Latest Lubricants

[JasonGotaProblem]

Wasn't a lanolin based lubricant the go to back when these really vintage direct drive reels were cutting edge?

[kevin cozens]

I use penn blue grease and beige cals on clutches.
Lately i have been using ACF Corrosion block which like the penn grease is blue.
Compared to penn and calls, its very cheap and not much more expensive than conventional
multipurpose automotive grease
It is available in little 2oz tubes as well as 14ox grease gun tubes and 1lb tubs
As yet i have not been brave enough to try it on drag washers but if anyone has tried it on
drag washers i would like to know how they got on

[johndtuttle]

Should just be a re-packaged generic silicon marine grease (nothing wrong with that). Might even be repackaged Super Lube.

And small tubes are convenient.

I wouldn't worry about on drags, although some marine greases dry out more easily than others. If you're on top of maintenance then no worries.

[kevin cozens]

Try ACF50 Corrosion block. it is a waterproof silicone grease and the price is very good.
There is also a spray to protect chrome etc.
The grease comes in 3 sizes from a little 2oz tube to a 1lb tub.
Like penn grease it is blue in colour.
The tube has a pic of a reel on the tube meaning it is suitable for a reel.
It can also be used for many uses such as bearings on your car.
Here in the UK it is used by the RNLI (royal national lifeboat institute) in their boat trailers

[jurelometer]

Re ACF50 grease:

Here is the product data sheet:

http://www.learchem.com/files/brochures/cb-grease-eng-web.pdf

And the Saftey Data Sheet:

http://www.learchem.com/files/msds/corrosionblockgrease-whmis2015-english-v6.pdf

I like to take a look at the SDS before deciding to purchase a chemical product, and play close attention to the sections on toxicity and safe handling.  They recommend no skin contact for this product, so that means gloves when working on reels.


Some observations:

Bonus points for listing some of the properties in the data sheet. Better than the magic  reel grease products that have no data at all.  A couple useful items includes the thickness (NLGI 2), and a very high dropping point temperature (536 F).

The base oil is not listed (big deduction).  I don't think it is silicone oil, as the SDS lists the base oil as biodegradable, which silicone is not.  Silicone is resistant to solvents, so if the stuff is silicone base you will have to clean it out with something like dish soap and hot water. If you could find a reference to the base oil in the grease product, it would be useful.

For drag grease, you want a high dropping point, which this product has.  The popular drag greases usually also have a PFFE (AKA Teflon) additive, but I don't know if this is necessary.

ACF 50 spray is a well regarded thin film corrosion remover/protective coating, competing with products like Boeshield.  My guess is that they are using the same strategy as WD-40, Corrosion-X, and others to leverage a successful brand name in different lubricant products.  This is most likely just a typical grease, as it can't be a thick grease and a thin film at the same time.

Sounds like a decent product.  As John noted, resisting  oxidation while the reel is sitting around waiting for the next trip is usually the most important attribute.  Reels are not too demanding a piece of machinery when it comes to lubricants.

-J

[Hytekrednek]

I dont know about the superzilla grease, but if it is like a lot of these types of products, it is probably just a good plain bearing grease in a fancy labeled tube and sold with lots of hype and marketing. I suspect if it was that much better than normal grease, most would have heard about it and probably be using it.

The fact that you maintain your reels at all, even with a generic bearing grease, still puts you way ahead of most users. I tend to just use what a professional reel fixer uses and recommends.


There are some new and awesome lubricants out there based on very new chemistry, I just dont know enough about them to trust them in my $300-$700 reels. Were I to try a new grease, it would probably just be on one reel at first, likely an older mid-tier reel.

[johndtuttle]

I dont know about the superzilla grease, but if it is like a lot of these types of products, it is probably just a good plain bearing grease in a fancy labeled tube and sold with lots of hype and marketing. I suspect if it was that much better than normal grease, most would have heard about it and probably be using it.

The fact that you maintain your reels at all, even with a generic bearing grease, still puts you way ahead of most users. I tend to just use what a professional reel fixer uses and recommends.


