heat cracks in pressure plate?

[Navidad Nutcase]

Hello everyone. hope the new year is starting out well for all.

I'm fishing in Mexico at the moment and a friend has a reel with a jerky drag. opened it up and this is what I found.  I never heard of one of these things getting so hot it cracks. the only thing that would do this is putting water on it to cool it down. Weird to me. It's an old International 20. I'm going to emry cloth it down and see how deep the cracks are.
   as far as the drag plate, I'm going to lightly sand it down too.
I will be checking back here in a few days. BEFORE I do anything. Last time I messed something up real good and THEN checked back to see all the advice not to do it.
Greg

[Bryan Young]

Wow, just WOW!!!

[mo65]

   Are you sure they aren't just scratches? None of them go clear across the plate...they stop short of the screw holes...kind of odd. Looks like someone's attempt at getting the drag to bite harder, and explains the jerky drag.

[MarkT]

I agree that it looks like someone did that on purpose in a failed attempt to get more drag.

[El Pescador]

... in a failed attempt to get more drag.

More CowBell!!!!

 

MORE DRAG!!!!

My adage, FISH HARD!!!!   PULL HARDER!!!!!

Wayne

[handi2]

I zoomed in real close to see that there is cracks on the left side of the picture. It goes down to deep to be just a scratch.

[alantani]

i think someone was tying to do this.

[Lunker Larry]

Also you wouldn't think cracks would be that evenly distributed over the whole plate. A bit of monkeying around on this reel I suspect.

[Keta]

The "cracks" are round bottomed and end round not crack like and appear to be scratch marks to me.

[alantani]

greg, if you don't have a $30 replacement carbon fiber drag plate, then something you might be able to try is to cut more slots like the ones you see, only cut them into the composite material of the brake pad.  i tried this once, a really long time ago, and it actually helped!!!!!

[thorhammer]

Any way to flip the plate over? looks like screws are counter sunk and probably threaded; wonder if possible to flip plate, drill new holes and countersink between existing centers? Just wouldn't be threaded through plate, unless you can find a self tapping screw of same thread and then replace with original. Just thinking combat field repair that might be done with only a hand drill and simple measuring tools, where you likely don't have tap and die set ready to hand.

[boon]

Yeah, scratches in what looks like an attempt to get more drag.

Take the plate out and lap it, hopefully you don't have to go too deep...

[Navidad Nutcase]

Well, as usual, the guys that do this on a regular basis were correct. I put it on the emery and removed the ''Cracks'' My first clue that they weren't cracks was that they didn't go all the way to the outside. The second was that they were deep toward the middle and faded to the outside. Exactly opposite to what a crack would be. So all were correct in the assumption that someone did some modifying with an awl probably - from the center outward. The plate is as good as new. However, the problem remained.

It never ceases to amaze me that when I just KNOW the problem is THIS, -- I fail to see THAT. I disassembled the reel again and did a closer examination. the problem was the retaining cover over the drag assembly. I should have clued in when I had difficulty re-installing the thing. It just wouldn't snap down. Turns out it has been treated badly and is bent. One tiny little rub mark on the inside where the drag plate rubbed. I don't have another so I just left it out. Problem solved. This reel has plenty of drag and that drag is smooth as silk so I don't know why someone ''modified'' the system.
Thanks for all the advise. now find my post on the Sqall 50 VSW and hopefully, that will be as easy to fix.
Cheers
Greg

[alantani]

a little hut on the beach, an old table, a few screwdrivers and wrenches, a couple of candles and a little tequila.  sounds like the perfect place to set up shop!!!!!!