patience paid off, Cardinal 4

Started by steelfish, December 01, 2023, 07:27:37 PM

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steelfish

This is a reel that I dont need it but wanted it  ^-^
pretty sure it wont see much action on this latitudes of north Baja but I will take it with me for fun on the shore with my 10ft and 13ft Light salmon rods from time to time, it will take the place of my shimano sonora 2500 for those UL/L duties, it has a bit more line capacity then my Abu cardinal S30 and almost the same than my Shimano Sonora 4000FA, to be honest I thought the reel was going to be smaller than actually is and Im good with that because anything smaller than this is pretty difficult to use on my zone for saltwater use, as many might know, no freshwater fishing over here in a range of 150 miles or more.

the reel is not a collector item or shelf queen material and Im good with that, because I want to put it on use, it has some discolored zones on the frame and few tiny nicks on the spool, other than that its in great condition, feels pretty smooth and freely when turning the handle, it might need a clean job and marine grease but thats it, paint in the numbers and lettering have not discolored zones which is nice and make it look cleaner.
btw the line lay is superb
The Baja Guy

foakes

Looks great, Alex —-

Get an aluminum spool from Les Shaw or Jimmy Daiwa.

3's seldom break, 6's & 7's already have aluminum spools.

4's just break on their own, or when barely tapped, or when older, or when the mono has been on the spool too long in storage.  Or whenever they want to with no warning.

Best, Fred
The Official, Un-Authorized Service and Restoration Center for quality vintage spinning reels.

D-A-M Quick, Penn, Mitchell, and ABU/Zebco Cardinals

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steelfish

Quote from: foakes on December 01, 2023, 07:43:55 PMLooks great, Alex —-

Get an aluminum spool from Les Shaw or Jimmy Daiwa.
Best, Fred

thanks Fred for the recommedation, I will look for the aluminum spool after the holidays, I have seen some on Ebay already ;D
I was also thinking to try to install a more comfy knob on the handle, something like the round light perforated aluminum knobs from Gomexus but first I want to tried as is.
The Baja Guy

Midway Tommy

Looks like you got a pretty nice example, Alex!  8) I think you'll like it.
Love those open face spinning reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco Cardinals)

Tommy D (ORCA), NE



Favorite Activity? ............... In our boat fishing
RELAXING w/ MY BEST FRIEND (My wife Bonnie)

Gfish

Quote from: Midway Tommy on December 02, 2023, 12:29:01 AMLooks like you got a pretty nice example, Alex!  8) I think you'll like it.

Yeah, and you're right, the line lay looks great!
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

jgp12000


steelfish

Quote from: Midway Tommy on December 02, 2023, 12:29:01 AMLooks like you got a pretty nice example, Alex!  8) I think you'll like it.

thanks Tommy, feels like a nice toy, all metal and really, considering all the years since it being produced only means the good quality used on those reels
The Baja Guy

DougK

excellent, handsome old reel..

my problem is I have no use for the big Cardinals and the small ones are too much money..

steelfish

I couldnt stopped me from testing an aftermarket handle knob on the shaft of the stock handle, but then, I couldnt stop until I make it work.
Well it wasnt a plug & play installation job, I searched for a bearing on hand that fit the shaft diameter and knob shaft OD and found one, but had problem finding a smaller and thinner bearing to make the aftermarket fit on the reel without any modification, but I remembered I have some delrin bushing that were sent to me with the "bad bearing tool" order so, after some sanding, filing and fine tuning that delring washer gave me the exact size to install the aftermarket handle knob on the stock handle shaft.
so the reel is ready for some show off pictures and some pictures with his modern sibling model, Cardinal s30, which cost 1/3 or 1/5 of what the old Zebco cardinal 4 can cost nowadays  :-\ 

no I dont have to take the handle knob as if I was pinching the reel and the handle knob feels super free on you hand.

The Baja Guy

Shark Hunter

#9
I realize this is an old post, but Those Cardinals are just like Old Cadillacs!
I love them.
Life is Good!

Patudo

How does the reel operate when filled up as much as in the first post?  I see the line level is noticeably lower in post #8.  Also, are they as susceptible to getting line behind the spool as eg Mitchells?  I've always been somewhat chary of "standard" spool reels for that reason.

PS. what's the fishing like in North Baja, and do you fish mostly from shore or boat?

steelfish

Quote from: Patudo on November 12, 2024, 05:07:26 PMHow does the reel operate when filled up as much as in the first post?  I see the line level is noticeably lower in post #8.  Also, are they as susceptible to getting line behind the spool as eg Mitchells?  I've always been somewhat chary of "standard" spool reels for that reason.

PS. what's the fishing like in North Baja, and do you fish mostly from shore or boat?

I havent used the reel yet, so, no comments on how it operate with that much line or with less line on the spool, my plan is taking all the line off the reel and put 15# braid line but of course I havent done it yet  :)

fishing in north of Baja is good, in the sea of cortez side you can cath yellowtail, leopard grouper, gulf grouper, corvinas, etc, etc and at the Pacific Ocean side, you can catch Tuna, YT, etc.

in the last years I've been fishing from a boat, shore fishing is not that good as in the beaches of Baja Sur but here you can have plenty of fun with small Corvinas, spotted baybass and few other critters.
The Baja Guy

Midway Tommy

The spool on the first photos is way over filled. The line should be about 1/8" from the spool lip when full to obtain the best casting.

Line getting under/behind the spool on non-skirted spool is way over blown. If line does get under the spool, which is generally rare, the culprit is way too much slack line. That's the fault of the user. I've seen line get under skirted spools, too, when the handler isn't paying close attention to the amount of slack in their line.
Love those open face spinning reels! (Especially ABU & ABU/Zebco Cardinals)

Tommy D (ORCA), NE



Favorite Activity? ............... In our boat fishing
RELAXING w/ MY BEST FRIEND (My wife Bonnie)