There are some new and awesome lubricants out there based on very new chemistry, I just dont know enough about them to trust them in my $300-$700 reels. Were I to try a new grease, it would probably just be on one reel at first, likely an older mid-tier reel.

I'm with you, brother. And I have been bitten by curiosity to experiment with the latest synthetic miracles.

But it's far less a case of which grease you use. It's the amount of "elbow grease" you use in maintaining your gear that really matters. Factory prep has come a long way to gain durability advantages for most guys. Because most guys do nothing to maintain their gear other than a freshwater spritz now and again.

You could go a long way with the cheapest marine bearing grease at the local auto parts store and 3 in 1 oil found at a supermarket if you regularly used them both.

[tarpon one]

My Yamaha mechanic turned me onto his favorite grease which is Mercury / Quicksilver 2-4-C Marine Grease with Teflon. He said it is the only grease that he has found that doesn't harden in the saltwater environment. What I like about it is it is a little thinner consistency than Yamaha Marine Grease but yet still lubricates reel gears quite well. I also use it on my Yamaha motors and surprisingly when I repowered with new Yamaha F250's in 2018 and uncrated the new motors they appeared to be lubricated from the factory with 2-4-C. I know for certain they were not lubricated with Yamaha blue grease. In any event 2-4-C, Corrosion X and live bait is all I need.

[tincanary]

I use all Super Lube products.  NLGI1 and NLGI2, ISO 220 gear oil, plus the ISO 10 and ISO 22 light oils.  They all work very well.

[Shellbelly]

You could go a long way with the cheapest marine bearing grease at the local auto parts store and 3 in 1 oil found at a supermarket if you regularly used them both.

Amen!  I'm not against innovation and I respect the fine-tuning that some seek to gain enhanced performance.  I do believe reliance on "super lubes" to keep you out of your reel for extended periods is a risk.  IMO, you have to go in and see if this or that lube is really saving your reel or masking symptoms.

I don't know the specs of this stuff, but my Abu's love it.  it was fitty cents at a garage sale.
 

[Brewcrafter]

Shellbelly - Firstly, I REALLY hope you're joking us - I have to think that to a camara geek that box and bottle would be worth at least $1 as a shelfie and you could double your money as opposed to wasting it on reels....And since I happen to know somebody like that (a camara geek)...if you are really using that for reel maintenance, how about I trade you a couple of 4 oz. bottles of TSI321 that I am sure your Abu's will also love? - john

[Shellbelly]

Shellbelly - Firstly, I REALLY hope you're joking us

Sort of.  I had to try it, though.  A few drops went into 4 reels and the results were notable.  It has a metal applicator that helps to apply a drop (or less) exactly where you want it to go.  Reel oils should be so equipped to cut down on waste.  I believe this lube is for certain areas within motorized filmmaking equipment.

I understand the collector's POV. The top flap and ears of the box are missing.  I was kind of hoping someone would know what else this oil would have been marketed and labeled for.  I doubt it was made and used exclusively by Kodak.

Send me a PM.  I'm always willing to help the shelf of a fellow collector.

Returning to the topic...I was agreeing that any frequent maintenance is better than neglect.

[boon]

It's worthwhile experimenting with what's out there; like most areas of science/engineering things constantly move forward whether it's incrementally or massive advancements. I'm yet to find a "light" lubricant I like more than TSI321 but in greases there are definitely alternatives out there that outperform the extremely tacky marine greases we've been using for a while, in my opinion.

[johndtuttle]

It's worthwhile experimenting with what's out there; like most areas of science/engineering things constantly move forward whether it's incrementally or massive advancements. I'm yet to find a "light" lubricant I like more than TSI321 but in greases there are definitely alternatives out there that outperform the extremely tacky marine greases we've been using for a while, in my opinion.

I think for spinners this is certainly worth exploring as much as one cares to. Free tuning of the handle is very useful for tossing artificials or dropping jigs all day as spinners notoriously have poor cranking power.

With most conventionals I'm personally not too worried other than wanting solid and reliable corrosion protection (which TSI321 seems to be good for too).

Yours, John