimmer]

Alan is right on the money, as always. gears are hobbed as a set, requiring different diameters of both pinion and main gear to change a gear ratio. The center to center dimensions of the gears must be the same as the center to center of the shafts with a little clearance milled into the teeth so they dont bind up. It would be nice, but you can't just switch out a pinion or main gear, you need both.

[alantani]

found it!  george4741 is the one that found a penn 99.  send him a pm. 

http://alantani.com/index.php?action=profile;u=2642

[Alto Mare]

If you didn't have to have a one screw take down you could go wit a 250 Surfmaster or 259. Better yet, get yourself a Penn Senator 1/0, drop in some carbon washers and an aluminum spool ....you won't find a better reel .
Most of these reels are still available, you have to look at the right place for them. Try Ebay.
Good luck! Sal

[Keta]

Try Ebay.

Just stay clear of any Surfmaster 100's, I must have a fair to good one and a Jigmaster 501 for my collection and they don't come up often.  There was a Penn 99 with a Jigmaster 500, a Monofil 25 and a Ocean City 112  that closed last night that I was out bid on, all 4 went for $58.77 + 8.50.

[George4741]

Try Ebay.

Just stay clear of any Surfmaster 100's.

I think Keta is buying up all of those for himself.  

fmin148,
I gotta ask, do you like the easy spool removal of these reels and just want a slower gear ratio?  If so, and you may already be aware of this, the Jigmaster is the only one with the larger 6-309 drags.  All of the other Penns with quick removal sideplates have the smaller 6-60 drag washers - 99's, surfmasters, and squidders.  This may or may not be important for your needs. 

Regards,
George

[Ratchet]

I would like to have a lower gear ratio for a Penn 500. Are there any pinion or main gears that are compatable with the 500 to make a lower than 4-1 gear ratio?

fmin148,

Sorry, late to the game...as far as I know, the best you can do with a mix of Penn pinion and main gears is 3.7:1 or about an 8% reduction.  The good news is that you can use your existing main gear (#5-500) but the bad news is that you will have to hunt for a long discontinued pinion (#13-99).  This pinion gear was most recently used in the 112H when it came with a 3.7:1 gear ratio but that was a long time ago.

The way the tell the two pinions apart is  that the #13-500 pinion has 12 teeth, while the #13-99 pinion has 13 teeth and a tad larger in diameter.
A second check is to spin the #13-99 pinion around the main gear, making sure there is no binding as the gears mesh together.

The slight mismatch in pinion gear size is no problem.

While you are at it, try and find an old #24-49 counterbalanced handle to replace your current #24-66, the extra length will help turn your Jigmaster into a winch.

Btw, this conversion works with the older US-made Jigmasters, I haven't tried it on the newer versions made overseas.