How to Orient Penn 980 Sideplate During Reassembly

[hotajax]

How do you hold / orient the side plate so that the pinion gear stays put, while you try at put the drag stack back in?  Most of the times I tried this, the washers, including the washer with the ears, would fall off.  No wonder I drink.  Thanks in advance.  Hot Ajax

[PacRat]

Install the stack on you gear sleeve, then put a small o-ring over the top (after the spacer) to hold all the washers. Put the bridge-plate back on your side plate and remove the o-ring. Here's a link to how to do the pinion, yoke. and AR dog. Skip forward to about 13 minutes.


-Mike

[Swami805]

If you don't have an O ring handy a rubber band works. Cut it off when you're done

[hotajax]

Thanks fellas.  Much appreciated. 

[Squidder Bidder]

Tom at Cortez Conversions makes a great tool for assembling the drag stack and installing it into the sideplate on smaller Penn reels - it screws down onto the gear sleeve and keeps the drag stack and main gear etc. where it should be.

Only issue is tat the bridge sleeve on the 970s and 980s is bigger, and the tool has a smaller diameter.

The O ring idea is good - wish I had seen this a few weeks ago when restoring a 970.